Tony Awards: Paul Sheehan's musings on musical nominees
Tonys guru extraordinaire and Envelope contributor Paul Sheehan offers this take on the tuners.
The best-musical race is between the edgy "Passing Strange" — the fanciful telling of the life of indie musician Stew — and "In the Heights," an exuberant tuner that celebrates life in the barrio. "Passing Strange" just won the New York Drama Critics Circle prize as best musical ("In the Heights" was ineligible because it had been considered last year during its off-Broadway run). While Stew reaped a record four of the seven nominations (actor, book, score, orchestrations) for this show, helmer Annie Dorsen was snubbed for her Broadway debut.
"In the Heights" leads all contenders with 13 nominations, including double nods for Lin-Manuel Miranda who wrote the music and lyrics and stars in the show. His vibrant vision of life in Washington Heights could prove irresistible to the road producers who make up a sizable bloc of the nearly 800 Tony voters. This fiesta of fun is just the sort of show that packs them in at theaters around the country.
"Cry-Baby," the latest John Waters movie to be made into a musical, sneaked into the top tuner race, despite middling reviews. With no acting noms and only three other bids (book, score, choreography) the odds of it winning the top prize, as "Hairspray" did in 2003, are remote. So too are the chances for the campy "Xanadu," the tuner take on the 1980 flop film. This too only has three other nominations –- lead actress Kerry Butler, book and choreography. For both these shows, the nomination is the reward.
Two past Tony champs were snubbed in the best musical race. Four time Tony winner Harvey Fierstein may have written the book and starred in "A Catered Affair" but to no avail (the show got only 3 nods –- leads Faith Prince and Tom Wopat as well as orchestrations by grand slam winner Jonathan Tunick). Mel Brooks, who took home three of the record 12 Tonys awarded to "The Producers" in 2001, was left off the list for his $15-million musical of "Young Frankenstein." That show also got only three nods --featured performers Andrea Martin and Christopher Fitzgerald as well as scenic design.
The first rialto remounting of "South Pacific" landed 11 nods, including best revival. This Pulitzer Prize-winning musical could well match its 1950 haul when it won nine Tonys (having already picked up a share of one the previous year when scenic designer Jo Mielziner) won for a slew of shows). As with the original, this version of the Rodgers & Hammerstein classic landed nods in all four acting categories. Though the original quartet (Ezio Pinza, Mary Martin, Myron McCormick and Juanita Hall) all won, it is less likely the current cast will sweep.
Opera star Paulo Szot, who just won the Outer Critics prize, is the front-runner for lead actor but Kelli O'Hara is battling it out in the highly competitive lead actress category. O'Hara's chief rival has to be Broadway vet Patti LuPone who won the Outer Critics award for her turn in the fourth rialto revival of "Gypsy." All five actresses to play the part of the ultimate stage mother on Broadway have been Tony nominated. While the first and most recent Mama Rose -- Ethel Merman (1960) and Bernadette Peters (2003) –- lost, the middle two -- Angela Lansbury (1975) and Tyne Daly (1990) -- won. While LuPone has sentiment on her side (she won her only Tony way back in 1980), this is the third nomination in four years for the red hot O'Hara.
Though Danny Burstein ("South Pacific") took the Outer Critics award for featured actor, his competition includes Boyd Gaines ("Gypsy") who won this category in 2000. Gaines had already won lead actor in a musical ("She Loves Me," 1994) and featured actor in a play ("The Heidi Chronicles," 1989). For Loretta Ables Sayre ("South Pacific") a nomination for her Broadway debut makes her a winner. Outer Critics winner Laura Benanti ("Gypsy") has to hope her third nomination is the charm as she strives to be the first of the actresses to play the title character to take home the Tony.
The race for revival is between "South Pacific," which won all nine of its 1950 nods, "Gypsy," which lost all eight of its 1960 bids, and "Sunday in the Park with George," which won only one of its nine 1984 noms. That Pulitzer Prize winner by Stephen Sondheim is up for nine awards again this year, including nods for leads Daniel Evans and Jenna Russell who are recreating their Olivier award-winning performances.
One of those losing nominations for "Gypsy" in 1960 was for the book by Arthur Laurents. At age 89, he earned another nom for directing this revival as he had in 1975. Laurents won his only Tony for directing the show that trounced "Sunday" in 1984 –-"La Cage Aux Folles." "South Pacific" helmer Bartlett Sher earned his third nod in four years for directing yet another show for Lincoln Center Theater, following "The Light in the Piazza" (2005) and "Awake and Sing" (2006).
(Photos: Richard Rodgers Theater/ Belasco Theatre)
