Tony Awards' Third Set of Rulings: Harvey Fierstein Eligible for Torch Song Revisions & More

The Tony Awards administration committee met on April 11 for the third time this season to confirm the eligibility status of seven Broadway productions for the American Theatre Wing's 2019 Tony Awards. The administration committee will meet a total of four times throughout the 2018-2019 season to decide the eligibility for the 73rd Annual Tony Awards.

Among the productions discussed were King Kong, Choir Boy, True West, Be More Chill, Ain't Too Proud, What the Constitution Means to Me and Kiss Me, Kate.

Notable among the new batch of rulings is a pair of new eligibility rules, one of which makes four-time Tony winner Harvey Fierstein eligible to win a Tony for the reworked staging of his play Torch Song, for which he previously won a Tony as the original Torch Song Trilogy.

The full list of the administration committee's determinations can be found below.

Christiani Pitts and Eric William Morris will be considered eligible in the Best Performance by an Actress/Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical categories for their respective performances in King Kong.

Peter England’s projection design will be considered eligible along with his scenic design in the Best Scenic Design of a Musical category, for his work on King Kong.

Jeremy Pope will be considered eligible in the Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Play category for his performance in Choir Boy.

Will Roland will be considered eligible in the Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical category for his performance in Be More Chill.

Beowulf Boritt and Alex Basco Koch will be considered jointly eligible in the Best Scenic Design of a Musical category for their work on Be More Chill.

Corbin Bleu will be considered eligible in the Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical category for his performance in Kiss Me, Kate.

Derrick Baskin will be considered eligible in the Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical category for his performance in Ain't Too Proud.

Robert Brill and Peter Nigrini will be considered jointly eligible in the Best Scenic Design of a Musical category for their work on Ain't Too Proud.

Heidi Schreck will be considered eligible in the Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Play category for her performance in What the Constitution Means to Me.

Additionally, the Tony Awards administration committee has established the following new rules, beginning with the current season:

1. The author(s) and composer(s) of plays and musicals that are determined eligible in a Best Revival of a Play or Musical categories but did not have any prior presentation in an eligible Broadway theater, and who are living at the time the production receives the determination, will be considered eligible along with the producers of the production in the Best Revival of a Play/Musical categories.

In compliance with the new rule, the following authors will be eligible, along with the producers, in the category of Best Revival of a Play:

The Boys in the Band: Mart Crowley
The Waverly Gallery: Kenneth Lonergan

2. The author(s) and composer(s) of plays and musicals determined eligible in the Best Revival of a Play or Musical categories, whether or not such author(s) and composer(s) have won previously, will be considered eligible along with the producers in these categories, provided, only if, in the judgment of the Tony Awards Administration Committee, the author(s) and composer(s) have substantially reworked the play or musical.

In accordance with this new rule, the Tony Awards administration committee has determined that the following author will be eligible, along with the producers, in the category of Best Revival of a Play:

Torch Song: Harvey Fierstein

Unless determined otherwise by the Tonys administration committee, actresses and actors billed above a show's title are automatically considered eligible in lead acting categories, while those billed below the title are eligible in featured categories.

In order for shows to be eligible for 2018-2019 season Tony eligibility, they must officially open by April 25, 2019. Tony nominations will be announced by Brandon Victor Dixon and Bebe Neuwirth on the morning of April 29.

The 2019 Tony Awards, hosted by James Corden, will be held at Radio City Music Hall on June 9; the ceremony will be broadcast live on CBS.

The first two rounds of 2018-2019 Tony rulings can be found here and here.