As the coronavirus pandemic continues to keep New York theatres closed, the Drama Desk has ensured that their show will go on—albeit differently than planned.
The 65th Annual Drama Desk Awards will still take place May 31 (with nominations announced April 21) as scheduled, though the winners will now be revealed online instead of at the Town Hall ceremony. Because of the shutdown, the awards' eligibility window has been revised to end March 11 (the day before mass gathering restrictions were implemented in New York).
This year's awards will be presented in honor of former Drama Desk President William Wolf, who died in March due to COVID-19 complications.
The news follows similar announcements from other major ceremonies that constitute the spring theatre awards season. The Lucille Lortel Awards will continue to highlight Off-Broadway theatre with nominations announced April 14 and winners revealed digitally May 3. The Obie Awards have been postponed, with a virtual event happening later in the year; in the meantime, the American Theatre League, a co-organizer of the Off-Broadway celebration, will establish a fund for artists impacted by canceled productions. The Drama League has "re-envisioned" its 2020 ceremony as the Gratitude Awards fundraiser.
The 74th annual Tony Awards, originally set to take place June 7 at Radio City Music Hall, have been postponed, with rescheduling details to be revealed once the industry has a clearer sense of when shows will resume.
