Inside the Creation of the 2024 Tony Awards Opening Number, 'This Party's For You'

Who doesn't love a good awards show opening number? Three-time host Ariana DeBose did not disappoint last night at the 77th Annual Tony Awards, held at Lincoln Center's David H. Koch Theater. The West Side Story Oscar winner brought dancing, singing, and fashion to a sleek and jazzy opening song titled "This Party's For You," written by Tom Kitt and Amanda Green.

Green, currently President of the Dramatists Guild Council, has contributed lyrics to Broadway's High Fidelity, Bring It On: The Musical, Hands On a Hardbody, and Mr. Saturday Night, along with additional lyrics for recent revivals of On the Twentieth Century and Kiss Me, Kate. She's also something of musical theatre royalty, the daughter of Adolph Green (of Comden and Green fame). Kitt, along with collaborating with Green on High Fidelity and Bring It On, is the Pulitzer-winning composer of Next to Normal, also writing If/Then, Flying Over Sunset, and Almost Famous.

Playbill caught up with Green via email the day after the big night to find out how this number came to be. And since this one was so lyrically dense, you can make sure you got every word with the full lyrics below.

Watch DeBose and the 2024 Tony Awards dancers perform "This Party's For You" below:

Green says that the number was largely DeBose's conception. "Ariana reached out to Tom Kitt and me to write this number," Green tells us. "She knew exactly what she wanted to say, and how she wanted it to sound. The lyrics are an extension of her thoughts and sentiments, which of course, we all share. She and Tom called in the magical [producer and music director] Adam Blackstone to make the vision complete."

What they ended up with was a true tribute to all theatre people, whether seated at the Koch Theater waiting to accept a Tony Award or watching from home with big dreams. That makes "This Party's For You" officially Playbill approved.

"She wanted to welcome everyone to the party—and to celebrate the astonishing achievement, dedication, tenacity and heart it takes to get to this moment and to create for the theatre," Green shares. "To celebrate theatre and Broadway, those who work in it, and those who love it. It was such an honor to be asked and to be part of this great tradition. And a joy to be reunited working with the brilliant Ariana and my old dear friend, the genius Tom Kitt."

Read the complete lyrics for "This Party's For You," by Amanda Green, below.

Maybe you saw a show
Or acted in your high school play
And you danced in your room
And dreamed of being on Broadway

Maybe you slept on your friends' couches
Rose at 5 AM
Tried to crash auditions daily
Charming your way into them

Maybe you drove here from Des Moines
Spent nights sleeping in your car
Writing your great idea on beer napkins
As you tended bar

Maybe you had to fight—but you're here tonight—you made it through
Learned to get back from each setback
And made your dreams come true

Let's celebrate the journey
And the road that led you here
This party's for you (This party's for you)
For the magic you created
And to every show this year
This party's for you (This party's for you)

There's no better place to find it
The kind of joy you seek
The kind you find on Broadway
Live and eight times a week
This party's for you
This party's for you

Maybe you saw Rent as a kid
And that's how it began
Or an August Wilson play turned you into a Broadway stan

From the writers' mind, a world they designed, that creative spark
Grows to 1,500 people sharing stories in the dark!

All my first-time Nominees, make some noise!

Now, some of you are internationally known, but tonight you are being recognized for your achievements on the Broadway stage. Some of you, your star is just beginning to rise and you shine so bright!

Now, all the Nominees, make some noise!

Some of you have been nominated multiple times! Year after year, you continue to work with brilliance and dedication to your craft!

As many of us move along our journey, we learn that film and TV can make you rich, can make you famous, but theatre will make you …better.

There's joy in the dreaming
Joy in the hustle
Joy in the struggle
And ev'ry aching muscle
In the people who supported you along the way
In putting in the work that got you here today
Receiving recognition for the thing you love to do
To know that folks at home will be inspired by you

So whichever way the wheel of fortune ends up spinning
Here. Right now. You're already winning

So let's celebrate each other
This gift that's yours and mine
This party's for you (This party's for you)
We get to be together
And watch each other shine
This party's for you (This party's for you)

A show may run a moment
Or a season, or much more
But ev'ry night you give your all
And leave it on the floor!
This party's for you
This party's for you
This party's for you!

For more Tony Awards coverage, visit Playbill.com/Tonys.