What time are the Tony Awards?

The 69th Tony Awards will honor work from the 2014-2015 Broadway season. We'll have live coverage starting Sunday afternoon, but for now here's a look at some key facts about New York theater's big night:

What time are the Tony Awards?

The 2015 Tony Awards will air live on Sunday at 8 p.m. EDT on CBS, from Radio City Musical Hall in New York City. For West Coast viewers, the show will be delayed to air at 8 p.m. PDT.

Side note: Of the EGOT shows -- that is, the Emmys, Grammys, Oscars and Tonys -- only the Emmys and the Oscars usually air in real time on the West Coast.

FULL COVERAGE: Tonys 2015 | Live updates | Red carpet | Top nominees | Complete list | Performers & presenters

Who is nominated?

In terms of sheer numbers, musicals lead the way. The balletic "An American in Paris" and edgy "Fun Home" each have 12 Tony Award nominations, while "Something Rotten!" has 10. The musical revival "The King and I" received nine. Meanwhile, the dramatization of Hilary Mantel's "Wolf Hall" novels was the most nominated play with eight.

Nominations in the acting categories include several names from film and TV such as Elisabeth Moss for "The Heidi Chronicles," Bradley Cooper for "The Elephant Man," Helen Mirren for "The Audience" and Carey Mulligan for "Skylight." And some might say that Mirren and Mulligan are part of a British invasion.

The full list of nominees with photos is here, along with a tally of honorary Tony Awards being handed out.

Who are the front-runners to win?

According to Times theater critic Charles McNulty, the race for musical is largely between "An American in Paris" and "Fun Home." "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time," adapted by Simon Stephens from Mark Haddon's novel, appears to have a lock on the best play award.

Who will host? What can we expect during the show?

Theater veterans Kristin Chenoweth and Alan Cumming will co-host, in a show that apparently involves an E.T. costume. Chenoweth also has the distinction of being a nominee for best actress in a musical for her work in "On the Twentieth Century."

As one might expect of a show honoring theater, there are a lot of performances slated, including one with Josh Groban and a cast of more than 175 that is being touted by the Tonys as having the most performers on stage at one time in the show's history. And even though the hit musical "Finding Neverland" was shut out in the nominations, it's still making it into the show with Matthew Morrison and Kelsey Grammer performing the number "Stronger".

Here's a rundown in photos of the night's presenters and performers.

Why are the Tonys 'like the sprinkles on your ice cream'?

The good folks at the Tony Awards asked a number of nominees about what the honors mean. Patricia Clarkson, Sting, Bradley Cooper and Carey Mulligan are among those featured in the video below, but our vote for best answer goes to Helen Mirren, who plays Queen Elizabeth II in "The Audience."

"It's like the sprinkles on your ice cream," Mirren says. "The ice cream of being on Broadway is such an amazing experience. And then we get the little sprinkles of the Tonys."

For whom are the Tonys named?

First hint: Not Tony Soprano, Tony Danza or Tony Esposito.

In fact, the Tony Awards are named for Antoinette Perry, who was a founder of the American Theatre Wing. Perry died of a heart attack in 1946 after a career as an actress, stage director and philanthropist.

The first presentation of the Antoinette Perry Awards was April 6, 1947, at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York.