Harvey Fierstein Will Host Drama Desk Awards Ceremony for Second Consecutive Year

Harvey Fierstein, currently starring in Fiddler on the Roof on Broadway, will host the 50th Annual Drama Desk Awards on Sunday, May 22 at 9pm, at the LaGuardia Concert Hall at Lincoln Center (100 Amsterdam Avenue). This marks the first time in the award’s history that the ceremony will be hosted by the same person two years in a row.

Nominations for the 2004-2005 Drama Desk Awards will be announced on Thursday, April 28 at 10am at the New York Friars Club (57 East 55th Street). Nominees will receive their official nomination certificates at a reception on Tuesday, May 3 from 5 to 7pm at Arte Cafe (106 West 73rd Street), home of the Drama Desk Art*Kives.

The Drama Desk Awards celebrate excellence in all sectors of New York theater, both on and off Broadway. This year’s ceremony will be taped and broadcast as a two-hour special on Sunday, May 29 by Thirteen/WNET, the PBS flagship station in New York City. In addition, the National Education Television Association (NETA), which distributes programming to public TV stations across the country, will offer the taped awards special via satellite to its member stations.

“Thirteen/WNET is proud to present the 50th anniversary Drama Desk Awards to its tri-state audience of television viewers and theatergoers,” said Paula Kerger, Thirteen’s executive vice president and chief operating officer. “Thirteen has long been a partner with New York’s vibrant theater community and one of the only sources of outstanding theatrical programming on television. With this telecast, we are offering our viewers a unique opportunity to experience one of the most exciting news-making theater events of the year.”