On Tony night, 2006... — Page 2

I think there's great shows opening this season so-like someone said-unless Tarzan is great visual and creative spectacle like The Lion King it probably won't be nominated for Best Musical, maybe it will get other nominations such as Scenery, Costume, and Choreography.

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well hypothetically the award could switch shows if lets say phantom had it a few years but then their cast was sub par one year which allowed LITP to take the award or something. But it would be so much more work because every show would have to be reviewed every year.

The Wedding Singer has a lot going for it: director, choreographer, producer, talent, up-and-coming writers, and most of all a name.

My predictions...

The Color Purple
The Wedding Singer
Those are the only shows that I think will be there no matter what.

Jersey Boys
Lestat
Woman in White
Drowsey Chaperone
Tarzan
All these other shows will duke it out for the last two spots. Jersey Boys got good reviews, but it's a jukebox and they've been dismissing them, especially with last year's All Shook Up, which deserved some kind of recognition with at least a nomination (Stephen Oremus' orchestrations at LEAST). I think Lestat has the biggest opportunity to get panned, just b/c of the subject matter. It's easy to screw that up. Tarzan has so much money in it that it will look pretty no matter what, but it's a matter of whether the critics like it. Woman in White has the ALW factor going for it, and Drowsey Chaperone would be the little-musical-that-could. Tough year.

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wickedfreak, come on. It was a LONG time ago. Wicked didn't win. Why do you care so much at this point? I mean, I happen to think that Wicked deserved the Tony over AveQ but that's my opinion. Other people think differently, why does it bother you so much? Something being the "best" is based on people's opinions. Saying that "anyone can see" is just ridiculous.

While i would tend to agree with you on the argument that shows based on established literature are more sure to receive Tony nods- I was never more disgusted than when MAMA MIA received a Tony nom for 'best book' over BY JEEVES which was based on the legendary stories by PG Wodehouse and written by Sir Alan Ayckbourn himself.

Granted, BY JEEVES was in no way a commercial success on Bway, especially in comparison to MAMA MIA which has many strengths and is a fun show....but 'best BOOK'?

For MAMA MIA?
Over Wodehouse AND Ayckbourn?

I believe things like this- point to the 'Tony agenda' of supporting shows that are successful and not really as 'deserving' artistically...which business wise makes sense-
Throw support behind the shows that can still bring in audiences- and don't waste the effort on shows that are dying or dead.

But this theory also totally throws this kind of guessing game into a frenzy if you're basing these noms purely on what you consider to be artistically deserving talents. Better to wait and see what's still open and what shows stand to gain the most from the TV advertising they get from the Tonys (which you are aware they have to pay for, btw).

If your show gets nominated-
your producers have to PAY for the honor of performing on the show because, at it's base- the Tony Awards are national advertising. You pay for your 'air time' as you would for any other kind of 'commercial'. That's what goes behind most of the decisions and the noms and the awards at the Tonys. Who stands to gain the MOST from 2-3 hours of national advertising.

This is why if shows are (rarely) nominated after they've closed they either send a tape or don't perform live bceause there's no monetary gain. Believe me, if it was free you would have no problem getting that OB company together to do it onw last time. Only if the show is closed on bway but going on the road will they spring for the thousands of dollars for the privelege.

I don't know about you-
but when i found that out, i was heartbroken. I thought it really WAS a celebration of the best and brightest on broadway. But it's not. It always comes down to money, sadly. Not that the best and brightest don't sometimes MATCH UP with the chances of monetary gain, or just really really swing it by sheer personal undeniable talent-
and when they do of course, it's thrilling.

But sadly, if there have been tony noms/awards in the past that have made you go 'huh?'- follow the money trail. And there's your answer, usually.


TinyDancer

Smaxie,

I care becuase Wicked is a rare find. A family show that can appeal to just about ayone. That kind of show has not come along in a wile. When I saw it a few weeks ago in Houston I saw people from the ages 5 - 95! Where else can you find that?! Plus, The music is so great! And i still care becuase it really makes me sad that this wonderful show lost to Q. A show with one main demogrphic.

wickedfreak, how many Broadway shows have you seen? I have seen MANY shows with audience members age 5 - 95. And just because a show is targeted to a more specific demographic (ie AveQ) does not mean that it is a WORSE show than something that is targeted to a broader range.

Not sure how much it'll affect any of the races, but it appears Tommy Tune's Doctor Doolittle will make it to Broadway this season. While it apparently was a mess before he took over, he is (or at least was) one of the great director-choreographer-show doctors around, so it wouldn't be wise to count him or the show out until some reviews come in from the road in a couple of months.
http://www.broadwayworld.com/viewcolumn.cfm?colid=6013

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The Color Purple would be blessed to be as good as Jelly's Last Jam or Ragtime. And Ragtime is no more of a "black" musical than it is a "white" musical or a "Jewish" musical.

wickedfreak, you're not winning any support with that line of "reasoning," to use the term loosely.

I'm a little late to jump in on account of the topic evolving but.
The thing about Jersey Boys is that it's not like the other "jukebox musicals" of recent years. It's more like The Boy From Oz, for instance. A biography type show, using the performers music. For this reason, I believe Jersey Boys will be nominated for a couple things (and I'm not just saying this because I'm obsessed!).

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Updated On: 11/22/05 at 03:58 PM

Doolittle is a brand new show -- it's never been on Broadway before. Tune is supervising changes to the book, score, choreography and staging as we speak.

Chitty was also considered a new musical -- it had never been on stage before.

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I'm sure if Tommy Tune brings Doolittle to Broadway this season, it will affect the Best Actor and Director categories at least, possibly it will affect the Best Musical category given we are talking about the director of landmark musicals such as Nine.
Wickedfreak, like other people have been saying, just because Wicked appeals to a broader audience than Avenue Q, I'm sure the Tony committee paid more attention to the way Avenue Q was written, constructed, sounded, and looked on the stage rather than the money the show was getting. Not going to get too much on the Wicked v. Av.Q battle though....and also, what are those themes Mamma Mia has that are so deep? I do believe it deserved a Best Book nod. maybe not over By Jeeves, but I insist that it is hard to take a whole bunch of pre-existing songs and turn them into a coherent show, this has been proved by all the subsequent disastrous jukebox musicals after Mamma Mia.

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Wow why did I not know Crazy For You was a jukebox musical? Who's music was it?