2007 Leading Actress in a Musical Tony Nominee Contenders- Page 16

[dramaqueen2]

Posted: 3/6/07 at 5:13pm

i think lea michele should definitely be nominated. whoever thinks she doesn't deserve it is either blind or stupid.
but i do think ebersole might take it, much to my own dismay..

[StephenSondheimWHOO]

Posted: 3/6/07 at 5:21pm

There is no way on earth Ashley Brown will win and a very small chance she will be nominated.
My Predictions Are:
Christine Ebersole
Kristin Chenoweth
Audra McDonald
Debra Monk
Donna Murphy
?SJB?

[Becoz_i_knew_you21]

Posted: 3/6/07 at 5:37pm

"i think lea michele should definitely be nominated. whoever thinks she doesn't deserve it is either blind or stupid.
but i do think ebersole might take it, much to my own dismay.."

Wow! Such maturity.

The obvious choices are what Stephen Sondheim listed above. All those ladies are absolutely fantastic but I would like to see somebody newer like Laura Bell Bundy,SJB, or Lea Michele get into the leading actress category.
*edited for grammar
Updated On: 3/6/07 at 05:37 PM

[bwaygal1]

Posted: 3/6/07 at 5:53pm

Lea Michele should have been left in the featured actress category. She's definitely giving a fantastic performance, but I'm afraid too many other clearly "leading" ladies are in the mix. Christine Ebersole, as I have said before, will probably win. (I'd hate to be up against her!) Then, you have Donna Murphy, Audra McDonald, Stephanie J. Block, Laura Bell Bundy, all of whom are definite "leading" roles. I have a hard time with Lea's performance being classified as "leading". (I'd have asked them to put me in featured if I was her.)

I really believe Christine should and probably will win, and I'll keep saying it until 6/10, when she wins her Tony.

[AudreyTwoTwo]

Posted: 3/6/07 at 6:44pm

I think that those are a good possibility, except I think Charlotte will be featured actress or something like that because the role is not that big. Really. Basically everyone has an equal role in A Chorus Line with a few that are just a smidgen bigger.

[Yankeefan007]

Posted: 3/6/07 at 6:51pm

....but Charlotte sucked, and everybody reviewed her that way.

***

"i think lea michele should definitely be nominated. whoever thinks she doesn't deserve it is either blind or stupid.
but i do think ebersole might take it, much to my own dismay.."

Lea's part isn't big enough to deserve a nomination amongst other women who carry their respective shows. Have you seen Grey Gardens?

[Becoz_i_knew_you21]

Posted: 3/6/07 at 7:22pm

It has already been ruled that everyone in ACL is featured.

[wonderfulwizard11]

Posted: 3/6/07 at 7:48pm

dramaqueen, hate to break it to you, but Michele most likely get nominated. In such a crowded year, she just doesn't have a part with a size comparable to Ebersole's, Chenoweth's, etc. If she was featured, she'd be nominated, and would have a slight chance at winning. But this year she just doesn't have a very good chance at all. And even if she is nominated, it's Ebersole, unless McDonald or Murphy turns in a fantastic performance that surpasses Ebersole's.

My picks:

Christine Ebersole
Audra McDonald
Kristin Chenoweth
Debra Monk
Donna Murphy

[Becoz_i_knew_you21]

Posted: 3/6/07 at 7:52pm

This year,in my opinon, for many performers is not about winning. It is about getting a nomination in such a crowded year.Sure everyone wants to win but I think just about everyone knows Christine Ebersole will be taking home the award in this category.

[RockabyeHamlet]

Posted: 3/6/07 at 9:14pm

I think Becoz hit the nail on the head...

[munkustrap178]

Posted: 3/6/07 at 10:37pm

I don't think that Lea Michele deserves a nomination, and I am neither blind nor stupid.

She's fine in the part, to be sure - but she's not brilliant. She's not fantastic. She's suitable, and the constraints of the role (and the size of the role) don't allow her to blossom and shine over other contendors like Chenoweth and Ebersole.

In response to why Ebersole should win, it's not really that her impersonation is dead on. Because it's not. If you know the documentary inside and out, you will know that Ebersole's inflection, dialect, accent, etc. is way off.

It's not about impersonation for me. It's not about Ebersole sounding just like Edie Beale - because she doesn't.

It's about her having an uncanny connection with Edie, and creating a subtext involving the character that may not have even happen. She cultivated something beautiful. Although Ebersole is playing a real person, she is very much playing an imagined person. Her connection to her, the material, and to the message is almost unspeakably beautiful.

[bwaygal1]

Posted: 3/6/07 at 10:53pm

Wow! I hadn't thought of it that way.
I've seen the documentary and really believe (out of the now 7x I've seen this marvelous show) Christine did nail the role. Maybe it's a connection, maybe it's also her mannerisms being so similar, maybe it's just the work of a true actress who imbues herself so completely in the role that you can't see the real person from the actor anymore.
Don't discount her performance as Big Edie, either. She's fantastic at playing her, too. (Boy, she really gives the impression that Big Edie really had talent. Too bad the 'jig was up'-huh?)
Anyhow, I'm seriously pulling for Christine and GG in general at this year's Tonys.

[Yankeefan007]

Posted: 3/6/07 at 10:59pm

Munk, as usual, is dead on.

I'll say this, in response to Ebersole in the part.

I'm not an emotional guy. I don't cry over theater, I don't cry over movies (save for Mr. Holland's Opus). Ebersole's performance reduced me to tears. Her performance is truly heartbreaking. She connects with the role(s) in ways that are rare these days. The only other actors I've seen (in my 10 years-or-so of theatergoing) connect with their parts as well as Ebersole were Nathan Lane in The Producers, Harvey Fierstein in Hairspray, Tony Shalhoub & Anna Camp in The Scene, and Vanessa Redgrave in Long Day's Journey Into Night.

[miss pennywise]

Posted: 3/6/07 at 11:02pm

I agree with what Munk said and want to add that Ms. Ebersole acts her parts with respect and affection for the actual people upon whom the characters are based. She understands them as flawed and, yet, remarkable human beings. She portays these women with both humor and compassion...as well as dignity.

I suppose that I have such reverence for her performance because she has such reverence for the play's subjects.

Posted: 3/6/07 at 11:50pm

"It has already been ruled that everyone in ACL is featured."

Well, Charlotte has a better chance. I like her, but not too many people. Even though The Music And The Mirror is my FAV song by her!

[Wanna Be A Foster]

Posted: 3/7/07 at 12:39am

After seeing THE PIRATE QUEEN tonight, I can say that Block has no shot at a nomination. This show will be critically plastered, close before the Tonys and be forgotten, while other shows with superior performances will remain open, live on and receive appropriate recognition. I don't blame Block. She's beaming with talent--she practically stole the show in THE BOY FROM OZ--but the creative team is not giving her much to work with in this show. Here's hoping she moves onto a more worthy project.

Updated On: 3/7/07 at 12:39 AM

[WithoutATrace]

Posted: 3/7/07 at 12:59am

I have to say (sadly) that I agree with Foster in regards to Stephanie's chance at a nomination this year...not because of her, but because of the material.
Updated On: 3/7/07 at 12:59 AM

[HeyMrMusic]

Posted: 3/7/07 at 1:56am

Chenoweth, Ebersole, McDonald, Monk, Murphy
What a wonderful lineup!
All previous Tony winners. All talented women.
Too bad Kristin doesn't have a shot for the win. I just saw her performance in The Apple Tree tonight and she was wonderful.
This will be an exciting year for Leading Actresses in a Musical, much like this year's Lead Actress Oscar race.

~Steven

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 3/7/07 at 2:00am

I thought Chenoweth was wonderful as well. Her Eve was so brilliant.
I'm still not sure that Monk will get nominated, I hope she does, she's fantastic in CURTAINS but as I've said throughout this thread, her role is not an unqualified lead.

[HeyMrMusic]

Posted: 3/7/07 at 2:11am

She's above the title, though. I'm sure the producers will want to keep her lead to make room for the other women, just like they did with The Drowsy Chaperone.

~Steven

[fachedaluna]

Posted: 3/7/07 at 3:47am

Im sorry Foster and Without-a-Trace. You are both sadly mistaken. Stephanie J. Block is a triple threat in this show and hits the mark on all counts. I don't know, but were you feeling ill when you saw the previews? She was damn EXCELLENT bar none, and has a positive chance for a nomination.

You two are WACKED!
Updated On: 3/7/07 at 03:47 AM

[bwaygal1]

Posted: 3/7/07 at 7:43am

This year,in my opinon, for many performers is not about winning. It is about getting a nomination in such a crowded year.Sure everyone wants to win but I think just about everyone knows Christine Ebersole will be taking home the award in this category.


Tonight I really saw why this is entirely correct. Ebersole was once again brilliant, reducing me to tears, as well as the people around me. Oh my gawd! She was brilliant! Go girl!
I still say SJB does have a shot at a nomination. However, that said, Ms. E. is destined to win. (Then she'll have all the major awards for this role! Drama Desk, Outer Critics, Drama League-double award there!) Being nominated alongside a performance that has already been called legendary should be an honor for those other actresses! (Predict: Ebersole, Chenoweth, Murphy, McDonald, and LBB or SJB-If Legally Blonde is better received, look for LBB.)

[ahmelie]

Posted: 3/7/07 at 8:16am

Locks:
Ebersole
McDonald
Chenoweth

Possible:
Monk
Murphy
LBB
SJB
Lea Michelle- Something tells me they're going to nominate her.

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 3/7/07 at 1:02pm

fachedaluna, WithoutATRace and WannaBeFoster didn't say that Stephanie J. Block isn't talented, they just said the material she's working with doesn't seem to guarantee her a nomination in a season filled with wonderful performances AND good material.
I want Debra Monk to be nominated, I just don't think she's a lock just yet.
I'd say Donna Murphy, McDonald, Ebersole, and Chenoweth are all locks. I can't wait till all the shows open so we can all make informed opinions as to who will fill that fifth spot.

Updated On: 3/7/07 at 01:02 PM

[munkustrap178]

Posted: 3/7/07 at 1:19pm

These defenders of all things PIRATE QUEEN are really, really starting to get to me.