Set the Tony Table: Prepping for Broadway’s Biggest Party Night

While Broadway.com staffers are (happily!) hunched over our computers on the evening of June 12, the rest of theater-loving America will be raising a glass at Tony Awards parties. With a little inspiration from this year’s nominated shows, we've put together a menu, from pre-party passables to a final nightcap. Mark your ballots, place your bets and remember: the rules of our Tony Awards drinking game are to be strictly enforced. When the curtain goes down, all anyone will be talking about is the The Book of…More, Please!

Pre-Party Munchies
Prepare for arrivals and pass yourself off as an air host(ess) with the most(ess) with some simple Catch Me If You Can-apes. An airline-style cocktail peanut mix will suffice, though ‘60s-era snacks like deviled eggs or pretty much anything (olives, cheese cubes, etc.) threaded on a brightly colored toothpick wouldn’t go amiss. For an elegant touch, throw together some Earnest-friendly cucumber sandwiches. Lightly butter slices of soft white bread (no crusts please), layer with paper thin slices of cucumber, stick out those pinkies, et voila!

Cocktail Hour
To get your guests in an appropriately festive mood while the night’s nominees are still walking the red carpet, get a kick out of a classic champagne cocktail a la Anything Goes. Place a sugar cube in the bottom of a champagne flute, splash with Angostura bitters and fill slowly with your choice of sparkling wines. Bottoms up!

Hors D’eouvres
As the overture starts at the Beacon Theatre, whet your guests’ appetite with an ooey-gooey dish of Jerusalem artichoke dip. Mix frozen Jerusalem artichoke hearts with frozen spinach, sour cream, mayo, parmesan cheese, salt and garlic powder and stick the whole mess in the oven until golden, bubbly and as baked as Johnny "Rooster" Byron on a normal day. Garnish with chips, like of the one on the shoulder of The Normal Heart’s courageous crusader Ned Weeks, and serve!

Main Course
To satisfy partygoers with a real appetite for life, take a cue from the sinners of Sister Act and serve up some tempting Philly cheese steaks. Saute strips of good-quality beef with onions and peppers, slap 'em on a hoagie roll, top with provolone cheese and serve up hot for a meal worth breaking out of a convent for. Serve with a side of Good People Boston baked beans and a nice Italian red wine worthy of a Merchant of Venice, and you’re good to go. 

Dessert
Ride into the awards show sunset with a s’more Horse. Former summer campers know the drill: Stack chocolate and marshmallows between two graham crackers and (for those of us who live sans-fireplace) nuke for 10 seconds. For another chocolate option, provide some turtles in honor of Arcadia’s ever-present tortoise Plautus/Lightning. Who could say no to pecans slathered in caramel and chocolate? To keep hands cleaner, set out a Mormon-inspired ‘Jello!’ ring, sure to satisfy even the cleanest of souls. To make sure your guests make it through the final speeches, pair your desserts with a How to Succeed "Coffee Break"!

Cocktails, Part Two
Nightcap, anyone? Show some solidarity for The Scottsboro Boys with an Alabama Slammer, made with Amaretto, Southern Comfort, Sloe gin, and orange juice. For those Motherf**kers in recovery, take another cue from Sister Act and mix up a pitcher of Virgin Marys: nutritious and delicious.