Broadway.News: Actors’ Equity pushes for creation of Tony Award categories honoring ensembles

Actors’ Equity is championing the two proposed awards, Best Chorus in a Musical or Play, and Best Ensemble in a Musical or Play, as part of a national campaign launched Wednesday. The union has sent a letter to the American Theatre Wing and the Broadway League to request the inclusion of the categories in the 2018-2019 season. Members of Equity have been pushing for these awards for some time, as the union feels that chorus and ensemble members are some of the hardest-working individuals on Broadway and deserving of recognition, Kate Shindle, president of Actors’ Equity, said in an interview with Broadway News. “We feel like it’s really an essential part of the equation of the show,” Shindle said. The launch of the campaign, which includes a website featuring an online petition and digital ads, comes after Equity’s National Council formally voted to request the two new categories, and as the union continues its push to be “more aggressive and responsive to its membership,” Shindle said. READ MORE