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New York — Good news for the Rockettes might mean bad news for the Tony Awards.
MSG Entertainment said on Tuesday that it will again put on a New York Spring Spectacular starring the leggy dancers next year, but it will run from 15 June through 7 August at Radio City Music Hall, meaning it may have to boot the annual theatre awards show from the iconic venue.
While next year's Tony night hasn't been announced, it usually falls on a Sunday in the first two weeks of June. In 2016, that would put it during crucial rehearsal time for the Spring Spectacular, which will be renamed.
The Broadway League, which runs the awards show with the American Theatre Wing, had no comment.
The 6 000-seat Radio City has long been the preferred home for the awards because of its size and proximity to Broadway. The Tonys had been held at Radio City from 1997-2010 and for the last three years.
From 2011-12, the Tonys were handed out at the Beacon Theatre on Manhattan's Upper West Side after Radio City was booked by Cirque du Soleil's Zarkana.
The venue is much smaller, having only about 2 870 seats, leading to ticket-rationing and a struggle to seat the often large number of show producers. MSG Entertainment also owns the Beacon.
The Spring Spectacular made its debut in March starring Tony Award winner Laura Benanti and Emmy Award-winning choreographer Derek Hough. It was put together by Tony Award winners Warren Carlyle and Diane Paulus. MSG Entertainment said it sold some 300 000 tickets.
