Audra McDonald - Another Tony?- Page 2

[Musicaldudepeter]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 9:34am

The website for this show labels it as Lady Day - THE MUSICAL.

[dreaming]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 9:34am

I think if Audra is put in leading actress in a musical, Jessie Mueller will get bumped and it'll be:
Sutton Foster
Marin Mazzie
Audra McDonald
Idina Menzel
Kelli O'Hara

I think one big problem with Michelle Williams is that Cabaret is a carbon copy of the last revival-I said it before and I'll say it again. I'm not sure it's going to be raking in the awards the way it did in 1998.

[Kad]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 9:36am

But isn't there a good chance Mazzie may be Featured?

[veronicamae]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 9:44am

"The website for this show labels it as Lady Day - THE MUSICAL."

No it doesn't: http://www.ladydayonbroadway.com/

There was, however, a past production that DID use ladydaythemusical.com, but that is not this staging.

[dreaming]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 9:47am

I think they won't want to leave ALL the actresses in featured, Kad. Why wouldn't they bump Mazzie up? It gives them a chance at a nod in both featured (where Helene York has garnered praise) and leading (for Mazzie) and a possible win in each (not saying it'll happen, but it's a possibility). I think if all the actresses are left in featured, they'll not only fail to win anything, they may not score nods they would have had if they spread the actresses out over the categories.

[WhizzerMarvin]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 9:54am

I think they should leave Mazzie in featured. Leading actress is a very tough category and she isn't even guaranteed a nomination, let alone a win. Featured on the other hand is pretty wide open and Mazzie and Yorke could easily both be nominated with one of them winning.

There is no way Jessie Mueller won't be nominated, btw. Jessie, Kelli and Idina are three locks in my mind. Sutton and Michelle Williams should round out the rest of the nominees as I'm assuming Audra will be placed in the play category.

[dreaming]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 10:06am

I still think that another reason Mazzie will be placed in leading is her stature in the community. She's something of a Broadway star-she probably will be in leading (whether or not she gets a nod is completely up to chance). I think if all the actresses in that show are in featured and she and York get nods, they'll cancel each other out, which is not the goal here-the goal is to win. I think jukebox musicals (unless you're getting the raves Jersey Boys did) are a crapshoot in the acting categories.

I think Kelli O'Hara and Idina Menzel are locks. That's it.

I think Rocky should petition Margo Siebert into featured, frankly.

And I think Williams having to contend with the ghost of Natasha Richardson is going to prove most formidable in a tough year as it is. I think Sutton will land the nod first (and I'm not a fan of hers at all).

[best12bars]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 10:14am

Don't forget, Audra had star billing in Ragtime, but she was (appropriately) placed in the "featured" category for the role of Sarah.

Some of these decisions are worked out in advance as part of the contract negotiations. PR decisions are often included, such as award promotion. Mazzie's management team and agent could easily have a clause that includes a decision about a "Leading" or "Featured" campaign. Ultimately, the Tony committee decides, but it's based on a submission from the show's producers. So who knows what has been worked out in advance.

[WhizzerMarvin]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 10:30am

Margo Siebert isn't above the title in Rocky and therefore will be featured unless petitioned otherwise.

Jessie is a critics darling and is bringing in the business at Beautiful. If she got a nomination for Clear Day she can get a nomination for anything! Plus everyone seems to love Beautiful. I'll be shocked if she doesn't get a nomination.

I agree that the goal is to win, and placing Mazzie in Lead Actress wouldn't help her do that. If they place her in Featured I think she will easily be the frontrunner.

[Michael Bennett]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 10:37am

Total heresay but from a friend who is involved in deciding these things in a 'official capacity" -- its expected that:

LADY DAY will be deemed a PLAY
Audra will be eligible for BEST ACTRESS/PLAY

Mazzie/York will be placed in SUPPORTING

[Kad]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 10:44am

Jessie got raves from the critics, despite being in a show that was coolly received- and she's pretty well-loved in the community and seen as the best rising star on Broadway right now.

A roster of Menzel, O'Hara, Foster, Mueller, and Williams seems the most likely to me if McDonald is ruled as being in a play. If not, I think Foster or Williams are the most likely at this point to not make the cut.

[Michael Bennett]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 10:48am

Keep in mind the Tony Nominating Committee loves to make strange decisions that often shoot themselves in the foot. I wouldn't at all be surprised if they did something insane like snubbing Idina Menzel. They've done weirder things.

[Kad]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 10:56am

That's true. It just seems so unlikely they'd snub her- regardless of reaction to If/Then- at the height of her career.

[doodlenyc]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 11:00am

After seeing Menzel's performance last night, I can't see why she is considered a lock. I have loved her in the past, and was one of the few who didnt mind that she won the Tony for "Wicked", but "If/Then" and her performance are just not very good. She was even weak vocally, though that may have just last night. She had to scream that 11 o'clock number and it reminded me of Ripley ruining her gorgeous voice singing a Kitt score.

Although I thought "Lady Day..." was an odd fit for Audra, I'm trusting her and the creative team on this one and expect a great performance from her. She's not stupid, and I expect she knows what she's doing. I havent seen the play since McKee, but remember feeling like the show seemed more of a play, even with all of the music and I expect her to be nom'd as Lead Actress in a Play, losing to Jones.

[dreaming]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 11:00am

I think putting all the actresses for Bullets into one category is a misfire.

Idina will get a nod for the simple reasons that: 1. She's in an 'original' musical; and 2. She's the "IT" girl right now. They want to make sure she's included.

If McDonald is in the play category and Mazzie is ruled featured (a big misstep I think), it'll be:

Foster
Menzel
Mueller
O'Hara
Williams

And I think it'll be either Foster, Menzel or O'Hara with Mueller a dark horse.

I think Helene York's word of mouth has surpassed Mazzie's and that she stands a better shot at winning.

Updated On: 3/19/14 at 11:00 AM

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 11:02am

Remember that year Kristin Chenoweth was weirdly left out of the roster for THE APPLE TREE? They nominated the insipid Laura Bell Bundy instead (and this is not a slight against LEGALLY BLONDE itself, as Sheridan Smith proved, the role can be worthy of a win in the right hands).
I feel like there's no way Idina Menzel won't make it. I think it's more likely that a beloved star from a less high profile show than IF/THEN--like Sutton Foster or Kelli O'Hara--gets left out.
MichaelBennett, thanks for sharing the info. I'm not too surprised to hear the news about Mazzie, the role won the Oscar for supporting actress after all, and it'd be difficult to ignore Mazzie in that category, which is a lot less packed than the lead actress race. I do hope Michelle Williams surprises everyone and becomes the frontrunner, I'm expecting a great turn from her, I guess we'll see. It's so exciting to have an actually competitive best actress race; nice difference from that year where Beth Leavel got in for BABY IT'S YOU.

[Musicaldudepeter]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 11:03am

It's been said so many times this season so far, but I can't honestly remember the last time we've had this packed a category with all of these heavyweight actors at the top of their game... musical or play... It's fantastic.

[Kad]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 11:04am

Word of mouth based on- a week of previews?

Even your prediction for a win involves 4 out of the 5 presumed nominees.

Things won't be clear until the shows actually open to reviews and the Tony committee rules on placement.

[givesmevoice]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 11:06am

It's been said so many times this season so far, but I can't honestly remember the last time we've had this packed a category with all of these heavyweight actors at the top of their game... musical or play... It's fantastic.

What's also interesting to me is that some categories feel EXTREMELY crowded and competitive and others really don't. Leading Actor in a Musical, for example, feels very slight compared to Leading Actor in a Play or Leading Actress in a Musical.

[Michael Bennett]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 11:17am

People thought Daniel Radcliffe was a lock as well. A lot will depend on whether Menzel is able to sustain (and build upon) her performance over the coming months. I don't think you can say she is a lock because of the publicity the Oscars and Frozen have brought her over the past few weeks. The Tony Committee doesn't care about those things.

[dreaming]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 11:20am

I CAN say that, though. I do believe they will nominate her-she's in one of the very few original works this season.

And I must say it's been a pretty mediocre year on Broadway. Too bad the off-Broadway shows aren't eligible-that would make all of this much more interesting.

[Kad]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 11:26am

This season has been the most interesting in years. It's the first Tony race in which a sweep or two-horse race seems extremely unlikely in many of the categories. It's a season in which there aren't filler nominations, or when there aren't enough new scores to fill out the category.

[Michael Bennett]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 11:27am

I also think it will depend on the reviews IF/THEN receives. Everyone (myself included) seem to be championing the show because its an original musical, but I don't think that's going to give it a free pass when the reviews come out.

To be nominated (and be in a front runner position) Menzel needs the money reviews and I think she is probably the least consistent performer of the women expected to be in her category. From my perspective - right now - I don't think its a slam dunk for her.

[Musicaldudepeter]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 11:33am

At the moment it seems they're all worthy nominees but there is no obvious winner... Obviously that's due to the fact that not all of them have been seen... So here's hoping Foster, Williams, etc. turn in showstopping performances. I'd secretly love Foster to nab a 3rd Tony this year.

[SonofRobbieJ]

Posted: 3/19/14 at 11:37am

In my heart, I still believe it's O'Hara's to lose (unless Williams pulls it out in spectacular fashion). She's been nominated four times, should have won at least two of those times (in my opinion, of course) and she's a beloved Broadway star. Plus, I actually thought BRIDGES was kind of terrific. An adult musical that portrayed infidelity in a way that seemed realistic and understandable. O'Hara navigated the materially beautifully and she really shoulders the entire show. I bought her as a mother, and Italian and a woman who would make the choice to stay with her family. It was terrific, moving work.