worst performance by performers at the Tony's- Page 2

[Jazzysuite82]

Posted: 12/22/05 at 11:40pm

I think we have definitions of talent. You can lose range and wreck your voice but that's destroying your instrument, which is different than God given talent that you have no control over. I think what is lost is skill. She's def not as skillful as she used to be. Like I said I think she needs to stop trying to blow like she used to. Sing lower...just my opinion.

[StephanietheStar]

Posted: 12/22/05 at 11:44pm

Aretha Franklin sucks...she has gotten so bad the last 20 years, and her ego has just gotten larger. She canceled her sold out performance at our newly (millions of dollars were used) renovated theatre because she said it was a dump. She's stupid.

anyways..thread jack over

I think the worst I've seen is, the Caroline or Change one (it really made me wonder why everyone thinks it's so good), and the Defying Gravity (wow..taht...was a whole lotta pain)...

[CompanyGuy]

Posted: 12/23/05 at 1:00am

I agree with DG. I saw her belt it a couple months prior, so I was sad. She was sick, and she sounded it. But like any good actress she just did what she was there to do. So, as not so good as it was, I still respect her.

Same goes with Caroline, or Change. She was obviously sick. But DANG can she act. She acted the hell out of the piece. So even though her voice wasn't there I was so intrigued by her performance.

I wasn't a huge fan of the Spamalot. I thought that they could have picked a funnier song, IMO.

[Jazzysuite82]

Posted: 12/23/05 at 1:07am

Yeah i agree about Spamalot. I think they should have done the part where Sara scats. That's hilarious.

[CatieElphie1]

Posted: 12/23/05 at 1:29am

Aretha franklin deffinatly like what? fifthed? I agree, anyways.
spamalot was also not that great--they should have done a funnier number..in the context of the tonys, I remember not alot of people were laughing at all.
what else?
Oh. Hugh Jackman when he did his boy from oz schick. I'm sorry folks, but I'll say it.
Just because you gice him a couple of good songs and some diaolgue and a suit does not a broadway-quality show make. the boy from oz was SO dumb. And his performance that night pretty much showed it..it was, basically, hugh jackman performing as hugh jackman. If you hadn't seen the Boy from Oz, you had no idea what was going on.

[jimmirae]

Posted: 12/23/05 at 8:49am

After seeing Ms. Applegate do the "Sweet Charity" number I was shocked that someone who is NOT a dancer, or not a very good dancer, was given that sacred role in the first place. She lifted her downstage hand up to hold the hat as she kicked! Fosse would have turned over in his GRAVE!

[boytobroadway]

Posted: 12/23/05 at 8:51am

DG by Idina at the Tony's I think was the worst I have seen, but the ensemble was wunderful.

People do lose there talent to over time, like Aretha. Tori Amos has become older and her voice shows it. It is still really good, but it is very old woman shrilly.

I swear, with the way they are bringing pop and whatever singers into Broadway these days, we will be lucky to NOT have Christina Aguilara or someone sing at the Tony's.

[once a month]

Posted: 12/23/05 at 9:07am

Skipping back quite a few years to the Les Miserables sequence of that year...I felt that the actor playing Marius (sorry I forget his name) had no voice at all. He seemed to strain consederably and was overshadowed by Judy Kuhns Cosette.
The year Into the Woods was nominated, Phyllicia Rashad played the witch instead of Bernadette Peters, and she flagged the energy level of the whole number.

[DreamFlyer22]

Posted: 12/23/05 at 9:14am

Okay, so it wasn't a musical... but does anyone remember the play medley they tried back in '99 (I think that was the year??). That definately wins my "Worst Idea Ever" award. All I can remember is these actors standing behind black music stands calling out random lines from their shows. It made zero sense and didn't do anything to lure me in to see a play.

[YouWantitWhen????]

Posted: 12/23/05 at 10:33am

Again, I don't think people loose the talent per se, but their tools have been damaged over time amd they have not been very good about maintaining their skills. People's voices and bodies change over time. To attribute a performance no talent, as opposed to diminsed skills and/or damaged voice and body is not a fair assumption about someone.

JMO.

[best12bars]

Posted: 12/23/05 at 10:34am

I'd have to agree with Caroline or Change. Tonya shouldn't have gone on.

[Danielm]

Posted: 12/23/05 at 2:26pm

As much as I hate to say it because I love Hugh Jackman with a deep and abiding passions, the duet with Aretha Franklin was painful. It was a bad idea from the start. Mary J. Blige's song the previous year, while better, I still could have done without.

[TheatreDiva612]

Posted: 12/23/05 at 2:29pm

DanielM- agreed. I was there that night, and it was not pretty... definetely did NOT get the audience reaction they were probably hoping for

Posted: 12/23/05 at 2:44pm

I cant say I enjoyed the Mary J. Blige bit the year before at all, I just didn't get it. Also I agree with the Aretha and Hugh Jackman comments, it was just horrible. They should have just cut it all together IMO, or gotten someone else to sing it with Hugh. Also I can't say I was really captivated with spamalot song choice either, I agree that they could have picked something funnier. :) but that's just my opinion.

[MisterRussell]

Posted: 12/23/05 at 3:09pm

The entire ensemble cast (Jim Dale, Dick Van Dyke, Susan Anton, Chita Rivera, Tom Wopat, Rex Smith, Stephanie Powers, Maureen McGovern, George Hearn, Cleavant Derricks) of the 1985 Tonys in EVERY SINGLE NUMBER THEY DID. Must be seen to be believed.

[shermanslave]

Posted: 12/23/05 at 3:13pm

Does anyone recall A Grand Night for Singing several years ago? That was really bad.

[wowobball2000]

Posted: 12/23/05 at 4:35pm

Idina's Defying Gravity actually had me cringing during the Tonys. It's got my vote for worst.

[Jon]

Posted: 12/23/05 at 4:54pm

It's a tie between Idina and Tonya.

Bt the way -- three months after the Tonys, idina was still gasping loudly for air.

[jo]

Posted: 12/24/05 at 4:11am

'Hugh Jackman performing Hugh Jackman..."

Hmmm...who is the real Hugh Jackman onstage? I saw him a number of times in THE BOY FROM OZ and I was lucky to have caught OKLAHOMA! in London ( in 1999) and have also seen quite a number of video clips from SUNSET BOULEVARD...and even one or two from THE BEAUTY AND THE BEAST. He is quite a chameleon - different stage characters performed rather well. Even his movies attest to his losing himself in the character.

Many Peter Allen friends ( such as Carol Sager Bayer and the real Dee Anthony who also saw the show) were so taken with Hugh's performance of Peter that they said they almost felt like tearing up because it seemed like seeing Peter all over again ( not that Hugh is a Peter look-alike, but that he brought the essence of Peter onstage).

I think it was his performance of Peter at the TONYs which helped him win the year's EMMY.

Updated On: 12/24/05 at 04:11 AM

[Copeman63]

Posted: 12/24/05 at 5:21am

-The Producers had all sorts of sound troubles, which was a shame, since the announcer hyped it before every commercial break that year.
-I'm one of the biggest Mamma Mia! supporters on this board, and I loved the OBC, but the Tony's Medley was awful! But the cast looked way hot!
-I have to agree with the Idina call. I work on a cruise ship, so I saw a tape of the show, and I was so excited to see the number after hearing it was performed... Yeah... Not very good.
-I also agree with whoever pointed out the Play Medley of 99...Awful.

[DreamFlyer22]

Posted: 12/24/05 at 9:10am

Yay, I'm not the only one who remembers the deadly medley from '99!

Also, since it seems to be coming out as the top choice of bad Tony Awards performance... I remember being completely freaked out at the end of "Defying Gravity". Not because of how wonderful it was, but because of that scraping/painful growl Idina made on that last "Ahhh-ahhh!". As a singer myself I HATE to hear someone doing that to his/her voice.

[jeremykushnier1fan]

Posted: 12/24/05 at 11:08am

I didn't find Piazza's performance that interesting. Though they both had lovely voices.

[Scott3]

Posted: 12/24/05 at 11:58am

Updated On: 11/11/16 at 11:58 AM

[Enjolras77]

Posted: 12/24/05 at 12:26pm

I obviously have to agree with Tonya in Caroline, or Change...but I guess she deserves credit for at least trying. I hadn't seen the show before, and after the performance I wasn't sure if I wanted to. Probably not the best song to take out of context and perform anyway.

Another poor choice that came off even worse because of sound problems was Marting Short singing "Le Grand Boom Boom" from Little Me at the 1999 Tonys. There were better choices from the show, and the fact that his mic didn't work didn't help matters at all!

Speaking of worst non-musical performances..how about the Def Poetry Jam segment from a few years ago that was live from Times Square...yikes!

[Copeman63]

Posted: 12/24/05 at 5:00pm

Oh gosh, the poetry section was AWFUL! Where was Tivo when I needed it!(I guess I was watching it live, but it's the thought that counts...)