Frank DiLella

Frank DiLella is the twelve-time Emmy Award winning host of “On Stage” on Spectrum News NY1, the news channel’s weekly half-hour theater program.

DiLella’s celebrity interviews, along with his in-depth reporting of the theatrical scene, have helped make him a trusted friend and confidant within the theater and entertainment communities in New York City and around the globe.

His work has been recognized with numerous awards, including 12 New York Emmy Awards, 8 New York Press Club Awards, and an Edward R. Murrow Award. In 2022, he was honored by the Association of LGBTQ+ Journalists for his Spectrum News Special, “Pride and Perseverance.”

Over the years, DiLella has acted as a contributing correspondent for the Tony Awards, the Olivier Awards at London’s Royal Albert Hall, Playbill, MANHATTAN Magazine and Broadway Direct. He has appeared as an entertainment correspondent for “Morning Joe”, BBC, The Tamron Hall Show, Andy Cohen’s “Watch What Happens Live”, AOL BUILD Series, Sirius XM, CBS, NBC, CTV, and Al Jazeera TV.

In January 2022, DiLella executive produced and hosted the documentary “Reopening: The Broadway Revival,” featuring Sara Bareilles, Kristin Chenoweth, Andrew Lloyd Webber, and other notable theater artists. This PBS Great Performances special offered a unique glimpse into the challenges and triumphs of the Broadway industry during the COVID-19 pandemic. His latest documentary, “Playing The Palace,” about Broadway’s legendary Palace Theatre, debuted on PBS in May 2025 and featured Broadway icons including Bernadette Peters, Joel Grey, and Heather Headley.

He’s made multiple big and small screen appearances as “himself” including – Ryan Murphy’s “The Prom” – opposite Meryl Streep (NETFLIX), “Smash” (NBC), “The Little Voice” (APPLE TV+), “Gossip Girl” (HBO MAX) and “The Forty-Year-Old Version” (SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL / NETFLIX).

Committed to fostering the next generation of artists, Frank DiLella serves on the selection committee for the annual Clive Barnes Award and Foundation, which honors outstanding young professionals in dance and theater. He is also a member of the Chairman’s Council for Bette Midler’s nonprofit, the New York Restoration Project – an environmental justice organization dedicated to beautifying New York City. In addition, Frank proudly serves on the advisory committee of the American Theatre Wing, the founder and co-presenter of the Tony Awards and home of the OBIE Awards. The Wing offers a suite of programs that support every facet of the national theatre ecology.

He is currently working on his first book, “The Big Book of Broadway”, to be published by Hachette in late 2027.

DiLella received a degree from Fordham University at Lincoln Center and has since returned to his alma mater as an adjunct professor teaching theater journalism.