TONY AWARDS — LOWEST RATINGS EVER

Although CBS had hoped that this year’s Tony Awards presentations would draw bigger-than-usual ratings because of the strong Broadway season and the generally positive reaction to host Neil Patrick Harris’s two previous stints, the telecast — always the lowest-rated of all the network awards telecasts — dropped to its lowest level yet. The 66th annual affair, dominated by the musical Once, which captured eight awards, including best musical, averaged just 6 million viewers, down 17 percent from last year. It nevertheless drew the best ratings of the night on network television, save for 60 Minutes, which preceded it with 7.88 million viewers. The Pulitzer Prize-winning play Clybourne Park was voted best play, although Peter and the Starcatcher earned more awards — five.