The 71st Annual Tony Awards are upon us! The June 11 ceremony, broadcast at 8pm EDT on CBS, is Broadway’s big night out. This year, the Tonys are more exciting than ever, even without the ever-popular Hamilton. Here’s why the 2017 Tonys are a must-see, as well as a shout-out to the shows that the Knick team wishes had earned more recognition.

The 2017 Tony Awards

Kevin Spacey is hosting.

Two-time Oscar winner Kevin Spacey will be hosting the awards. A darling of the film industry, he’s no stranger to the stage either, having won a Tony in 1991 and serving as artistic director of London’s Old Vic theater from 2004 until 2015.

Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812.

The Great Comet of 1812 was one of this year’s most buzzed-about shows, with innovative staging and thrilling music that makes nineteenth century Russia come alive. It is the leader of the nominees pack this year, up for twelve awards.

The live performances are way better than Youtube.

The Tonys mark the one time where you can watch numbers from the year’s best musicals without being at the theater. And while scouring Youtube for illicit clips of a favorite song can work, seeing the real thing, performed in costume, from multiple shows under one roof is far better. We’re most excited to relisten to Eva Noblezada from Miss Saigon and Jen Colella from Come From Away.

 A-Listers will be everywhere.

They call the Tonys “Broadway’s Oscars,” and this year, that seems particularly accurate. Academy Award winners Bette Midler, Kevin Kline, Sally Field and Cate Blanchett are nominated for awards. Meanwhile, celebrities like Orlando Bloom, Scarlett Johansson, Stephen Colbert, Tina Fey, Taraji P. Henson, Anna Kendrick, Keegan-Michael Key and Olivia Wilde will be presenting awards.

 Props to the Shows Left Out.

We know, we should be talking all about the nominees. But since June 11th is their time to shine, we wanted to give a shout out to the shows and performances we loved a little more than the nominating committee did. Anastasia was one of our favorite shows this year, but only received two nominations, neither of them Best Musical. We also thought that Diane Lane was luminous in The Cherry Orchard, which failed to earn a single nom. And while Glenn Close was ineligible for  reviving her role in Sunset Boulevard, we thought the sleek production deserved more love as a whole. Likewise, Cats returned to Broadway with a bang, reminding everyone why Andrew Lloyd Webber is a musical god. We’re still giving these shows standing ovations!

Photo courtesy of @thetonyawards.