It's been a busy morning working on a page about the Tony Awards on June 15. We're on deadline with our June 15 issue this week so I've been madly interviewing and writing since last week, as have a few other of my writers. This is the third year for our special report on the Tonys and it's refreshing how accessible our Broadway stars are. I'll be running full interviews with some of the nominees in the blog closer to the Tony date — and there will be a full page in our print issue — but I want to share a few bits today.

Patrick Stewart (at left), who has been raved about for his riveting rendition of Macbeth, has thrilled Shakespeare fans and also introduced the Bard to many of his other followers. “There is a huge following for all the theater work that I do from my fans of Star Trek and X-Men,” Stewart says. “People tell me they're seeing Shakespeare for the first time and that they're going to the theater for the first time and that's something to be very pleased with.”

Paulo Szot (pronounced SHOT) plays Emile de Becque in South Pacific and he talks to us about the challenge of doing an authentic accent because he speaks English with a Brazilian accent, but plays a Frenchman in the musical. And though life on Broadway is good, Szot still yearns for certain features of his homeland. “I miss Brazilian beaches, especially when it’s cold here.”

Stew, who wrote and stars in the autobiographical Passing Strange, told me his nominations (four of them) are “the continuation of this crazy feeling that is a dream, but it’s someone else’s dream... it’s like waking up in a suit. It’s a suit that fits and I like it.” We talked while he was in his dressing room between shows last Saturday; he keeps a mini recording studio there.

S. Epatha Merkerson (at right), who has played Lt. Anita Van Buren on Law & Order for 15 years, called us from LAX while waiting for a plane back to NYC. She says live theater is like no other medium and that's why she tries to do it "whenever I can."  She's Tony-nominated for Come Back, Little Sheba.

(Patrick Stewart photo by Alastair Muir; S. Epatha Merkerson by Virgina Sherwood/NBC)