Darren Criss, a current Tony Award nominee for “Maybe Happy Ending,” and Renée Elise Goldsberry, a past Tony winner for “Hamilton,” have been selected to host the 2025 Tonys pre-show “Tony Awards: Act One.” It will stream live on June 8 from 6:40 p.m. until 8:00 p.m. eastern time, available to view for free on Pluto TV.
Criss can currently be seen in “Maybe Happy Ending” as Oliver, a role for which he is a 2025 Leading Actor in a Musical Tony nominee. Criss’ prior Broadway credits include “American Buffalo,” “Hedwig and the Angry Inch” and “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying.” Criss played Blaine Anderson on “Glee” and earned an Emmy Award nomination for penning the music and lyrics to the series’ song “This Time.” Criss won the Emmy for playing Andrew Cunanan in the anthology series “The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story.”
Goldsberry originated the role of Angelica Schuyler in “Hamilton,” winning the 2016 Tony as Featured Actress in a Musical and a Grammy Award for her vocals on the musical’s cast album; Goldsberry earned an Emmy nomination for her turn in the musical’s filmed version. Goldsberry was seen on Broadway this past season in “All In: Comedy About Love.” Her other Broadway credits include “Good People,” “The Color Purple,” “The Lion King” and “Rent.” She earned a pair of Emmy nominations for her performance as Evangeline Williamson on “One Live to Live.” Goldsberry’s debut album, “Who I Really Am,” will come out in June.
Immediately following “Tony Awards: Act One,” the 78th Annual Tony Awards ceremony will be broadcast live on CBS and Paramount+ from 8:00 p.m. until 11:00 p.m. eastern time. This year’s show, hosted by Tony, Emmy and Grammy winner and Oscar nominee Cynthia Erivo, will play Radio City Music Hall.
The Tony Awards are produced in collaboration with Tony Award Productions, a joint venture of the American Theatre Wing and the Broadway League, in collaboration with White Cherry Entertainment, for which Ricky Kirshner and Glenn Weiss are executive producers and showrunners.
A complete list of 2025 Tony nominations can be viewed here.
