When Broadway's Tony Awards are bestowed on Sunday night, share your savvy views and read our snarky ones right here. Also joining me in our live chat will be Envelope contributor Paul Sheehan, plus L.A. Times colleagues Patrick Kevin Day, Lisa Fung, Charles McNulty and Sherry Stern.

Check out more of the Envelope's extensive pre-Tonys coverage: list of experts' predictions, videos of pundits slugging out who'll take home the trophies, plus video chats with nominees Jane Fonda, Marcia Gay Harden and Constantine Maroulis and more. See links below.

RELATED POSTS

Tonys prediction slugfest: Will 'God of Carnage' win best play?

Even the acting gods of 'Carnage' get a little afraid sometimes

Neil Patrick Harris to host Tony Awards

'Billy Elliot' and 'God of Carnage' lead Tony Award nominations

Talking Tonys: Who bestows Broadway's top award?

Photo: CBS

Get Gold Derby on Twitter. Join the Gold Derby Group at Facebook. Become friends with Tom O'Neil on Facebook. Get Gold Derby RSS feed via Facebook. RSS Feedburner. RSS Atom.

Envelope contributor Paul Sheehan and I disagree over which Academy Award-winning actress is going to take home the Tony Award for her performance in a play this year. Paul thinks it will be two-time Oscar champ Jane Fonda for her return to Broadway after a 46-year absence in "33 Variations." And I agree with most other pundits that Marcia Gay Harden will win for her over-the-top performance in "God of Carnage."  After watching us battle it out, be sure to read our complete breakdown of pundits' predix before tuning into the Tony Awards on Sunday night on CBS and joining us here for our live chat.

RELATED POSTS

Updated experts' predix: Who'll win the Tonys

Neil Patrick Harris dishes Tony Awards hosting gig

Tony Awards serve Poison, Dolly Parton, Elton John and Liza Minnelli

Tonys prediction slugfest: Will 'God of Carnage' win best play?

Marcia Gay Harden on Tony, Oscar and 'God of Carnage'

Even the acting gods of 'Carnage' get a little afraid sometimes

'Billy Elliot' and 'God of Carnage' lead Tony Award nominations

Talking Tonys: Who bestows Broadway's top award?

Get Gold Derby on Twitter. Join the Gold Derby Group at Facebook. Become friends with Tom O'Neil on Facebook. Get Gold Derby RSS feed via Facebook. RSS Feedburner. RSS Atom.

The lineup of presenters and performers at this Sunday's Tony Awards represents the wide array of shows on Broadway this season. There will be performances from the four nominated new musicals — "Billy Elliot," "Next to Normal," "Rock of Ages" and "Shrek" — as well as the quartet of revivals — "Guys and Dolls," "Hair," "Pal Joey" and "West Side Story" — contending for theater's top honor. In addition, the three-hour Tonycast on CBS will highlight the success of touring productions of long-running tuners.

Accompanying David Alvarez, Trent Kowalik and Kiril Kulish — the three Tony-nominated teens who alternate playing the title role in "Billy Elliot" — will be the show's Tony-contending composer Elton John. This is John's third Tony bid after a loss for "The Lion King" in 1996 and a win for "Aida" in 2000.

Broadway newcomer Dolly Parton penned the songs for "9 to 5" and picked up a Tony nod for her efforts. While the show was snubbed for the top award of best musical, the cast will be joining Parton for a lively rendition of her Oscar-nominated title tune.

Poison will be performing with the cast of "Rock of Ages," an affectionate look back at the big hair, big sound rock bands of the 1980s. That show landed a surprise best musical nod at the expense of "9 to 5." And "American Idol" also-ran Constantine Maroulis earned a lead actor nom as well.

Among his competition is "Shrek" star Bryan D'Arcy James, who will be performing the number "What's Up, Duloc" along with the rest of the cast of this toon-come-to-life tuner, including Tony nominees Sutton Foster and Christopher Sieber.

Best musical actress front-runner Alice Ripley will sing a song from "Next to Normal," the critically acclaimed new musical about a woman dealing with bipolar disorder. Joining Ripley onstage will be her Tony-nominated castmates J. Robert Spencer and Jennifer Damiano, among others. 

Another contender for the musical actress award is Stockard Channing, who won a Tony for her work in the play "Joe Egg" in 1985 and has competed four more times on that front since. This theater vet received her first musical nod for the revival of "Pal Joey," and she will be singing a number from that glorious Rodgers & Hart show.

Two-time musical actress Tony winner Liza Minnelli ("Flora the Red Menace," 1965; "The Act," 1978) made a triumphant return to the rialto last fall in a one-woman show at the Palace Theatre. She is nominated for special theatrical event and will be performing a number from that hit show.

Envelope contributor Paul Sheehan is the only Tonys pundit on the planet who thinks "God of Carnage" isn't a shoo-in to win best play this Sunday at Radio City Music Hall. Is he daffy? Probably, but let's hear him make his case for "Dividing the Estate" anyway. See a complete breakdown of pundits' predix here.

RELATED POSTS

Pundits' predix: Who'll win the Tonys

Marcia Gay Harden on Tony, Oscar and 'God of Carnage'

Talkin' Tonys with Constantine Maroulis

Even the acting gods of 'Carnage' get a little afraid sometimes

Neil Patrick Harris to host Tony Awards

'Billy Elliot' and 'God of Carnage' lead Tony Award nominations

Talking Tonys: Who bestows Broadway's top award?

New York Drama Critics Circle snubs Tony Award contenders to name 'Ruined' best play

'Ruined' wins Pulitzer Prize for drama

As usual, non-Broadway shows get stomped at the Drama Desk Awards

Should the Drama Desk revamp its awards?

Get Gold Derby on Twitter. Join the Gold Derby Group at Facebook. Become friends with Tom O'Neil on Facebook. Get Gold Derby RSS feed via Facebook. RSS Feedburner. RSS Atom.

Daniel Craig and Hugh Jackman are coming to Broadway this fall in Keith Huff's award-winning play "A Steady Rain." While the limited run of this acting showcase is sure to sell out, will this two-hander win over the notoriously feisty Gotham critics? For its original 2007 run in Chicago, the production won Joseph Jefferson Awards (the second city's equivalent of the Tony Awards) for best play at a midsize theater, best new work and best lead actor.

It is easy to understand why "A Steady Rain" would appeal to Hugh Jackman and Daniel Craig. The two characters in the play are one-time best friends who served together on the Chicago police force. Over the course of 90 minutes, they relive the police call that tore them apart — a domestic dispute that culminated in the death of a young boy. For the Aussie and the Brit, it will be a chance to prove they can play Americans.

The only other time Hugh Jackman headlined on Broadway, he won a Tony for his efforts. In the 2004 tuner "The Boy From Oz," he played camp Aussie singer-songwriter Peter Allen. Onstage for almost the entire show, Jackman was a force of nature. Offstage he charmed the theater community and hosted the Tony Awards for three years running, even winning a 2005 Emmy Awardfor his 2004 appearance. He was nominated again in 2006 for emceeing the 2005 Tonycast, but lost the prize for best individual performance in a variety, musical or comedy program to Barry Manilow.

Since finishing up that year-long run on the rialto, Jackman has enjoyed only mixed success in movies. While his work as comic book character come to life Wolverine still wows audiences, his more mainstream leading-man roles have missed the mark. Last year, he starred in the barely released "Deception" and the disappointing epic "Australia." Success on stage this fall could get him seen in a new light by movie producers.

The only other time Alice Ripley was nominated for a Tony Award she had to share a lead actress nod with her co-star Emily Skinner. That seemed to make sense as the pair played conjoined twins in the 1998 tuner "Side Show." They lost to Natasha Richardson for her much-lauded performance in a revival of "Cabaret." Now as a woman suffering from bipolar disorder in the critically acclaimed "Next to Normal," Ripley is the front-runner to win the lead actress award according to the predictions of all the pundits piping in at Gold Derby.

In our interview, Alice Ripley is joined by her on-stage daughter Jennifer Damiano, who contends in the featured (supporting) actress race. The teenager faces stiff competition from Haydn Gwynne ("Billy Elliot") and Karen Olivo ("West Side Story") on June 7.

RELATED POSTS

Marcia Gay Harden on Tony, Oscar and 'God of Carnage'

Talkin' Tonys with Constantine Maroulis

Even the acting gods of 'Carnage' get a little afraid sometimes

Pundits' predix: Who'll win the Tonys

Neil Patrick Harris to host Tony Awards

'Billy Elliot' and 'God of Carnage' lead Tony Award nominations

Talking Tonys: Who bestows Broadway's top award?

New York Drama Critics Circle snubs Tony Award contenders to name 'Ruined' best play

'Ruined' wins Pulitzer Prize for drama

As usual, non-Broadway shows get stomped at the Drama Desk Awards

Should the Drama Desk revamp its awards?

Get Gold Derby on Twitter. Join the Gold Derby Group at Facebook. Become friends with Tom O'Neil on Facebook. Get Gold Derby RSS feed via Facebook. RSS Feedburner. RSS Atom.

Among the list of 28 celebrities announced today as presenters at the June 7 Tony Awards are the usual assortment of talented thespians, including six Oscar winners. However, the names that stand out are a pair of Emmy champs — Edie Falco and James Gandolfini. Each won three of TV's top honor over the seven-year run of "The Sopranos." Two years ago, the much-hyped series finale of that mob crime drama whacked the competition in the ratings. Among the shows it trounced — that year's Tonycast.

Both Edie Falco and James Gandolfini were relatively unknown actors before "The Sopranos" made them household names after it debuted on HBO in 1999. Each had worked extensively in the theater when they were cast in these life-changing roles. Falco had made her Broadway debut earlier that year in the Tony-winning play "Side Man." And Gandolfini had been on Broadway twice — in the hit 1992 revival of "A Streetcar Named Desire" and the  flop 1995 adaptation of the Oscar-winning "On the Waterfront."

While Falco has returned to the rialto twice since becoming a star, neither of her efforts met with much success. She headlined poorly received revivals of "Frankie and Johnny in the Claire de Lune" in 2002 and "'night Mother" in 2004. On the other hand, Gandolfini is a frontrunner this year in the lead actor race for his performance in best play contender "God of Carnage." And as his three co-stars from that dark comedy — Jeff Daniels, Hope Davis and Marcia Gay Harden — are also presenting, we may not see Tony and Carmela together onstage at Radio City Music Hall.

One of Harden's chief rivals in the lead actress race is also presenting — two-time Oscar winner Jane Fonda, who returned to Broadway after a 46-year absence to rave reviews for "33 Variations." Less welcomed was Oscar champ Susan Sarandon, who was snubbed for "Exit the King." But good sport that she is, Sarandon will be on hand to present and no doubt cheer on her current co-star Geoffrey Rush, who is another strong contender in the lead actor category.

Jessica Lange, another two-time Oscar winner, was also snubbed for her two appearances on Broadway but returns to present as does Nicole Kidman, who was slighted a decade ago for her Broadway debut in "The Blue Room." Kevin Spacey, a two-time Oscar winner and a Tony champ as well, leaves his post as head of the renowned Old Vic theater in London to appear here.

A pair of four-time Tony winners will also be on hand to present. Angela Lansbury —  who earned two of her 18 Emmy nods for hosting the Tonycast in the 1980s — could tie with Julie Harris if she wins a fifth Tony this year for her featured work in the revival of the Noel Coward play "Blithe Spirit." Private Practice" star and presenter Audra McDonald has won four featured Tonys, two for musicals and two for plays. Three-time Tony champ Frank Langella will appear as will single winners Kristen Chenoweth and David Hyde Pierce.

Imagine how jittery the cast of "God of Carnage" must have been just before the Tony Award nominations were announced on May 5. Sure, even back then the megahit was widely considered to be the front-runner to win best play on June 7, so that nomination was guaranteed. But what about the actors? The Tonys administration committee had decreed all four roles to be lead. Could they all get in to the race? Never before had such a thing happened.

Cut to a far happier ending than the one in the play: Jeff Daniels, Hope Davis, James Gandolfini and Marcia Gay Harden pulled it off for portraying suburban couples who become more vicious than their children when they hook up to discuss how to resolve a fight between their boys. Gold Derby caught up with the cast and asked for their Tonys reax.

HARDEN: It's what you always hope for — the whole cast to be nominated — but you think, "Ah, that'll never happen, that'll never happen." I believe this is the first time that a show's whole cast has been nominated in the lead categories, so the odds were against us. But when we pulled it off, we all felt tighter as a unit. It's amazing that there was no moment when the unit got split up.

DAVIS: That night I acted up a storm, trying to justify the choice the voters made. Ha! It was such a crazy night for us.

GOLD DERBY: You can't all get so lucky on Tonys night. How are you going to handle it if this one wins, that one doesn't?

GANDOLFINI: We'll be fine. We feel like we've already won.

DANIELS: We crossed the finish line when we all got nominated. At a time when Broadway is supposed to be dying — think about all those closings back in January — it's amazing that this show has become so successful. It's like a rebirth and we are part of it. That's the big victory. Geoffrey Rush is on stage every single second of "Exit the King," so I look forward to celebrating his great work.

The 54th annual Obie Awards, which honor off- and off-off-Broadway, named "Ruined" by Lynn Nottage as the best new play, following the lead set by the Pulitzer Prize and New York Drama Critics Circle Award. And three of the cast members — Saidah Arrika Ekulona, Quincy Tyler Bernstine and Russell Gebert Jones — picked up performance awards at these kudos sponsored by the Village Voice.

Unlike the Drama Desk Awards, which has abandoned its original mission to salute theater in New York beyond Broadway, the Obies have stayed true to their origins. As with the first awards bestowed in 1956, there are still no fixed categories.

Among the other winners announced Monday night at Webster Hall were Stephen Sondheim for his music and lyrics for "Road Show" which ran at the Public Theatre this season, as well as one-time Tony nominee Jonathan Groff ("Spring Awakening") for his work in off-Broadway productions of "Prayer for My Enemy" and "The Singing Forest."