The Drama Desk Awards, which are given annually in a number of categories, are the only major New York theater honors for which productions on Broadway, Off-Broadway, Off-Off-Broadway compete against each other in the same category. Presented since 1955, they are considered one of the important American theater awards.

The Drama Desk organization was formed in 1949 by a group of New York theater critics, editors, reporters and publishers, born out of the desire to educate the community on vital issues concerning the theater. In 1955, the organization began presenting the Vernon Rice Awards in honor of theater critic Vernon Rice of the New York Post, who had pioneered Off-Broadway coverage in the New York press. The name was changed as of the 1963–1964 awards season. In the first fifteen years of the award, Broadway shows were not eligible for these awards, but as of the 1968–1969 season, Broadway productions were included. Only winners were announced in the early years, but in 1975, the Drama Desk began to announce nominees as well. In 1974, the Drama Desk became incorporated as a not-for-profit organization.

Kristin Chenoweth (born July 24, 1968) is an American singer and actress, with credits in musical theatre, film and television. She is best known on Broadway for her performance as Sally Brown in You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown (1999), for which she won a Tony Award, and for originating the role of Glinda in the musical Wicked (2003). Her best-known television role is Annabeth Schott in NBC's The West Wing. As Olive Snook on the ABC comedy-drama Pushing Daisies, she won a 2009 Emmy Award. Chenoweth stars in the ABC TV series GCB, which premiered in March 2012.

An Oklahoma native, Chenoweth sang gospel music as a child and studied opera before deciding to pursue a career in musical theatre. In 1997, she made her Broadway debut in Steel Pier. Besides You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown and Wicked, Chenoweth's stage work includes five City Center Encores! productions, Broadway's The Apple Tree in 2006 and Promises, Promises in 2010, as well as Off-Broadway and regional theatre productions.

Chenoweth had her own TV series Kristin in 2001, and has guest starred on many shows, including Sesame Street and Glee, for which she was nominated for Emmy awards in 2010 and 2011. In films, she has played mostly character roles, such as in Bewitched (2005), The Pink Panther (2006) and RV (2006). She has also played roles in made-for-TV movies, done voice work in animated films and the animated TV series Sit Down, Shut Up, hosted several award shows and released several albums of songs, including A Lovely Way to Spend Christmas (2008) and Some Lessons Learned (2011). Chenoweth also penned a 2009 memoir, A Little Bit Wicked: Life, Love, and Faith in Stages.

Tracie Bennett (born Tracey Anne Bennett, 17 June 1961, in Leigh, Lancashire) is an English stage and television actress. She trained at the Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts in Clapham, London. Best known for her work in the theatre, both dramatic and musical, Bennett received Olivier Awards for her performances in the musicals She Loves Me and Hairspray, and was nominated for a Tony Award for her performance as Judy Garland in the Broadway production of the biopic play End of the Rainbow, a role which earned her an Olivier Award nomination for the London production.

Tracie Bennett's television debut was in the children's series Going Out, before appearing in Coronation Street between 1982 and 1984 as Sharon Gaskell, the Fairclough's foster daughter. She returned to the role in 1999. She played dim-witted blonde Tracy Glazebrook in the pilot of Steven Moffat's sitcom Joking Apart (1991), a role which she reprised for the subsequent two full length series in 1993 and 1995. She played Keaveney Millandra in the comedy film Shirley Valentine (1989).

Bertie Carvel (born 6 September 1977) is a Olivier Award-winning British actor. He received a first from Sussex University in English, and graduated from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in 2003. Carvel is perhaps best known for his current role as Miss Trunchbull in the original West End musical Matilda the Musical.

He appeared in Doctor Who, in "The Lazarus Experiment", Sherlock in "The Blind Banker", Bombshell, Hawking, The Crimson Petal and the White, Money and Midsomer Murders: The Great and the Good.

He played Lord Carmarthen, in John Adams. In the television film Agatha Christie: A Life in Pictures he played Christie's second husband Max Mallowan.

Carvel will be appearing as Bamatabois in the upcoming film Les Misérables, based on the musical of the same name.

In 2008, Carvel was nominated for an Olivier Award for his performance in Parade but lost out to Michael Ball.

For his performance as Miss Trunchbull, Carvel won the 2012 Olivier Award for Best Actor in a Musical and the TMA Award for Best Performance in a Musical, and was similarly nominated for the Evening Standard Award.

Timothy David "Tim" Minchin (born 7 October 1975 in Northampton, England) is an Australian-British comedian, actor, and musician.

Tim Minchin is best known for his musical comedy, which has featured in six CDs, three DVDs and a number of live comedy shows which he has performed internationally. He has also appeared on television in Australia, Britain and the United States. After growing up in Perth, Western Australia, he attended the University of Western Australia and WAAPA before moving to Melbourne in 2002. His breakout show, "Dark Side", launched him into the public eye, achieving critical success at the 2005 Melbourne International Comedy Festival and the 2005 Edinburgh Festival Fringe.

Minchin has a background in theatre and has appeared in various stage productions, in addition to some small acting roles on Australian TV. A documentary film about Minchin, Rock N Roll Nerd (directed by Rhian Skirving), was released theatrically in 2008 and broadcast by ABC1 in 2009. He is the co-writer of the Olivier Award winning hit musical Matilda the Musical, based on the Roald Dahl book Matilda.