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What are some roles that were nominated in a musical category but didn't actually contain singing (or very much)?
Bob Martin in The Drowsy Chaperone was one
Updated On: 5/15/12 at 02:00 AM
The late Tom Aldredge as the Doctor in PASSION.
Boyd Gaines and Karen Ziemba were nominated and won for non singing roles in Contact. Deborah Yates was also nominated.
Barbara Barrie earned a nomination for the original "Company" without having any solo singing. On the OBC recording she has some dialog interpolated into a couple of songs and she does some ensemble singing, though her voice is not detectable in the chorus, because she's photographed singing at the microphone in the "Company" documentary.
Similarly to Blaxx's Contact example, four actors from Movin' Out (John Selya, Elisabeth Parkinson, Ashley Tuttle, and Keith Roberts) were nominated for non-singing roles in 2003.
Oh, and Karine Plantadit for Come Fly Away.
This year, Elizabeth A. Davis in Once is nominated though she only sings with the ensemble.
David Burns won a Tony for playing Mayor Shinn in The Music Man.
Adam Cooper was nominated for Swan Lake in a dancing role.
Robert LuPone was nominated for playing Zach in A Chorus Line. Zach only counts in rhythm occasionally.
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Paxton Whitehead as Pellinore for a Camelot revival.
Thomas Mitchell won a Best Actor Tony in 1953 for Hazel Flagg for a non-singing role.
Best Performance in a Musical, not Best Musical Performance.
Barry Nelson was nominated for a non-singing part for The Act in 1978. In fact, what did he do in that show?
Everyone who was ever nominated for Best Actor, Best Featured Actor, Best Actress, or Best Featured Actress in a Play.
(SNARKY, but true)
This year, Elizabeth A. Davis in Once is nominated though she only sings with the ensemble.
That's not completely true. She doesn't have any songs to herself, but she does have a few solos in some of the songs.
"Everyone who was ever nominated for Best Actor, Best Featured Actor, Best Actress, or Best Featured Actress in a Play."
Not entirely true - actors and actresses do sometimes sing in plays...
What about all the set designers?
Natalia Makarova didn't sing at all in On Your Toes and won best actress.
That's not completely true. She doesn't have any songs to herself, but she does have a few solos in some of the songs.
Is that true, bjh? Where? I guess I missed them.
Everyone who was ever nominated for Best Actor, Best Featured Actor, Best Actress, or Best Featured Actress in a Play.
The original post mentioned "in a musical." Also, from this year alone, Tracie Bennett, Christian Borle, and Celia Keenan-Bolger are nominated for singing roles in plays; two plays are nominated for Best Score; and if anyone in Master Class were nominated... Well, Audra won her second Tony in the original production.
Barbara Barrie is most certainly detectable on the original recording of Company. She has a section of 'Poor Baby,' where it's clearly her.
Savion Glover was nommed for Bring in 'da Noise.
Larry Haine was nominated for playing Dr. Dreyfus in the original PROMISES PROMISES. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe that's a non-singing role.
Gilbert Price for LOST IN THE STARS (Absalom).
Dr. Dreyfus sings "A Young Pretty Girl Like You" with Chuck.
Bringing this back to add Robin de Jesus. Nominated for playing Jacob in the 2010 La Cage aux Folles, who only sings a single verse (then repeats it) in "Cocktail Counterpoint"
Any new ones since this thread was started in 2012?
I must have missed this thread originally.
So glad you bumped it.
Did Fraulein Kost sing anything in the original Cabaret? If she did, it wasn't on the recording. Either way, Peg Murray won the Tony.
And according to wikipedia (and my cast album), Patsy Kelly as Pauline in the 1971 revival of No, No, Nanette did no singing! And still, she won the Tony.
She sings a reprise of "Tomorrow Belongs to Me" with Ernst at the end of act I.
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