Hasty Pudding Woman Of the Year Ceremony Postponed Due to 'Unforeseen Circumstances'

The Hasty Pudding Theatricals’ 2024 Woman of the Year ceremony will be postponed this year, the Boston Globe reported.

The annual ceremony — consisting of a parade through Harvard Square, a roast of the honoree, and the awarding of a “Pudding Pot” — was originally scheduled for Friday, but has been postponed due to a “few unforeseen circumstances,” a Hasty Pudding spokesperson told the Globe. A new date has not been announced.

The winners of the Woman of the Year and Man of the Year award are typically announced by the end of January, but the organization has yet to reveal this year’s recipients.

“While we will miss our woman of the year this weekend, she is committed to finding an alternative date to parade her through the streets of Harvard Square and roast her on the Farkas Hall stage during the course of our run,” a Hasty Pudding spokesperson wrote to the Globe.

Founded in 1844, the Hasty Pudding Theatricals is the third oldest theatrical group in the world. In addition to hosting the annual Woman of the Year and Man of the Year ceremonies, the group also stages an annual musical production created and performed by students. This year’s production, “Heist, Heist, Baby,” opens on Feb. 2 in Cambridge.

The annual Woman of the Year tradition began in 1951 when the organization honored English actress Gertrude Lawrence. Past winners have included Meryl Streep, Julia Roberts, and Viola Davis.

Last year’s ceremony, held in early February, honored Golden Globe and Emmy Award winning actress Jennifer Coolidge — who starred in “The White Lotus” — as the 2023 Woman of the Year. Emmy Award winning and “Breaking Bad” actor Bob Odenkirk was also honored as the 2023 Man of the Year.

—Staff writer Madeleine A. Hung can be reached at madeleine.hung@thecrimson.com.