Theater News

Carol Burnett to Receive Signature Theatre's Sondheim Award; Kristin Chenoweth to Perform

Santino Fontana will also take the stage in Burnett’s honor.

Carol Burnett will receive the Stephen Sondheim Award from Arena Stage, and Kristin Chenoweth will perform in her honor.
Carol Burnett will receive the Stephen Sondheim Award from Signature Theatre, and Kristin Chenoweth will perform in her honor.
(© David Gordon)

Legendary entertainer Carol Burnett will receive Signature Theatre's 2020 Stephen Sondheim Award, to be presented at the Embassy of Italy on April 6.

The evening will feature performances by Tony winners Kristin Chenoweth and Santino Fontana, who will sing in Burnett's honor alongside Tracy Lynn Olivera, Nova Y. Payton, and Bobby Smith.

The award, established in 2009 in honor of America's most influential musical theater writer and composer, benefits Signature's artistic, education, and community programs.

Burnett is best known for her iconic variety series The Carol Burnett Show, which ran from 1967-78. She famously originated the role of Princess Winnifred in Once Upon a Mattress on Broadway in 1959 (Tony nomination) and earned a Special Tony Award in 1969. She was last seen on Broadway in 2014 in a revival of A.R. Gurney's Love Letters.