Tony Awards: What Critics Say About Neil Patrick Harris

5:53 AM PDT 6/13/2011 by Lindsay Powers

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The host was roundly praised as “wickedly witty” - although one fumed it took him “less than a minute ... to send America to the remote.”

Neil Patrick Harris earned mostly positive reviews for hosting Sunday night's Tony Awards.

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"Neil Patrick Harris proves a wickedly witty host in a loose yet old-fashioned celebration of theater sprinkled liberally with TV stars to keep mainstream audiences interested," wrote critic Robert Lloyd in the Los Angeles Times.

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"Had there been a tune, the audience would have left the theater humming it," he added. PHOTOS: Stars at the Tony Awards

Scott D. Pierce, who covers TV for the Salt Lake Tribune and sits on the Television Critics Associated Board, wrote, "Can Neil Patrick Harris just host all the awards shows? Forever? It wasn't any more surprising than "The Book of Mormon" winning the Tony as Best Musical on Sunday night, but Harris was great as the host. Fantastic."

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"He's funny, charming, talented and cool under pressure. His opening number about how Broadway is 'not just for gays anymore' was an instant classic," added Pierce. "Even he couldn't make every moment of the show sparkle -- having the nominated actors talk about their roles made for some very bad TV -- but Harris made the show worth watching all by himself."

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New York Post theater critic Michael Riedel noted "there was little suspense" during Sunday's telecast. "Most of the winners were forgone conclusions -- the Tony telecast, hosted by Neil Patrick Harris, moved along at a clip, with a few good jokes and some snappy musical numbers that are sure to ignite box offices tomorrow," he wrote. (He also added that U2's Bono and The Edge looked "lightly out of their element.")

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The New York Daily News' Bob Heisler wasn't a fan of the show.

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"It took less than a minute for CBS' Neil Patrick Harris, as host of the 65th Tony Awards telecast, to send America to the remote," he wrote. " Broadway, he sang, is not just for gays anymore. "We're asking every hetero to get to know us better-o. Come in and be inspired; there's no sodomy required. Hello. What channel is that basketball game on?"