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Dene Benton called DeSantis 'Grand Wizard' at Tony Awards Sunday

NEW YORK — Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is picking up national attention — some good, some bad — as he campaigns for the Republican presidential candidate. He even got a mention at the Tony Awards Sunday night on CBS.

Actress and Florida native Denée Benton took the Tonys stage to present the award from her alma mater, Carnegie Mellon University, and the Tonys. During her speech, Benton compared DeSantis to the Ku Klux Klan leader before presenting the award to a high school theatre teacher.

"Earlier tonight, CMU and the Tony Awards presented the 2023 Excellence in Theatre Education award and while I'm certain that the current Grand Wizard — I'm sorry, excuse me — governor of my home state of Florida will be changing the name of this following town, immediately. We were honored to present this award to the truly incredible and life-changing Jason Zembuch Young, enhancing the lives of students at South Plantation High School in Plantation, Florida."

She was met with many applauds from the audience while speaking. This was not the only political comment made during the Tonys. According to The Daytona Beach News-Journal, actress Marcia Gay Harden referenced her last name.

"Good evening. I’m Marcia  —  and no matter what state we’re in, we can always say  —  Gay Harden." 

This statement connects to Florida's "Parental Rights in Education" law, critics dubbed "Don't Say Gay." The law limits public school classroom discussions on sexual orientation and gender identity, restricting it through 8th grade and marking the topics as acceptable in grades 9-12 if it’s cleared as “age-appropriate.”

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