Julia Knitel chats with THR at the 2025 Tony Awards and calls it an "honor" to be a part of 'Dead Outlaw' and talks about the most special part of bringing this story to life. Plus, she reveals why she believes it's a thrilling season for Broadway right now.
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00:00How exciting is it to be here tonight? Has it hit you?
00:03Yes, it hit me during the dress rehearsal this afternoon.
00:06I walked in and Jeremy Jordan was singing on stage and I burst into hysterical tears.
00:11And I realized just how real this all is.
00:15It's incredible. And what would you say has been the most special part about bringing this story to life and your experience of it?
00:22And, you know, Dead Outlaw is really a singular story, a singular type of musical that is told in a way that has never been done before.
00:31And so it's an honor to get to be with that show from the ground up, to get to watch Eric De La Pena, David Yazbeck, Itamar Moses, David Kramer work, these geniuses, these titans.
00:42And for us to all get received by the Broadway community and by the theater audiences in New York in this way is it's a dream come true.
00:50Well, eight shows a week, that is no easy feat.
00:54Do you have a pre-show or a post-show ritual that kind of either resets you or amps you up for the night's show?
01:01Yeah, I will walk on the stage every day.
01:04I like to look out on the audience and remind myself that they're my friends.
01:08And when the audience is empty, it's like they're on our side.
01:10They want to be with us in that moment.
01:12And then I do a lot of box breathing and meditation before the show just to kind of ground myself and get into my body.
01:19A lot of people have been calling this such a thrilling season for Broadway.
01:24Why do you think that is?
01:25Well, I think it's been hard for the community as a whole to come back after the pandemic.
01:29You know, we lost our audiences.
01:31We lost our theaters.
01:32And inevitably, that creates a bit of a delay.
01:35And it feels like this is the first season where there are so many rich shows and talented companies.
01:44And everyone is just like at full throttle.
01:47And so it does feel like Broadway is back.
01:48And to be nominated in that season is even more so very, very much an honor.
01:54And I'm sure you've been around your fellow nominees for the past few weeks and months.
01:59Is there someone here tonight that you haven't gotten a chance to congratulate or run into that you would love to speak with?
02:05She's not nominated tonight, but I've been circling with Bernadette Peters.
02:09We've been at a few of the same events.
02:11And I'm just like, hey, no, okay, now is not the moment.
02:14But I just, she is, she is one of my idols.
02:16And I hope I get to meet her tonight.
02:18And I hope I get to meet her tonight.
02:18And I hope I get to meet her tonight.
02:18And I hope I get to meet her tonight.
02:18And I hope I get to meet her tonight.
02:19And I hope I get to meet her tonight.
02:19And I hope I get to meet her tonight.
02:20And I hope I get to meet her tonight.
02:20And I hope I get to meet her tonight.
02:21And I hope I get to meet her tonight.
02:22And I hope I get to meet her tonight.
02:23And I hope I get to meet her tonight.
02:24And I hope I get to meet her tonight.
02:25And I hope I get to meet her tonight.
02:26And I hope I get to meet her tonight.
02:27And I hope I get to meet her tonight.