Ben Platt Announced as The Hasty Pudding Theatricals' 2020 Man of the Year

The Hasty Pudding Theatricals, the oldest theatrical organization in the United States, has announced Ben Platt as the recipient of its 2020 Man of the Year Award, and the youngest ever Man of the Year in the 54 years of the award. The Pudding will present this honor to a Tony, Grammy, and Emmy award-winning actor and musician who has made a meaningful impact on Broadway, television, and film.

The Hasty Pudding Theatricals' Man and Woman of the Year Awards are presented annually to performers who have made lasting and impressive contributions to the world of entertainment. The Man of the Year award was established in 1967. Its past recipients include, among others, Clint Eastwood, Tom Hanks, Robert De Niro, Harrison Ford, Justin Timberlake, Robert Downey Jr., Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and Robin Williams.

The Man of the Year festivities, presented by RELATED, Equinox, and SoulCycle, will take place on Friday, February 7th, 2020. The Hasty Pudding Theatricals will host a celebratory roast for Mr. Platt and present him with his Pudding Pot at Farkas Hall, which has been the Pudding's historic home in the heart of Harvard Square since 1888. A press conference will follow the roast at 8:30pm. Afterwards, the Hasty Pudding Theatricals will perform HPT 172: Mean Ghouls, our second-ever production featuring both men and women in the cast.

"We're thrilled to honor Ben Platt as our 54th Man of the Year because of the incredible impact he has had on Broadway and in Hollywood at such a young age," said co-producer Natalie Needle. "As our youngest Man of the Year, Ben has had a remarkable career as an actor and musician. We are also avid musical theater fans, so we are very excited for him to watch our production," added co-producer Samantha Meade.

Tony, Grammy, and Emmy Award winner Ben Platt is currently filming Season 2 of the highly popular Netflix series by Ryan Murphy, The Politician, which he both stars in and executive produces. Ben's performance in Season 1 earned him a Golden Globe nomination for Best Lead Actor in a Comedy Series and the show received a nomination for Best Comedy. Additionally, Ben starred in the film, Run This Town, alongside Damian Lewis and Nina Dobrev, which premiered at last year's SXSW Film Festival to rave reviews and will be released Spring 2020. It was recently announced that Ben will be starring alongside Beanie Feldstein in the film adaption of the Stephen Sondheim musical Merrily We Roll Along directed by Richard Linklater.

Ben is an Atlantic Records recording artist and dropped his critically acclaimed debut album, Sing To Me Instead, in 2019 along with a new single called "The Rain" which he debuted at last year's US Open. He performed these songs and more to a sold out crowd in Radio City Music Hall, which was filmed for a Netflix special being released this spring. No stranger to the big screen, Ben is known for his role as Benji Applebaum in Universal Pictures' smash hits Pitch Perfect and Pitch Perfect 2. He has also starred in Ricki and The Flash alongside Meryl Streep and in Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk, as well as guest starred in the Will & Grace reboot for NBC. He also filmed Broken Diamonds, directed by Peter Sattler.

Platt won the 2017 Tony Award for Best Leading Actor in a Musical for his performance as Evan Hansen, as well as the Drama League Award for Distinguished Performance, making him the youngest actor to win the coveted award. Additionally, Dear Evan Hansen won the Tony Award for Best Musical and the cast recording took home the Grammy for Best Musical Theater Album, as well as a Daytime Emmy Award for their performance on The Today Show.

During Dear Evan Hansen's off-Broadway run at 2econdStage Theatre, Ben was awarded an Obie and Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Lead, in addition to receiving nominations for the Outer Critics Circle Award and Drama League Award. The musical debuted at Arena Stage in Washington D.C. with Ben originating the role of Evan Hansen. Of his performance, the New York Times declared, "...marvelous young actor Ben Platt is giving a performance that's not likely to be bettered on Broadway this season." Deadline applauded it as a "movingly sensitive, career-making performance."

Ben made his Broadway debut as Elder Cunningham in Broadway's famed production of Book of Mormon. He first originated the role of Elder Cunningham to critical acclaim in the show's Chicago production for which he won a Broadway World Chicago Award for Best Actor in a Touring Production. Ben sold out his first solo cabaret show at the popular New York City venue, 54 Below.

He has also starred in the following national tours: Caroline, or Change (directed by George C. Wolfe and Tony Kushner). Regional Credits: The Black Suits (Barrington Stage Company), The Power of Duff (New York Stage and Film, Stephen Belber), Dead End (directed by Nicholas Martin, Ahmanson Theatre), The Music Man, Mame, Camelot, and The Sound of Music (Hollywood Bowl, directed by Gordon Hunt). Concerts: I'm Here (solo show, 54 Below sold-out engagement), The Secret Garden (25th Anniversary). Workshops/Readings: Breaking Bobby Stone (directed by Peter Scolari), Murder at the Gates (directed by Peter DuBois, Steven Sater), Alice By Heart (Steven Sater and Duncan Sheik), Irma La Douce (directed by Rob Ashford, starring Katie Holmes), Bridges of Madison County (directed by Bartlett Sher, Jason Robert Brown).