Lea Michele 'Special' Tony Award — Page 3

Valentina3 said: "I don't think you people are understanding how deeply toxic even mentioning her is. People have moved on from Funny Girl discourse (which lasted almost a full year), but as soon as she is attached to any new high-profile project, it will start again. I am not wanting to open another discussion about whether the criticism is deserved or not, but success of shows like Tony awards thrive on social media commentary and they will not risk anything as dramatic as getting her to host. Not to mention, she'd be a rather dull host with her girl next door persona coupled with lack of self-awareness and inability to laugh at herself."

It frustrates me how we’re all so eager to equate social media opinion to what the actual majority think! I’m not downplaying Lea’s past behaviour, but it has had zero effect on her ability to sell tickets. In fact, I think that discourse and her drama has only added to the factors that have made her return to Broadway so compelling and ‘must see’. For instance - if you read the comments section of Playbill insta account whenever they post something Lea related, 90% of the comments are so hateful about her you would think she is universally despised, but clearly she isn’t because she’s managed to resurrect Funny Girl into a huge hit. Of course social media drives media interest etc, but we need to stop using it as a barometer for what most people are thinking!


Totally against Lea getting some sort of special Tony award btw!

Luscious said: "I'm not a fan of Lea Michele's and could care less if she's awarded a Tony, but I think it's high time that a category is added for Best Performance by a Replacement Actor/Actress."

It was added and it flopped hard. It didn’t work out as none of the nominees received enough votes to win the award so it was scrapped.

Islander_fan said: "Luscious said: "I'm not a fan of Lea Michele's and could care less if she's awarded a Tony, but I think it's high time that a category is added for Best Performance by a Replacement Actor/Actress."

That was tried a few years ago and failed. First, and most important, there were simply way too many replacements for all the tony voters to go see. Secondly, I feel that it would diminish the hard work it takes someone to work and finally be in a position to earn the award if they dole them out to everyone the way Oprah doles out cars.

Really? I did not know that. Can't imagine how it slipped by. Can you tell me, in the year(s) it was tried, who were the winners and for what show?

Luscious said: "Really? I did not know that. Can't imagine how it slipped by. Can you tell me, in the year(s) it was tried, who were the winners and for what show?"

"In 2005, the Tony Awards administration committee created an award to recognize replacement cast members. The purpose was to recognize high-profile replacements in shows at the time such as ‘Fiddler on the Roof’, ‘The Producers’, and ‘Hairspray’. The award would be titled “Best Performance by an Actor or Actress in a Recreated Role”. Sadly, the recognition was never awarded. While eligibility was announced, none of the nominees received the necessary votes. So the Tony awards administration opted not to give the award. This move caused a lot of controversy at the time, especially because actors such as Harvey Fierstein and Jonathan Pryce were announced as potential nominees."

https://www.onstageblog.com/editorials/2022/6/6/the-tonys-should-bring-back-the-award-for-replacement-cast-members

I don’t think it’ll happen just due to the logistics of the entire committee probably needing to see the show again, but it’s happened somewhat recently. Someone else mentioned JCM getting one for Hedwig. Although that had more to do with the committee changing the rules around writers and revivals previously not eligible for book/score/play categories.

Yes, THAT Minnelli. The one and only Liza.

Lea is not remotely in Liza's league.

Drop the attitude.

Jarethan said: "Papi2013 said: "Drop the attitude."

BUT her facts were accurate."

There are also the facts that are hidden, viz., advance sales data. They’re what ultimately must have decided Beanie’s fate.

Updated On: 1/17/23 at 10:26 PM

RippedMan said: "She's great in the role, audiences are loving her, and the producers/creatives were stupid for going with their first choice. No award needed."

Absolutely agree. It seems to be the younger "stans" on social media that demand she receive an award. It is absolutely unnecessary, not needed in the slightest.

Chase Miller said: "She should be nominated for a Tony but I don't think she should be given a special tony. Does she really need a special one though? She's gotten everything she has wanted. I'm sure her heart if full right now. No need to want more."

Does she really need a nomination though? No.

Mary_Poppins said: "UncleCharlie said:
[snip]
"Hey, isn't that the chick from Glee, the one hated by everyone she worked with?"

Not true.

Glee: Darren Criss, Jane Lynch, Iqbal Theba, Dean Geyer, James Earl, Ryan Murphy... have made it clear they still like Lea. Some others were reluctant to get drawn into the mess but refused to say negative things or said it was blown out of proportion.

She seems to be on good terms with most, if not all the original Spring Awakening cast. Steven Sater worked with Lea again on two projects and saw FG. Mayer made a point of being photographed hugging her. She was recently visited by one of her Fiddler sisters at FG. Likewise, Emma Roberts from Scream Queens.

"Check the box office receipts. The show was pulling in $1-1.5 million during the Beanie period and didn't start to slip until all the commotion started about her leaving. Now, it's consistently pulling in $1.5-2 million and went over $2 million during Christmas/New Year's. So she's been good for an extra $500k ish in box office. Great. Terrific. Give her a raise. But she didn't single handedly rescue a flop..."

Feldstein: Previews around $1.3 million, then a decline to $765 thousand. That's a flop. The commotion about her leaving started because of the decline, not before. Your chronology makes little sense. Had Feldstein held the initial level she would still be performing.

Benko: around $600 thousand

Michele: $1.6 million to $2.4 million (except her Covid week, ofc)

I'm not even saying much about this Special Tony Award but please get your facts right."



First, you appear to have just joined yesterday. There have already been probably 1200-1500 comments debating Lea's reputation prior to her joining Funny Girl, both pro and con. I have zero interest in adding to that number so save your detailed defense. My comment was meant humorously so loosen up on clutching those pearls, Mary.

As far as grosses are concerned, I don't know where you are getting your numbers from but mine are off the weekly grosses published here, available for anyone to see and they validate everything I said so I strongly suggest you get YOUR facts right.. The first week, w/e March 24 was one performance. The grosses were over $1 million and generally around $1.2ish every single week after that straight through the end of June by which time the rumors were swirling around she was going to be fired and/or leave the show early which she announced I believe in early July. The decline to $765,000 wasn't after the first preview as you falsely state but was the last week she was in the show, w/e July 31, 2022 by which time Lea had already been announced and logically people were now holding off from seeing the show in July to wait for Lea to start in September.

I don't have a dog in the "Was Lea a meanie or not" fight. I'm not pro or con. I certainly give her credit for raising the weekly revenue of the show to the $1.5-$2 million range and for the great reviews she's gotten. The $2.4 million was the holiday week where almost every show's grosses were higher than normal. It's back down to the top end of the $1.5-$2 million range since then.

So if you want a debate about whether the criticism's of Lea's past behavior were valid, you'll have to find someone who's interested in doing that. And if you want to make claims about grosses to prove I'm wrong, you shouldn't make up stuff when the actual numbers are so easily checked and verified. Welcome to BroadwayWorld!

Chase Miller said: "hearthemsing22 said: "Chase Miller said: "She should be nominated for a Tony but I don't think she should be given a special tony. Does she really need a special one though? She's gotten everything she has wanted. I'm sure her heart if full right now. No need to want more."

Does she really need a nomination though? No."

I meant that if she was the original star instead of Beanie, then yes she should have been nominated."



If she deserved it over the other performances in a musical, then maybe she would have been! Think about the competition. It's possible she would have, it's possible she would not have been nominated.

Chase Miller said: "Think about the competition

I did. Which is why I said she would have gotten in."

I agree…with all deference to last year’s nominees, none would have stood a chance, including JK who basically won because of her 11:00 number.