Billy Crystal poked fun at President Donald Trump and the recent Los Angeles mayoral race while hosting opening night festivities for the 2026 Hollywood Bowl season.
Halle Bailey joins Tony Award winners Darren Criss, Renée Elise Goldsberry, Brian Stokes Mitchell and Lea Salonga as performers in “Best of Broadway,” which kicked off its summer lineup in Los Angeles on Saturday. Conductor Thomas Wilkins led the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra in the star-studded accompaniment, along with members of the Los Angeles Youth Orchestra, California State University, and the Fullerton University Singers.
“Welcome to the opening night of the 2026 Hollywood Bowl,” Crystal told the crowd at the start of the evening. “I haven’t heard enthusiasm like this since they removed Trump’s name from the Kennedy Center. It’s unbelievable.” The shot sparked enthusiastic cheers from the audience.
After lamenting Los Angeles’ notorious traffic, the nine-time Oscar host quipped: “Everything is slow here. That’s how we count mail-in ballots — very slow. Right before I came out, they had the final results for the governor’s race, and Gray Davis is in.” The joke, which refers to the former California governor who was recalled in October 2003 and replaced by Arnold Schwarzenegger, follows a vote count earlier this month that took the city nearly a week to conclude that Spencer Pratt would not advance to a mayoral runoff election this fall.
“Tonight’s theme is The Best of Broadway,” Crystal continued. “It was either this or having a UFC fight here, and we decided we were going to be classy and respectful.” Reacting to the crowd’s reaction to Trump’s recent UFC Freedom 250 event at the White House, the host lamented: “I know. We’ll get through it.”
Saturday’s musical performances included Chris performing “Something’s Coming” from West Side Story And “Night Music” from The Phantom of the OperaIn addition to a duet alongside Salonga Little Shop of Horrors “Suddenly Seymour.” Billy’s performances included “little mermaid”“Part of Your World,” which the actress previously credited as the star of Disney’s 2023 live-action version of the animated classic, and “Home” from the animated classic. Wiz.
Another notable moment was Goldsberry singing the song “Satisfied,” which she sang in the original Broadway production Hamilton. In addition, Salonga belted “Defying Gravity” from evilwhile Mitchell took over “Wheels of a Dream”, a tune he first performed during the first production of Ragtime music.
