The Writers Guild of America (WGA) has announced that it will not picket the 2023 Tony Awards, which means the ceremony will go on and be telecast on June 11, after all.
The news comes after the Broadway League and American Theatre Wing, which jointly present the awards, agreed to alter this year’s show “to conform with specific requests from the WGA,” according to a statement released by the writers union.
This ruling comes after the WGA’s rejection of the Tonys’ request for a special waiver to continue with a traditional broadcast.
Reports of this denial for a waiver first broke on May 12. The Tony Awards Management Committee held an emergency meeting on May 15 to discuss next steps. It now appears that the committee decided to adjust the ceremony and, in turn, requested that the WGA refrain from picketing the unconventional ceremony and its telecast.
The WGA reaffirmed that it will not negotiate an interim agreement or waiver for the Tonys, but it will not picket at the United Palace.
In the statement, the WGA recognized the support of unions across Broadway. Actors’ Equity Association, the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees and the American Federation of Musicians, all of which represent members who work on Broadway, have declared solidarity with the WGA. Many members of these unions have joined WGA picket lines. “As they have stood by us, we stand with our fellow workers on Broadway who are impacted by our strike,” the WGA statement reads.
The 76th annual Tony Awards ceremony is set to be broadcast on CBS and Paramount+ with a pre-show on Pluto TV (another Paramount company).
“Responsibility for having to make changes to the format of the 2023 Tony Awards rests squarely on the shoulders of Paramount/CBS and their allies,” the WGA statement reads. “They continue to refuse to negotiate a fair contract for the writers represented by the WGA.”
