Tony Awards: Money Quotes

"There's a line in Frost/Nixon which says, "Success in America is unlike success anywhere else. That feeling when you're up, it's indescribable." I'm very grateful to the theater community, to my colleagues in Frost/Nixon here and overseas and the New York theatergoing public for allowing me that feeling this season. The line in the play then goes on to say "But there's another feeling, when it's gone, to somewhere else, to someone else." And I know that feeling, everyone in this room knows it. I suppose we can't stop people from putting us into competition with one another, and once we're here, I suppose we all want to win, but I think we must honor the common bond in us, the struggle. The striving for success because that's a race we simply can't lose. I am very proud, very honored to work and live among you splendid people. Thank you. Thank you for giving me that indescribable feeling, I wish it for you all." - Frank Langella gives the best speeches, no?


"I didn't go to acting school, [but] I have been working in the theatre for 25 years. Over that time you learn by doing and you learn by watching wonderful people, and you learn by making dreadful, embarrassing mistakes! . . . I literally made my debut 20 years ago in Lucky Stiff — a musical by Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty. I sang the dog song." - Julie White in the Tony press room, following her win (via the Playbill.com Tony Blog)


"Frank Wood, Mary McCann, Kerry Gartner, Jim Carnahan, all of our producers..." - John Gallagher Jr. thanked Frank Wood and Mary McCann, the only two actors who were replaced when Spring Awakening moved to Broadway.

"Not one audience shot of Les Moonves in the entire TONY broadcast. I thought, “Wait a minute. Is this not the TONYS?” And then a winner mentioned Judy Garland at Carnegie Hall and I knew I was in the right place." - Blogger and tv writer Ken Levine on the Tony telecast

"Of all the big awards shows, I find the Tonys the most reliably moving... Though the awards honor only a fraction of what makes up even New York theater, they nevertheless seem to stand for the art as a whole in a way that the Oscars, Grammys or Emmys don't — they represent a community rather than an industry." - Robert Lloyd of the LA Times , in his review of the telecast

"I did tell Jack O'Brien that if he wanted to a do a musical of this, I think 'Serfs Up' would be a good title." - Tom Stoppard

"Special thanks to music director Kim Grigsby, sound designer Brian Ronan, casting director Jim Carnahan because the Tonys aren't given for their categories, and I think they should be." - Michael Mayer thinks there should be a Tony for casting.

"That's the virus of the show... It starts with that young woman whose body is talking to her. I told them, 'Feel just the tips of your body. Feel all those gentle, tender places you would like to be kissed." - Spring Awakening choreographer Bill T. Jones (via Variety)