Now that's an opening number

The Oscar telecast and just about all other awards shows can take a lesson from this. Last night's Tony Awards show provided another example of how to get an awards telecast off to a roaring start. My favorite (How Did He Do That?) segment of the opening was Neil Patrick Harris disappearing act and then reappearing in the back of the cavernous Radio City Music Hall.

The program even managed to maintain the momentum of its opening number all the way up to a Phantom of the Opera segment that basically killed all the excitement for the rest of the evening.

But that opening number is one to be remembered.