Brooke Shields turned heads at the 2024 Tony Awards on June 16, but not just for her bright yellow Monique Lhuillier gown. The 59-year-old supermodel and actress made a bold fashion statement by pairing her elegant dress with bright yellow Crocs.
The unconventional choice wasn’t purely about style. Shields explained to media outlets that she had undergone double foot surgery just three days prior to the event. “I had to buy Crocs because I had double foot surgery three days ago,” Shields said on the red carpet. “I’m not taking any of the pain meds. You know what? It just is what it is.”
Despite her recent surgery, Shields was determined to attend the Tony Awards, reflecting her deep connection to the theater community. “They’ve kept me alive when nobody else wanted me,” she said, referring to her long-standing relationship with Broadway. Shields, who first graced the stage as Rizzo in Grease in 1994, expressed her gratitude for the support she has received from the theater world over the years. “To me, this is a beautiful moment to celebrate theater and the entire theater community, and the stagehands and the chorus and the ensemble and all the people that have kept me alive every Broadway show I’ve done,” she added.
Shields, who shares daughters Rowan, 21, and Grier, 18, with husband Chris Henchy, has recently opened up about embracing the changes that come with aging. “Yeah, things ache,” she admitted. “And I wish I could sleep more. I wish everything was higher. I wish I didn’t need kinesiology tape to bring my knees up to where they should be.”
However, Shields finds joy in this new chapter of her life, appreciating her renewed sense of energy and confidence. “I am more youthful now than I was in my youth,” she said. “My energy, my confidence, my lack of self-judgment. The negative tapes that I played [in my mind]… they don’t play anymore. They’re all stretched out.”
Shields’ appearance at the Tonys, complete with her bright Crocs, symbolizes not just a recovery from surgery but a celebration of her resilience and the enduring support of the theater community.
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