James Earl Jones will be honored at the 71st annual Tony Awards Sunday, June 11, at a live presentation at Radio City Music Hall. At the age of 86, Jones will receive a well-deserved Special Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Theatre. His Broadway career began in 1958, with “Sunrise at Campobella,” and has continued through to 2015 with “The Gin Game,” where he shared the stage with Cicely Tyson. Jones makes all of us proud.
If you have ever seen Jones onstage, you know you have had an extraordinary experience. He is incredibly focused whenever he takes to the stage. I felt privileged to have seen him and Cicely Tyson in “The Gin Game.”
African-Americans also have places among the Tony Award nominees. Superb playwright and Pulitzer Prize winner Lynn Nottage is up for a Tony for Best Play for her new work “Sweat.” A production that began at the Public Theater and moved to Broadway, it is a deep, revealing play about what happens to the lives of factory workers when the factory is closing. Michelle Wilson is up for Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Play for “Sweat.”
Something that warms my heart about this year’s Tony Awards is that the late August Wilson is getting his due. “Jitney,” which finally came to Broadway—part of his 10-play series of Black life in the 20th century—is up for several Tony Awards, including Best Revival of a Play. Blacks up for the coveted award include John Douglas Thompson for Best Featured Actor in a Play, Ruben Santiago-Hudson for Best Direction of a Play and Toni Leslie James for Best Costume Design of a Play. Other nominations include Best Lighting Design for Jane Cox and Best Scenic Design for David Gallo.
Condola Rashad, the very talented daughter of Phylicia Rashad, is nominated for Best Featured Actress in a Play for “A Doll’s House, Part 2.” Corey Hawkins is nominated for Best Lead Actor in a Play for his performance in “Six Degrees of Separation.” Denee Benton is nominated for Leading Actress in a Musical for “Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1912.”
I cannot wait until the Tony Awards June 11. I hope everyone will watch to support Jones and hope that “Sweat” and “Jitney” receive acknowledgment with the cherished award. I can tell you from personal experience “Jitney” was one of the best plays on Broadway this season. I was sorry to see it close as quickly as it did. The play, actors and direction were sheer brilliance. The Tony Awards will be televised live on Channel 2. Tune in and enjoy.