Top Broadway star likens Ron DeSantis to Klan grand wizard

Applause and approval as Hamilton actor Denee Benton makes comparison at Tony awards in New York on Sunday night

Prominent Broadway actor Denee Benton likened Florida's rightwing governor Ron DeSantis to a Ku Klux Klan grand wizard at Sunday night's Tony awards ceremony, drawing applause and roars of approval from the audience.

Benton, known for her stage roles in Hamilton as well as Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812, took aim at the Republican presidential hopeful and his policies attacking minority groups as she announced an award for theatrical excellence for a Florida high school teacher from the town of Plantation.