Hunter Foster creates "Give the Tonys back to BROADWAY" campaign — Page 4

CBS to Broadway - You can HAVE them!

best12bars, I appreciate what you're saying, but I think you're twisting Hunter's argument to make it reasonable.

The fact is, they framed the Tonys as "Broadway Goes Pop" this year because, this year, Broadway was dominated by its pop crossover. Lea and Matthew were presented as the stars of "Glee" because "Glee" has completely changed America's perception of Broadway (http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/13/fashion/13Cultural.html?ref=children_and_youth).

It made perfect sense for the Tonys to be framed in this way, this year. As for Green Day (although I know you said it wasn't Hunter's only issue), well, they helped create arguably the most artistically successful show of the season (not saying much). So they performed. Duh.

PS - My friend was Hunter's reader in an audition for an extra-extra-low-budget horror movie in which Hunter had to scream in mortal terror and anguish as he was being brutally dismembered. He didn't get the part.

Puts his rant into perspective, doesn't it?

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The introductions, the opening number featuring "theatre songs you know outside of theatre.

A few years ago it was something like "Your favorite tv stars who you didn't know started in theatre" that pushed people over the edge.

I'm telling you. A nice, quiet luncheon. People could dress nice, but not formal. Maybe a nice salmon dish with a cold pasta salad.

Updated On: 6/17/10 at 10:53 AM

I imagined Hunter as a hairy chested guy, but the pics tell a different tale. Hmm?!

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To be honest, the Oscars aren't above cross-promotion or left-field moments in order to jack up the atmosphere. Remember Beyonce performing all the nominated songs? She had nothing to do with any of the songs, but she's a huge star. And the combination of those songs took longer than Green Day's appearance on the Tonys. If you have a MASSIVE star connected with the score of a nominated musical, it's really no that out of character to feature them, especially if they are still popular and relevant. And it really isn't the same as something like Jersey Boys where the actors are portraying the actual group. Though a special appearance by Frankie Valli that year wouldn't really seem wildly out of place considering the biggest musical of the year was about him and his group.

And I actually enjoy some of the moments where they celebrate Broadway's connection to pop culture. I thought the opening medley was a great idea. Not everyone who watches is so closely in touch with everything happening on Broadway as those of us on this board. My parents are huge musical theatre fans, but they follow Broadway events mostly through me or in a more general sense. My Dad had absolutely NO IDEA what the Spider Man joke was about. None. But he loved watching the parade of familiar songs that are currently appearing on Broadway, most specifically the number from Everyday Rapture, which probably would not have been performed otherwise.

Now, I agree Sanchez and Abdul didn't make any sense or seem to have any justifiable reason of being there, but it's not as if they really stole the spotlight from BROADWAY. They just would have been replaced with other industry people who would have read a 10-second spot off a teleprompter.

So, I wonder what people would have suggested the opening should have been. More material from the nominated shows? For the most part it was that already. A medley of hit Broadway numbers from shows that aren't running like Cats, Evita and Dreamgirls featuring Broadway's biggest divas who are not performing in anything this season, but we just never tire of seeing them perform the same songs over and over and over again? Performances from non-nominated shows? Oh wait, everyone bitched about that even more than this. Or perhaps they should have just performed the opening number and never said a word about the songs being known outside the world of Broadway.

As for Matthew Morrison and Lea Michele, yes, their Broadway credits should have been mentioned. On the other hand, do Glee fans have no knowledge of recent musical theatre?

Once again, the Tony Awards broadcast fails to please everyone. Why should this year be any different from every year?

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That is absolutely LUDICROUS.

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I wouldn't even complain about Abdul being there to present the choreography award. She used to be the most famous choreographer in the music business, and she has expressed interest in being on Broadway. So perhaps she was using it as a way to make herself visible to producers of future musical projects.

Kate Baldwin joined the group today.

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I think a pretty considerable difference between the Tonys and the other awards shows mentioned is that the Tonys are probably the most performance-heavy, along with the Grammys. The Emmys and Oscars would be just straight awards given back to back if it weren't for the random performance. Now aside from montages, there isn't a whole lot that TV and film stars can do to fill time, so they bring in music stars.

I think Tony performances/time management get more scrutinized by fans because of the limited number of shows that are even eligible to perform. I mean, with the vast number of musicians nominated/included in the Grammys, no one expects all nominees or "big" stars to be able to perform. But when there are only maybe 10-12 shows in a season, people get a little more defensive when 2 or 3 shows are left out, especially in favor of "outsiders" (read: Green Day).

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I think the biggest issue people have with is the fact that it was presented as the "star" of the number...or at least that's how it came across to some.

Poison on the other hand was just a little blip in last year's massive opening number.

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Kate Baldwin joined the group today.

Uh-oh. Somebody pissed that they lost to a star?

best12bars, thank you so much for articulating your point on this thread so beautifully and fully... I agree 100%.

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