NEW YORK (AP) – As presenter Barbra Streisand noted, “tonight our joy is tinged with sorrow” – and she wasn’t the only one making reference to the horrific Orlando shootings during the Tony Awards ceremony. But the night was also a celebration of the power of theater to bring joy. And there much joy for the cast and creators of the wildly popular “Hamilton,” which won a whopping 11 Tonys.
A look at some of the night’s top moments, both onstage and off:
A SEARING SONNET
“Hamilton” creator Lin-Manuel Miranda, the eloquent hero of this Broadway season, is known for giving acceptance speeches in freestyling rap. But on this night, he told the crowd, he opted to write a sonnet instead. His own tears over the Orlando tragedy were infectious, as he spoke of “when senseless acts of tragedy remind us that nothing is promised, not one day.” But, he added: “Hope and love last longer, and love is love is love is love.”
THE LOOK OF DIVERSITY