How do you measure a year? Well, at last year’s Tony Awards, Kevin Spacey was the host, making jokes about being in the closet. At this year’s Tony Awards, students from the Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High School drama department in Parkland, Florida, survivors of the school’s Valentine’s Day massacre, performed the emotional Rent classic “Seasons of Love,” to remember their slain classmates and also celebrate their strength, resilience, and hope for the future. How do you measure that year? In hate, in injustice, in bullets, shitty men, and darkness. But also, as those students proved, in compassion, grace, in education, fortitude, and so much love. The segment began with actress Ming-Na Wen honoring Marjorie Stoneman Douglas drama department director Melody Herzfeld, who received a special Excellence in Theatre Education Award, which goes to a K-12 theatre education in recognition of their impact on the lives of their students and includes a $10,000 grant towards the school's theatre program. Herzfeld is a 15-year teaching veteran who has directed more than 50 productions. On the day of the Parkland shooting, she sheltered 65 of her students in a small office for two hours until help arrived and she could lead all of them to safety. Since the Valentine’s Day massacre she has encouraged her students to use theatre and music to work through their feelings, trauma, and resilience. “For your dedication to the arts and for your tremendous love for the young people in your care, we, all of us, thank you,” Wen said. Actor Matthew Morrison then came out to recount a benefit concert that he and several other Broadway stars had performed at along with some of Marjorie Stoneman Douglas students. One of those students, Tanzil Philip, asked to appear on the telecast and give thanks in person to the Broadway community that “showed up in our time of need and brought some much needed light into the dark.” Instead, the producers invited students from the Marjorie Stoneman Douglas drama department to perform on the stage. And they sounded great! It goes without saying that there was not a dry eye at Radio City, nor likely was there on any couch where theatre fans were watching the moment from home. That’s the thing about the theatre community: Whether you’re teenagers from Florida rattled by an unspeakable tragedy, Amy Schumer making her Broadway debut, a legend like Patti LuPone, or any of the millions of theatre-loving viewers who have likely taken the stage at some point in their lives, you are united in the same community, by the same values, under the same seasons of love. All of us leaped to our feet in support when the lights came up on the Parkland students on stage, all of us held our breath waiting to see if the school’s talented young teen girl could hit that infamous Rent high note, all of us let a congratulatory cheer when she did, and all of us wept through their quick curtain call. The moment was heavy-handed and heartfelt, just like the best theatre moments are. It reminded us of our humanity and capacity for goodness and compassion, just like the best theatre moments do. It was a reminder that pain and love exist in equal parts in life, but we can rally together, sing some songs and hit some high notes, and do what we can to ensure that it’s the latter that prevails.<doc-sep>The Tony Awards type Stage The 2018 Tony Awards took a break from rewarding excellence in theater to honor the students in the theater department of Parkland, Florida’s Stoneman Douglas High School, who survived a tragic mass shooting earlier this year. The recognition began with a special award being bestowed to Melody Herzfeld, the longtime Stoneman Douglas drama teacher who helped save dozens of students by keeping them safe in an office. “All the goodness and tragedy that has brought me to this point will never be erased,” she said when she accepted the award. Later on the telecast, Matthew Morrison (Glee) took to the stage to sing the praises of the school’s drama department, and specifically their ability to channel their “anger” and “pain” into art. The actor then invited the students on stage as a way of saying thanks, before the curtain lifted, revealing the Stoneman Douglas company. What followed was a profoundly stirring rendition of the iconic Rent song “Seasons of Love,” with a few students showing off some seriously impressive musical chops. Viewers moved by the performance quickly expressed their emotions on Twitter, and we were right there with them.<doc-sep>Students from Parkland, Florida’s Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School took the Radio City Musical Hall stage to deliver a rendition of “Seasons of Love” from Rent that brought the audience to tears and drew a thunderous ovation. (Watch full video below.) Seeingng a full-tilt performance at the Tony Awards from students who survived the February 14 shooting at the school had audience members on the edge of their seats. CBS cameras caught many of the celebrities in the crowd, including the usually hard-bitten Amy Schumer, with tears in their eyes. The musical number followed the acknowledgement of her Tony Award for Excellence in Theatre Education to Melody Herzfeld, a drama teacher at the school. Herzfeld hid with 65 of her students during the shooting and a week later led them in a performance of the song “Shine” during a CNN town hall broadcast focused on the shooting’s aftermath. “We all have a common energy,” Herzfeld said in a speech during the non-broadcast Creative Arts portion of the show. “We all want the same thing: to be heard. To hit our mark. … We teach this every day. In every arts class.” Except for a couple of oblique references to the shooting, Herzfeld did not address it directly during her speech. The choice of “Seasons of Love” helps explain the reaction. It is both a school-musical staple and a remarkably effective number, known for its lilting repetition of the number “five hundred twenty-five thousand six hundred minutes” — the amount of time in a year. Here’s the full video clip:<doc-sep>
A group of students from the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School drama department brought the audience at this year's Tony Awards to tears on Sunday. The young performers delivered an impassioned rendition of the iconic tune "Seasons of Love" from the Tony-winning Broadway musical Rent, and there wasn't a dry eye in the house as the students sang their hearts out. The impressive number was met with a resounding standing ovation from the star-studded crowd, who couldn't contain their effusive appreciation for the young singers. The powerful appearance was introduced by Glee alum Matthew Morrison, who recently appeared with a number of Broadway stars at a benefit concert supporting the victims of the horrifying mass shooting at the Parkland, Florida, high school. "It was a life-changing experience to see these young people channeling their intense feelings of hurt and rage and sorrow into art," Morrison said of the benefit concert. Morrison explained that one of the students who performed with them, Tanzil Philip, reached out to the Tonys to see if he could appear on the telecast to share his heartfelt appreciation for all the Broadway community has done for the victims and survivors of the shooting. "Rather than inviting you onto the stage to say thanks to us, our Broadway family wants to say thanks to you, by sharing the stage with you and your classmates," Morrison said, as the curtain rose on the students' touching performance. The students' heroic musical theater teacher, Melody Herzfeld, got choked up as she watched the young singers on stage. Their appearance came just after Herzfeld herself was honored with the 2018 Excellence in Theatre Education Award. The shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, which occurred on Feb. 14, claimed the lives of 17 people -- 14 students and three members of faculty and staff -- and left 17 others injured. Herzfeld is credited with protecting the lives of 65 of her students when she barricaded them into a classroom closet during the horrific shooting. Recently, students from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School appeared on stage at the 2018 Billboard Music Awards, where they appeared alongside Shawn Mendes and Khalid during a performance of their powerful new song "Youth." Check out the video below for a look at the emotional number. RELATED CONTENT: Jimmy Fallon Surprises Parkland High School Students at Their Graduation 2018 Kids' Choice Awards: Millie Bobby Brown Honors Parkland Shooting Victims With Custom Shirt Demi Lovato Welcomes Parkland Shooting Survivors on Stage at San Diego Tour Kickoff