The 66th Tony Awards to be Aired on Velvet

With all his awesomeness, Neil Patrick Harris returns to host the 66th Annual Tony Award which recognizes achievement in live Broadway theatre. This will be the third time that the How I Met Your Mother star, hosts the prestigious event. He previously served as host for both the 63rd annual Tony awards in 2009 and the 65th annual Tony awards in 2011.  As he did in 2011, Harris will also act as a producer, along with executive producers Ricky Kirshner and Glenn Weiss of White Cherry Entertainment. This year's Tony Awards will be broadcast live from The Beacon Theater in New York and will be aired exclusively on Velvet on June 11, 8:00 a.m.

"We are excited to have Neil Patrick Harris return as host of the TONY Awards," said Jack Sussman, Executive Vice President, Specials, Music and Live Events, CBS Entertainment. "Neil is the ultimate showman. He brings great talent, energy and creativity to the Tony stage and usually a surprise or two. I can't wait to see what he has in store this year."

Unbeknownst to many, Harris is also a veteran of the theater. He has been seen on Broadway in Assassins, Proof and Cabaret. He also starred in the New York Philharmonic production of Company. Additional theater credits include roles in "All My Sons," "Tick, Tick... Boom," "The Paris Letter," "Sweeney Todd," and "Romeo and Juliet." He also made his theater directorial debut via the 2010 production of "Rent" at the Hollywood Bowl where he casted his "Beastly" co-star Vanessa Hudgens.

The Tony Awards is considered the highest U.S. theatre honor, the New York theatre industry's equivalent to the Academy Awards (Oscars) for motion pictures, the Grammy Awards for music and the Emmy Awards for television, and the Laurence Olivier Award for West End theatre in England.

"I'm thrilled to be a part of this year's Tony Awards," said Harris in a statement.  "Not only will I be shining a spotlight on the best that Broadway has to offer, but hopefully I'll score some free house seats to a show or 5."

The 66th Tony Awards prime time airing  will be on June 11, 8pm and  other airings on June 16 (6pm), June 17 (3pm), June 22 (8pm), June 23 (3am & 1pm) and June 27 (3:30am & 2pm) only on Velvet, home of the biggest red carpet events. Velvet (SkyCable Channel 53) is available on SkyCable Platinum, SkyCable Gold, SkyCable Silver and other quality cable operators nationwide. For updates, log-on to http://www.facebook.com/VelvetChannel.