Behind the Awards with Eila Mell & Bruce Gotlieb

Eila & Bruce bring you the third installment of their Tony deep dive. They are joined by expert Matt Stashin and share who will win and who they want to win in the following categories: Featured Actress in a Musical, Book of a Musical, Scenic Design of a Play, Best Revival of a Play, and Sound Design of a Musical. Shoshana Bean, Hannah Cruz, Rachel Dratch, Ana Gasteyer, Nichelle Lewis, David Horns...

Tony Nominee Nicholas Christopher joins Behind the Awards to discuss his role as Anatoli, part of this seasons hottest love triangle along with Lea Michele and Aaron Tevin in the revival of the Chess.  Nicholas also talks about playing both Pirelli and Sweeney Todd in the most recent revival co-starring Annaleigh Ashford.  Nicholas also goes into his roles is Little Shop of Horrors, Miss Saigon, J...

Eila & Bruce bring you the second installment of their Tony deep dive. They are joined by expert Matt Stashin and share who will win and who they want to win in the following categories: Featured Actress in a Play, Lighting Design of a Musical, Costume Design of a Play, Best Original Score and Director of a Play. Also in this episode - Fun Facts about the 2026 Tony Nominees! Betsy Aidem, Marylouis...

Olivier Award winning and Tony Nominated Actor Sam Tutty joins Behind the Awards to chat about his award winning role in Dear Evan Hansen and this seasons breakout hit Two Strangers Carry a Cake Across New York.  Sam shares the creation process from its early days to Boston and New York. Also in this episode - Eila & Bruce discuss the increased ticket prices for some Broadway shows. Sam Tutty is c...

Eila & Bruce bring you the first installment of their Tony deep dive. They are joined by expert Matt Stashin and share who will win and who they want to win in the following categories: Best Choreography; Best Sound Design of a Play; Best Orchestrations; Featured Actor in a Play; and Featured Actor in a Musical. Ali Louis Bourzgui, André De Shields, Bryce Pinkham, Ben Levi Ross, Layton Williams, C...

Actor Michael Cyril Creighton steps out of Arconia to head downtown to The New Groups new home at the Theater at St Clements to star in the new adaptation of The Adding Machine.  Michael shares the stage with Daphne Rubin-Vega, Jennifer Tilly and Sarita Choudhury.  This 100 year old play is surprisingly timely and Michael discusses what it’s like playing over a dozen characters.  Michael also disc...

Emmy Winner Ana Gasteyer stops by Behind the Awards to chat about the newest hit on Broadway Schmigadoon!  Ana shares how she approaches the role of Mildred Layton and being the villain on an Oz like fantasy world.  Ana also talks about being a cast member on SNL, Auditioning and finally playing Elphaba on Broadway, her love of broadway and belting, as well as her upcoming projects. Also in this e...

Tony Nominated Playwright Bess Wohl joins Behind the Awards for a deep dive conversation on the creation of Liberation.  Bess talks about creating a team of artists to help transport the audience back to the 70s and what a joy it was to watch Whitney White, David Zinn, Qween Jean, and Nikya Mathis create poetry. Also in this episode - Eila & Bruce review Schmigadoon! Bess Wohl is a playwright and...

Tony Winner Brandon Uranowitz stops by Behind the Awards to deep dive the role of Tateh in the current broadway revival of Ragtime.  Brandon also shares his experiences in Tom Stoppard’s Leopoldstadt and Falsettos.  Brandon reminisces about his chemistry test with Stephanie J Block and how he got his start as a child in the Toronto Cast of Ragtime pre-Broadway. Also in this episode - Bruce & Eila...

Maria Christina-Oliveras joins us on the heels of the success of The Balusters.  MC does a deep dive on the show and her role of Luz as well as the journey in unpacking the truth in the humor of David Lindsay-Abaire new American Play.  MC reminisces about her time with McKinley Henderson in Between Riverside and Crazy.  She also shares her passion for developing new works and being part of the wor...

Tony & Emmy Winning Designer Derek McLane drops by Behind the Awards to give the inside scoop on how he created such designs as Moulin Rouge, MJ, Death Becomes Her, Beautiful and most recently The Balusters.  Derek also details different skills he learned from his mentors Ming Cho Lee and Robin Wagner.   We also learned the inside secrets that make some of the magic in Death Becomes Her.  Derek al...

Behind the Awards welcomes back their resident awards expert Matt Stashin to play Tony Nominator before the actual nominations are announced.  What will make our lists; Cats: The Jellicle Ball, Titanique, Ragtime, or Chess?  Could Christiani Pitts, Marla Mindelle, Brandon Uranowitz, Nicholas Christopher, Carrie Coon, Ayo Edebiri, Daniel Radcliffe, Ali Louis Bourzgui, Jim Parsons, June Squibb or Da...

Outsiders Original cast member Barton Cowperthwaite joins Behind the Awards to talk about his new show Gotta Dance now running at Stage 42.  Barton shares what it was like to grow up as a High School Dance Major, Dance the American in Paris Ballet on Tour and put this current show together with the gate keepers of the original pieces such as Baayork Lee, Donna McKechnie, Christopher Wheeldon, Susa...

Choreographer/Director Lorin Latarro joins Behind the Awards to discuss the creation of the Chess Revival starring Lea Michele, Aaron Tveit and Nicholas Christopher. Listen for the origin story of getting Aaron Tevit’s paints on and her favorite moment of the show which happens right before One Night in Bancock.  Lorin also talks about her other bodies of work including Heart of Rock & Roll, Joy,...

Choreographer/Director Ellenore Scott take a moment out of her busy schedule to give us the scoop on her current show; Ragtime, Titanique and Little Shop of Horrors.  Ellenore shares her journey from Alvin Alley to So You Think You Can Dance to working with Billy Crystal and mounting not only the Broadway Funny Girl but this summer heading to Japan to kick off the run. Also in this episode - Tony’...

Actor/Writer Harrison Bryan returns to Behind the Awards to discuss life as an Understudy for Ethan Slater in Marcel on the Train.  This play follows a 20yr old Marcel Marceau and the untold story of how he saved children during World War 2.  Now playing at CSC through March 22nd, 2026. Also in this episode - Pie Day! Featuring Sweeney Todd & Waitress Harrison Bryan is an award-winning multi-hyphe...

Star of Stage, Screen and Drag Latrice Royale stops by Behind the Awards to dish on all things, RuPaul’s Drag Race, Little Shop of Horrors, Stop! That! Train! and more!  Listen to hear how much reality is in reality TV and Latrice’s journey from Color Guard to Miss Congeniality to her own show coming to a stage near you! Best known for her Chunky Yet Funky, Bold and Beautiful appearances on shows...

Actor/Writer Andrew Keenan - Bolger takes us back in time to NYC in the 90s with his new Novel Limelight.  Andrew brings back the real life characters from that time such as Rentheads, Clubkids who were navigating a changing city.  Andrew also takes us back to where his career began with Disney’s Beauty & The Beast, The National Tour of Ragtime and of course fan favorite Newsies. Get tickets for A...

Steppenwolf Ensemble Member Namir Smallwood stops by Behind the Awards to deep dive Peter Evan in Bug by Tracy Letts.  Namir talks about working with Carrie Coon and David Cromer and taking the show from Chicago to NY.  Catch Namir in Bug just extended through March 8th. Also in this episode - Invited Dress Rehearsal of Every Brilliant Thing Starring Daniel Radcliffe Namir Smallwood joined the Ste...

Behind the Awards goes on location to bring you to The Kleban Awards!  This live episode brings you interviews with Santino Fontana, Susan Stroman, Richard Maltby Jr, Maury Yeston, and John Weidman as well as performances by Talia Suskauer, Santino Fontana and more.  Congratulations to the winners Phillip Christian Smith and Eric Price. Also in this episode - Suffs PBS Airdate announced for May 8t...

Tony Winner Myles Frost visits Behind the Awards to chat about his upcoming leading role in Chez Joey Directed by Savion Glover & Tony Goldwyn.  Myles also takes us back with a look at the experience of becoming Michael Jackson in MJ the Musical both on Broadway and The West End. Get tickets for Chez Joey - https://tickets.arenastage.org/events/38123 Also in this episode.- The closing announcement...

Christine Sherrill makes her Debut on Broadway as well as with us here at Behind the Awards.  Christine dishes on what it’s like to go from Tour to Broadway, The moment she found out she was going to Broadway, and what Bucket List roles she has in mind.  Christine talks about how this show is a fan favorite from Stage Door excitement to viral moments in the audience. Also in this episode - Bug on...

Actor Jonathan Mousset joins Behind the Awards to chat about his career.  Jonathan talks about the experience that comes with creating new works through the 29 hour reading process.  Jonathan talks about auditioning, touring the county in regional theaters and the importance of vocal health. Also in this episode - Oscar Nomination takeaways.  From Kate Hudson’s Nomination for Song Sung Blue to Fra...

Marc Shaiman - Never Mind the Happy Tony, Emmy, Grammy Award winning Composer and Lyricist Marc Shaiman stops by Behind the Awards to give us a sneak peek into his Memoir Never Mind the Happy.  Marc shares his path to success when a daydream turned into reality starring Bette Midler.  Marc also recounts his time on SNL and meeting Billy Crystal and Martin Short, his many Movie credits including Fi...

Life long theater kid Tonatiuh joins Behind the Awards to talk about one of the Movie Musicals of the year alongside Jennifer Lopez & Deigo Luna.  Tonatiuh shares his journey from audition to shooting in record time to the premier.  Tonatiuh recalls being put through his dancing paces with Sergio Trujillo and the friendship his gained under the direction of Bill Condon.  As if that wasn’t enough T...