Dishing With 2009 Tony Host Neil Patrick Harris

Letting smart and smooth Neil Patrick Harris slap on a tux (or a tutu perhaps?) to host the 2009 Tony Awards seems like the smartest move CBS has made since luring Wolverine to the task. We chatted with the stage and screen vet (now seen on the hit sitcom How I Met Your Mother) about Broadway’s biggest night.

Wow! You’re hosting the Tonys!
Can you stand it?

Are you using the term host? Are you the emcee? I think Whoopi Goldberg last year said that she was a guide or something. Are you afraid of the “host” word?
Are you kidding? “Host” is one of the best titles ever. I will be your host, your master of ceremonies…that sounds nice. Ringmaster?

Whatever works. Did you want this job? Bang on the CBS doors?
I wasn’t really banging on the doors. I worked with the producers and director a couple of times before. But I didn’t do strong campaigning for it because I figured quite frankly that they’d go with a big movie star.

Well, some years they can’t even find a host for the Tonys. As a theater person, I’m always a little insulted by that.
You want to get someone people will recognize, but you also want to get someone who sort of knows the theater. That’s a tricky dynamic. It seems you have people who are one or the other.

So I guess Broadway can thank you for landing a hit sitcom and for becoming an Internet blog sensation.
Oh, Broadway’s doing fine without me. They don’t need to thank me for anything. I’m just very grateful that my random little career path has led me here.

David Letterman famously hosted the Oscars and joked a couple days after that he had no idea it was being televised. Some people say this could be a dangerous career move. Any nerves?
No. I feel like hosting is an easy gig. I really just need to convey a sense of calm and let the viewers know that they’re in good hands with me. That’s essentially my job. And thankfully everything I say is on a teleprompter, so there’s no memorization involved. The show this year is angling towards lots of production numbers, so I’m essentially just going to be commenting on a few things that have happened over the season and then passing the torch to different people. The people who have the most nerves at awards shows are the nominees because they don’t know how their night’s gonna end. It’s really a night to honor those who work so hard and to give people at home a peek into how Broadway works. It’s turned out to be kind of a kickass season and I hope the show reflects that.

There are always nerves at CBS about ratings. Have you been scoping out the competition on the other channels?
I hear the ratings for the Tonys are always pretty abysmal, so I’m not too worried about…

I looked it up for you. There are two shows I’m nervous about. The NBA finals on ABC, which I guess attracts a different kind of boy…
Is that the same night?

Yeah.
Is it definitely the same night? What if there’s a sweep?

That’s true. You know more about sports than I do. And then E! is broadcasting 30 Best and Worst Beach Bodies. Are you nervous about that at all?
[Laughs.] We’ll have some pretty good bodies ourselves on the show.

Name some of the best bodies on Broadway right now.
Well, the cast of Hair naked? That’s like at least 25.

Are they getting naked on the Tonys?
Here's hoping.

You surely watched the Tonys as a kid, probably with 2009 nominee Angela Lansbury hosting. She’s having an exciting comeback.
It's very exciting. Angela’s just unbelievable. I was lucky enough to be in an episode of Murder, She Wrote and she let me be an observing director on that episode. I got to sit in on all the casting sessions and producer’s notes and everything. She’s not only an amazing performer but an extraordinary businesswoman, and for her to decide to step back onto the stage in the latter chapter of her career just speaks volumes about her worth. She’s phenomenal. She’s going to be presenting on the Tonys, and it looks like she’s in strong contention for Featured Actress in a Play as well.

As Tony host, are you contractually forbidden from rooting for certain nominees?
The problem is that I have very strong opinions about things so I have to curb my negative responses. But if Broadway producers are really forcing people to shell out big money for tickets, it allows audiences to be critical in return if a show’s not so good. If it’s a $12 movie ticket and you don’t love The Mummy 3, you can just suck it up. But when you’re paying ten times that, you have the right to cry out. As the host, I can’t do that. That’ll get me in big trouble. But I’ll tell you right now what I love and can’t stop listening to…

Let me guess. Next to Normal.
Yes! Dude, I saw it like a week ago and I knew nothing of it. I came in totally green and I was just blown away. I bought the album at intermission and I’ve listened to it non-stop since. It’s the dark horse that I’m rooting for. Anytime Next to Normal wins, I’ll be cheering in the wings.

Whoopi Goldberg was famously your Jamaican maid in Clara’s Heart, your first movie.
She was.

Did she offer you any Tony hosting advice, ideally in that endearing motherly Jamaican accent?
[Laughs.] Uh, I haven’t spoken to her in Patois or otherwise. I was wondering if I should do multiple costume changes like her.

Yes, she came out as different characters from shows. Are you going to do any of that business?
She flew in like Mary Poppins, right?

Yeah.
I wonder if I should do the Marc Kudisch 9 to 5 harness.

Or you can be little Billy Elliot, spinning up in the air during that dreamy ballet.
There are so many options! I can come out as the fourth Billy Elliot.

Any plans to do something political? Maybe announce your gay engagement from the stage a la Cynthia Nixon?
Well, Prop 8 didn’t get overturned, so my hand is forced on that front.

You’re still dating cute David Burtka, whom you met while both of you were on Broadway and then whisked off to L.A. So is Broadway a good place to pick up hot guys?
Wow! Um… [Laughs.] I don’t know. Let me think of a fun comment for that. I think New York in general is a great place to pick up anyone. The difference between the West Coast and the East Coast is out there you’re in your car all the time here so if you think someone’s fetching, you can what, honk at them? You’re sort of in the mix more in New York and that certainly makes dating easier.

Can fans of Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog look for shout-outs on Sunday?
I doubt it because even though it was a musical, it wasn’t on stage so I don’t want to muddy the waters. But if we end up cashing in and doing Dr. Horrible live in Las Vegas, then maybe I can do a number from that eventually.

You’d be in for doing that on stage?
Was Michael Crawford in for EFX?

So, Neil Patrick Harris hosting the Tonys… Does it promise to be, as your How I Met Your Mother character might say, legendary?
Oh, wow. I make no promises, I just hope we can maybe gain a quarter of a ratings point. That would make all of us happy.

Come back to Broadway? Please?
As soon as I have a free year, I’m there.