Talkin’
Tonys
Celebrities
snubbed, women factor in, kids everywhere…it was a race full of surprises and
shocks.
June
12, 2013
Broadway
seemed cured of its knee jerk infatuation with Hollywood celebrities as Tom
Hanks (Lucky Guy) and Nathan Lane (The Nance), nominated but
didn’t win; Alec Baldwin (Orphans), Bette Midler (I’ll Eat You Last)
Alan Cumming (Macbeth,) and Scarlett Johansson (Cat on a Hot Tin
Roof) were snubbed.
Women
winners were a factor: Broadway newbie Cyndi Lauper for Kinky Boots score
and two directors: Diane Paulus (Pippin) and Pam MacKinnon (Who’s
Afraid of Virginia Woolf?)– a rare time women have won directing
Tonys for both a musical and a play in the same year, not since the 1998
Tonys.
And there
were kids everywhere: the orphans in Annie, the boys in Newsies,
Raymond Luke Jr. (young Michael Jackson) in Motown the Musical, the kids
in A Christmas Story, the Musical (especially mini tap dancer Luke Spring)
and the cast of Matilda The Musical.
THE
TONY - A MONEY MAKER OR BREAKER
Kinky
Boots, Pippin
quadrupled sales the next day, Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike
tripled its usual box office take for a Monday. Matilda saw a major bump.
Though
low on nominations Motown is sold out at least through October, and Pippin,
Kinky Boots with their claim as Tony Winners are planning their national
tours while Matilda, who kept U.S. producers on hold, finally going with
The Dodgers last minute, may have antagonized some of the Tony voters. Without
the “Tony winner”
Credential,
its producers are waiting to see how it does on Broadway before considering
touring companies.
The Tony’s first casualty is ANN,
written and performed by Emmy and Outer Critics Circle Award winner and Tony
nominee Holland Taylor, which will play its final Broadway
performance on Sunday, June 30, 2013, after 19 previews and 132 regular
performances.
Nominations
for the 2013 American Theatre Wing’s Tony Awards® (asterisks indicate winners)
Best
Play
The
Assembled Parties
Lucky
Guy
The
Testament of Mary
*Vanya
and Sonia and Masha and Spike
This
is a theatergoer insider’s play, a clever take-off on ChekHov by the much
respected, never awarded Chris Durang with uniformly stellar performances in
the cast. However some are surprised that a tribute to the late Nora Ephron for
Lucky Guy did not happen. The play was considered more a documentary on New
York reporter Mike
McAlary’s
life as portrayed by Tom Hanks. It was for me the best evening of theater this
season.
Best
Musical
Bring
It On: The Musical
A
Christmas Story, The Musical
*Kinky
Boots
Matilda
The Musical
This
was the nail biter between Boots and Matilda.
Kinky
Boots is basically an old fashioned traditional musical reminiscent to some of La
Cage aux Folles and Hairspray, about sexuality and tolerance but hardly ground
breaking. I enjoyed it much more than Matilda. However, the more I see excerpts
of Matilda (which I was ready to leave at intermission because the show was too
dark,) the more I appreciate its innovations, its staging and oddball story. It
is full of surprises, incredible performances, and an unpredictable score. It
surprises and astounds you, eventually moves you and stays with you long
afterwards.
.
Best
Revival of a Play
Golden
Boy
Orphans
The
Trip to Bountiful
*Who’s
Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Best
Revival of a Musical
Annie
The
Mystery of Edwin Drood
*Pippin
Rodgers
+ Hammerstein’s Cinderella
A
shoo-in, Pippin had everything but the kitchen sink thrown into it – cirque du
soleil-style acrobatics, Andrea Martin, and a stunning Ben Vereen substitute.
Best
Book of a Musical
A
Christmas Story, The Musical
Joseph
Robinette
Kinky
Boots
Harvey
Fierstein
*Matilda
The Musical
Dennis
Kelly
Rodgers
+ Hammerstein’s Cinderella
Douglas
Carter Beane
Best
Original Score (Music and/or Lyrics) Written for the Theatre
A
Christmas Story, The Musical
Music
and Lyrics: Benj Pasek and Justin Paul
Hands
on a Hardbody
Music:
Trey Anastasio and Amanda Green
Lyrics: Amanda Green
*Kinky
Boots
Music
& Lyrics: Cyndi Lauper
Matilda
The Musical
Music
& Lyrics: Tim Minchin
Best Direction of a Play
*Pam MacKinnon, Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Nicholas Martin, Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike
Bartlett Sher, Golden Boy
George C. Wolfe, Lucky Guy
Many felt that Golden Boy was the shortchanged in so many
categories because it opened in the Fall and people forget how great the
production was in this and other categories. The Steppenwolf production of Virginia
Woolf surprised all by winning in an arena where Broadway voters are usually
loyal to their own, besides people are tired of Virginia…
Best Choreography
Andy Blankenbuehler, Bring
It On: The Musical
Peter Darling, Matilda The
Musical
*Jerry Mitchell, Kinky
Boots
Chet Walker, Pippin
Many expected more from Jerry Mitchell, director/chorographer, as
the lackluster number on the Awards show disappointed many. Matilda’s Peter
Darling was much more inventive with all those “revoltin” kids.
Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical
Bertie Carvel, Matilda The
Musical
Santino Fontana, Rodgers +
Hammerstein's Cinderella
Rob McClure, Chaplin
*Billy Porter, Kinky Boots
Stark Sands, Kinky Boots
Porter, a sentimental favorite of the Broadway community,
definitely had the meatier role and a greater dramatic arc but Carvel cannot be
faulted for the most original characterization possibly creating a new low/high
as the most repulsive crossdresser in Broadway history.
Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Play
Tom Hanks, Lucky Guy
Nathan Lane, The Nance
*Tracy Letts, Who's Afraid
of Virginia Woolf?
David Hyde Pierce, Vanya
and Sonia and Masha and Spike
Tom Sturridge, Orphans
This was the stunner of the evening! Personally, if not Hanks or
Lane (who had previously won the Outer Critics Circle and Drama League awards
and was considered a shoo-in though many thought/hoped Broadway would honor its
visiting celebrity, the adored Tom Hanks), Tom Sturridge gave the most
astonishing performance in the short lived Orphans – as we watched in jaw
dropping fascination as the actor ricocheted off the set – including the walls
- in his memorable role as mentally challenged, emotionally stunted. However – note
to all performers – when he accepted his Outer Critics Circle and Theater World
awards, he was still in character inspiring doubts that he was not acting and
this is indeed his persona.
Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical
Stephanie J. Block, The
Mystery of Edwin Drood
Carolee Carmello, Scandalous
Valisia LeKae, Motown The
Musical
*Patina Miller, Pippin
Laura Osnes, Rodgers +
Hammerstein's Cinderella
Brava! Well deserved – she sings dances acts and performs
acrobatics.
Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Play
Laurie Metcalf, The
Other Place
Amy Morton, Who's Afraid
of Virginia Woolf?
Kristine Nielsen, Vanya
and Sonia and Masha and Spike
Holland Taylor, Ann
*Cicely Tyson, The Trip to
Bountiful
This role has been an Oscar and Tony winner for whomever plays it.
But Ciciely Tyson captured our hearts.
Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical
Charl Brown, Motown The
Musical
Keith Carradine, Hands on
a Hardbody
Will Chase, The Mystery of
Edwin Drood
*Gabriel Ebert, Matilda
The Musical
Terrence Mann, Pippin
Though virtually unknown to American audiences and running against
some perennial favorites, Ebert truly out-acted them in a stunningly unique and
energetic portrayal as Matilda’s wacky dad.
Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Play
Danny Burstein, Golden
Boy
Richard Kind, The Big
Knife
Billy Magnussen, Vanya and
Sonia and Masha and Spike
Tony Shalhoub, Golden Boy
*Courtney B. Vance, Lucky
Guy
Should have been Richard Kind (he too had already won the other
awards) or the guys from Golden Boy. Lucky Guy, which is my favorite play on
Broadway, was more an ensemble piece.
Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Musical
Annaleigh Ashford, Kinky
Boots
Victoria Clark, Rodgers +
Hammerstein's Cinderella
*Andrea Martin, Pippin
Keala Settle, Hands on a
Hardbody
Lauren Ward, Matilda The
Musical
Andrea has quickly become an icon for women of a certain age for
her remarkably athletic performance and spunky sense of humor.
Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Play
Carrie Coon, Who's Afraid
of Virginia Woolf?
Shalita Grant, Vanya and
Sonia and Masha and Spike
Judith Ivey, The Heiress
*Judith Light, The
Assembled Parties
Condola Rashad, The Trip
to Bountiful
Testimony to her outstanding performance, she won the Tony two
years in a row.
Best Costume Design of a Musical
Gregg Barnes, Kinky Boots
Rob Howell, Matilda The
Musical
Dominique Lemieux, Pippin
*William Ivey Long, Rodgers
+ Hammerstein's Cinderella
Cinderella and the witch change clothes from rags into fabulous
ball gowns onstage in front of your eyes – that alone is worth the prize.
Best Costume Design of a Play
Soutra Gilmour, Cyrano
de Bergerac
*Ann Roth, The Nance
Albert Wolsky, The Heiress
Catherine Zuber, Golden
Boy
Best Scenic Design of a Musical
*Rob Howell, Matilda The
Musical
Anna Louizos, The Mystery
of Edwin Drood
Scott Pask, Pippin
David Rockwell, Kinky Boots
Best Scenic Design of a Play
*John Lee Beatty, The
Nance
Santo Loquasto, The
Assembled Parties
David Rockwell, Lucky Guy
Michael Yeargan, Golden
Boy
Tony
Award wins per production:
Kinky Boots
— 6
Matilda
The Musical — 4
Pippin
— 4
Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? — 3
The Nance
— 3
Lucky Guy
— 2
Vanya
and Sonia and Masha and Spike — 1
Rodgers +
Hammerstein's Cinderella — 1
The
Trip to Bountiful — 1
The
Assembled Parties — 1
The
race is over but each week presents a possible new contender for a “theater season”
that is no longer seasonal.
