when Audra McDonald's Win her first Tony Award At 23, it was just the beginning of a record-breaking career on Broadway. Earlier this month, she received her 11th Tony nomination, making her the most Tony nominated actor of all time.
McDonald The most performers ever Tony Along with Angela Lansbury and Julie Harris, her portrayal of Mama Rose in Broadway’s latest Gypsy revival was nominated.
Before discovering the stage, McDonald's described himself as an active child who would often express his emotions.
"I'm in a big mood. I have music in my heart. So once I find the theater, it's like I have a huge feeling right now," she said.
These emotions fill the display when Mama Rose is a character based on real-life burlesque mother Rose Lee Lee. Currently being displayed in a majestic theater. In the musical, Mom Rose is a strong stage mom.
McDonald's performed the emotional climax of the musical "Rose's Three" for the first time at a concert at Carnegie Hall in 2022.
"It's the same time of year when I'm going to send my daughter to college. I'm dealing with all this anger I've experienced with the sweet, beautiful daughter," McDonald's said. "And I cried and I realized it was because my baby was leaving and I was sad. That's my first one, like the emotional rose."
McDonald's was the first black woman to portray mom roses on Broadway. Director George C. Wolfe directed her interpretation of what Rose experienced in the 1920s and 1930s, and a sentence from the original script did not change.
"George talks about Ross' obsession with children becoming stars because being stars protects you in some way. You get star money, you can eat it. You get star money, maybe you won't get lynched," McDonald explained. "So she is currently a single woman who has been abandoned by her husband three times, abandoned by her mother, and is not really benefited from her father, and she is trying to protect these babies."
The “CBS Morning” interview took place in the backstage to find out what happens when the curtains are closed. She laughed and said McDonald's and her co-star Danny Burstein "age is a certain age" and noted that they would not climb the stairs after the show.
McDonald's shows how she warmed up and played a demanding role.
She said: “One of the things that Lotte singers do is buzz. Just like (buzz), you are doing something like this, whether you are singing or not.
Despite her numerous praises, McDonald's is still working on what is known as the legendary effort.
"If that means anything to some black girls, she said, 'She did it, she looked like me, so I could do it, 'Too good,'" she said. "But I can't really understand what that means to me. Do you know what I mean?' Because I know, I know how dirty my closet is and the fact that I haven't done my laundry in four weeks."
When asked about his legend, McDonald's became excited while naming the likes of Diahann Carroll, Ruby Dee and Lena Horne.
"They're not here. They mean a lot to me. I can see them. They're doing that. They look like me."
The 78th annual Tony Awards will be held at Radio City Music Hall in New York City on Sunday, June 8, 2025. You can watch the show on CBS and live on Paramount+