Pink Is 'Quite Nervous' to Host the 2026 Tony Awards but Pal Shoshana Bean Gave Her the Best Advice (Exclusive)

Dave QuinnTue, June 2, 2026 at 11:00 AM UTC

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Shoshana Bean and Pink on 'The Kelly Clarkson Show'
Credit: Heidi Gutman/NBCUniversal via Getty -

Pink will host the 2026 Tony Awards, marking her first time hosting an awards show

Her friend, Shoshana Bean, tells PEOPLE that Pink is nervous but praised the singer's natural generosity and suitability for the role

Pink moved to New York City partly for her daughter Willow's theater passion and sought her approval to host

Shoshana Bean knows her "bestie" Pink already has everything she needs to succeed as host of Broadway's biggest night.

While speaking with PEOPLE about her 2026 Tony Award nomination for her featured role in The Lost Boys, Bean, 48, reveals that the Grammy winner is feeling the pressure ahead of emceeing the ceremony on Sunday, June 7.

"We were just FaceTiming the other day and she's, I think I can share, quite nervous," Bean says.

Bean, one of Broadway's most beloved leading ladies who has two previous Tony nominations under her belt, was quick to give her advice.

"I was like, 'Bro. For me, the best hosts of any [awards show], whether its the Tonys' — and I've been at the Tonys, and also watched them, so I know the experience — 'the best hosts are the people who don't make it about themselves.,' " the stage star recalls.

Shoshana Bean and Pink share a laugh while celebrating the release of Bean's Sardi's portrait on May 28, 2026
Credit: Bruce Glikas/Getty

Fortunately, Bean believes Pink already understands that instinctively. The Broadway star, who has been friends with Pink for years, says the singer's natural generosity makes her uniquely suited for the role.

"She is innately, innately that human anyway, who really makes everything about the other person and the other people," Bean says, of the "Raise Your Glass" songstress. "She's such a human of service in that way."

"I was like, 'You're already golden, because you already innately are that person,' " Bean adds. "So that was my advice."

That's why Bean isn't worried about her pal taking the stage at Radio City Music Hall. "She'll be fantastic," she says.

Shoshana Bean and Pink pose at a party celebrating the release of Bean's Sardi's portrait on May 28, 2026
Credit: Bruce Glikas/Getty

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Pink, 46, was announced as host of the 2026 Tony Awards in April, calling the opportunity "the honor of an entire lifetime" and praising Broadway performers as "the literal hardest working people in showbiz."

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"Broadway has shaped my life and how I put my own shows together," Pink, whose real name is Alecia Moore, said in a statement at the time. "It is a community that is supportive, and inclusive, and full of talent and love. These people give magic every single day, and I cannot wait to celebrate them with the entire world."

Willow Sage Hart and Pink at the opening of Broadway's 'The Lost Boys' on April 26, 2026
Credit: Bruce Glikas/WireImage

The mother of two has become an increasingly familiar face in the Broadway world since relocating to New York City with her husband Carey Hart and their two kids (daughter Willow, 15, and son Jameson, 9). She previously revealed that Willow's passion for theater played a major role in the move, joking that she needed the teenager's approval before accepting the hosting gig.

"When I was asked to host the Tonys, I immediately thought, 'I have to get permission from my daughter,'" Pink said. "I've never been on Broadway, and shouldn't you have to have been on Broadway in order to host? That seems fair and right."

"But when I asked my daughter, she was really excited about being able to have a ticket to go to the Tonys, so I'm hosting the Tonys and I'm really, really excited and very nervous because that girl is a tough crowd!"

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This will be the first time Pink has hosted an awards show. She joins a long list of past emcees who have bridged film, television and stage, including Cynthia Erivo, Ariana DeBose and Hugh Jackman.

Prior to the Tonys, Pink dipped her toe into hosting duties back in March by guest-hosting The Kelly Clarkson Show. During her week-long stint, Pink and Willow even sang a duet of "Hopeless War" from the Tony-winning musical The Outsiders.

So does Bean, who appeared as a guest on Kelly Clarkson while Pink was at the helm, think that Pink will ever do a Broadway show herself?

"Yeah, I do," Bean tells PEOPLE. "And I'm encouraging her to do and I hope she will."

"With me!" Bean adds. "I want her to do it with me. I was like, 'Let's do a two-hander.' "

The 79th annual Tony Awards will air live from Radio City Music Hall on June 7 (beginning at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT) on CBS and stream on Paramount+. Before the broadcast, Laura Benanti and Tituss Burgess will host the pre-show, The Tony Awards: Act One, streaming live on Pluto TV.

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