If you're not on the East Coast (I know I'm not), the Tonys are a chance to get a feel for what's happening on Broadway. I mean, sure, we all hear about the Spamalots and the Mama Mias, but I still have to explain Avenue Q to people. How many times does "The Internet is for Porn" need to be mixed with some anime video and uploaded to YouTube before people remember what show it comes from? So thanks to our own review of the nominees and too many minutes spent waiting for YouTube to load, I'm feeling like I know enough about the nominees to know who to cheer on.

A Regis-less Regis and Kelly declared it Broadway Week this week with nominated shows performing a number. You can check out clips from the week's performances at the show's website; annoyingly, they can't be embedded.

The newly-out David Hyde Pierce appeared on Tuesday and I have to admit, the "Golden Age of Musical Theatre" look of it certainly has its appeal to me.

Also-out (bisexual) Raul Esparza also stopped by Regis and Kelly's show. Seeing this performance by Esparza at a Barnes & Noble explains his Best Performance nomination all by itself.

Now, as someone who watched every awful episode of Rachel Gunn, RN for Christine Ebersol it's good to see her takents being put to good use. What I've been able to see of Grey Gardens looks pretty amazing.

The other musical to get a load of nominations is Spring Awakening. This clip of "Bitch of Living" has plenty of music video-style editing which, from what I've read of the show, fits the show overall.

I know The Apple Tree has only one nomination for Best Revival of a Musical but it's Kristin Chenoweth. Kristin. Chenoweth. Here she is performing "Gorgeous" on The View.