The Best Play categories for the Tonys hardly matter this year, due to August: Osage County, but I can imagine a scenario where The 39 Steps could get a nomination for Best Play and a few other nods.
I think the three locks for Best Play nominations are August: Osage County, Rock 'n' Roll and The Seafarer. The fourth slot, in my view, is up for grabs.
The Farnsworth Invention will probably not get nominated, since it has closed and Sorkin's work was questioned for its authenticity and reviews were mixed.
Is He Dead? was a good production of a play that was not a rediscovered classic and it could be hurt for both having closed and for questions over whether it can truly be classified a new play or not.
November is seen by some as somewhat frivolous, not top-drawer Mamet.
Mauritius was seen by some as imitation Mamet and is of course, long gone.
A Bronx Tale could get taken care of with a Best Actor nomination. Same with Thurgood if it proves to be less than compelling.
The 39 Steps will have opened anew just prior to the Tony nominations, which is a plus for it. It has a certain awards pedigree as an Olivier Award winner for Best Comedy. It is a show that many seem to like and it has proved a success for Roundabout, well beyond their subscribers, as others here have noted. It also is a celebration of tremendous theatrical imagination at work. It's vividly theatrical and the theatre loves nothing more than to celebrate itself. I could see it getting that fourth slot because of how much it is liked, and how it's a triumph of ingenuity over big budget theatre (see Ben Brantley's review).
All four cast members are terrific, but I thought Jennifer Ferrin and Cliff Saunders were exceptional. I'm not counting them out in the Featured categories. I would think that Maria Aitken has a chance at a Best Director nomination for engineering it all, and Kevin Adams' excellent lighting also stands a shot. Maybe Peter McKintosh too, for all of those crazy quick-change costumes.
The award races won't matter in the end, as the Tony love will be heaped upon August: Osage County. But because it is out for nothing more than to give its audience a great night out, I think The 39 Steps could still eke out a run with its low running costs and with its strong word of mouth.
Begin at the beginning and go on till you come to the end: then stop.
Updated On: 3/18/08 at 08:24 AM
