Rank the Tony performances- Page 2

[HeyMrMusic]

Posted: 6/11/12 at 11:52am

In defense of Evita's conductor... This was the tempo I remember when I saw this production. This was likely the tempo that was agreed upon by the director and choreographer in addition to the music director. Perhaps it was slowed down so Ricky could sing all the lyrics. Perhaps it was slowed down because it's frickin' hard to sing AND dance a song with a 7/8 meter, let alone count in 7. Their choreography isn't exactly the easiest, and perhaps to execute it cleanly, they slowed it down. I wouldn't go straight to the conductor to point blame. The choreographer would definitely have something to say if this were the case.

I thought the Once performance is an instant classic. I thought it was a brilliant song choice and worked really well on TV. It also showcased the wonderful choreography by Steven Hoggett (which should have won in my opinion).

[Gothampc]

Posted: 6/11/12 at 12:01pm

"Perhaps it was slowed down because it's frickin' hard to sing AND dance a song with a 7/8 meter, let alone count in 7. Their choreography isn't exactly the easiest, and perhaps to execute it cleanly, they slowed it down."

But it's not like it's new choreography to them. The show started previews in March. They've had enough time to get it into their bodies. Are you saying because the actors were in a different theater?

[After Eight]

Posted: 6/11/12 at 12:09pm

^

Gee, I thought the choreography was the most ludicrous thing in it.

So glad that this was one award the thing was unable to snatch away from the deserving.

[After Eight]

Posted: 6/11/12 at 12:09pm

Updated On: 6/11/12 at 12:09 PM

[HeyMrMusic]

Posted: 6/11/12 at 12:17pm

As I stated, this was the tempo I remember when I saw the production. So if this is the tempo they've been rehearsing and performing, then yes they're used to it by now. I'm saying that this was the tempo agreed upon early on in rehearsals, not rehearsals for the Tony Awards.

[dreaming]

Posted: 6/11/12 at 12:31pm

"I thought the Once performance is an instant classic. I thought it was a brilliant song choice and worked really well on TV. It also showcased the wonderful choreography by Steven Hoggett (which should have won in my opinion)."

My sentiments exactly! I thought the sophisticated, delicate movement Hoggett employs is highly effective and works beautifully with the piece.

My list:

1. Once
2. Porgy and Bess (although it was way too long)
3. Leap of Faith-Surprise! (I wasn't expecting this one to come off so well)
4. Follies
5. Nice Work if You Can Get It (Would have liked something featuring Judy Kaye though)
6. Newsies
7. Evita (They should have done "Waltz for Eva and Che")
8. Book of Mormon (they should have opened with this last year)
9. Ghost
10. Jesus Christ Superstar
11. Godspell (the look on Bernadette Peters' face says it all)
12. Hairspray

[themysteriousgrowl]

Posted: 6/11/12 at 12:36pm

Dear After Eight:

My deepest apologies for not realizing earlier how long ago I left you behind.


Sincerely,

The World

[theaterfan862]

Posted: 6/11/12 at 12:50pm

1.Once- Brilliant!
2.Porgy and Bess- Great representation of the show.
3.Newsies- Wonderful performance.
4.Follies- Danny was great but they should have done the Mirror number.
5.Jesus Christ Superstar- It would have been better with Jeremy Kushnier.
6.The Book of Mormon- It was cute.
7.Leap of Faith- It was good.
8.Nice Work...- Kelli was wonderful but Matthew not so much.
9.Ghosts- Performance was good but wrong song to do at the Tonys.
10.Evita- It was boring and Ricky's voice was lackluster.
11.Hairspray- It was cruise ship quality.
12.Godspell- This performance is not going to help their box office

[mjroberts972]

Posted: 6/11/12 at 12:56pm

1. Once
2. Nice Work if You Can Get It
3. Evita
4. The Book of Mormon
5. Ghost
6. Follies
7. Porgy and Bess
8. Newsies
9. Jesus Christ Superstar
10. Godspell
11. Leap of Faith
12. Hairspray

[Gothampc]

Posted: 6/11/12 at 1:42pm

Does Ricky Martin over-enunciate the entire score of Evita or just "And The Money Kept Rolling in?

[broadwayfever]

Posted: 6/11/12 at 3:38pm

Highlights:

-Porgy & Bess performance (Best of the night)
-James Cordon's & Steve Kazee's speech (Very touching)
-Trey & Matt's 'establishment' skit They should've co-hosted)
-Les Miserables Trailer (very promising)
-Neil's 'Best Score' and 'Out of Time' songs (what he does best)
-Nice Work...performance (looked interesting)
-Once performance (very authentic)


So So:

-Newsies performance (just seemed a little off)
-Evita performance (tempo seemed way off)
-Book of Mormon 'Hello' skit (funny but it waned a little)


Lowlights:

-Godspell performance (reminded me of 'Up with People')
-Follies performance (just terrible and out of place)
-Jesus Christ Superstar performance (nothing like I remember)
-Hairspray performance (that was just a mess)
-Ghost performance (another mess)
-Audra's 'cringe worthy' acceptance speech (felt bad for her)


Biggest Mistake by the Tonys:

-The biggest mistake was not having Spiderman performances... what were they thinking? In order to attract mainstream America, you have to incorporate mainstream interests...and Spiderman is a huge interest. They really dropped the ball on this one. I mean, so many more people would've enjoyed watching Spiderman's 'Pull the Trigger' or A Freak Like Me' instead of that Godspell or Follies number. It would've added some life to the mostly boring show. In addition, many more people would've tuned in to watch the Tonys if they knew that Spiderman was going to perform.

[RainbowJude]

Posted: 6/14/12 at 12:39pm

It's very hard to rank the performances because nothing worked perfectly, but the reasons for the respective shortcomings were so diverse. As such I've placed the performances in a tentative order that could accomodate some shuffles and switches by one place here and there.

PORGY AND BESS was featured excellent performances, but it felt disjointed because it wasn't in fact a medley, but a series of clips that followed one another without any overall vision. A medley of songs can work, but it needs to be constructed with care, with insight and with vision. That was what was missing from this showcase of the show.

FOLLIES featured an excellent performance by Danny Burstein, with good support from the two women, but it seemed lost in space, which was a pity. The number may also have read better with a clearer set up from Bernadette Peters, but there was nothing wrong with the performance itself.

THE BOOK OF MORMON was fine all around, but the size of the performances here just weren't TV friendly. I also felt a pang of embarrassement when the audience started applauding when Elder Cunningham appeared and then stopped suddenly when they realised the actor wasn't who they expected it to be.

EVITA was as good as it was going to be given the way that the number is staged itself. As usual, Rob Ashford's generic, athletic choreography doesn't aid the storytelling in the number and I felt as though in his uncertainly of what to do with Eva and Che, he ended up forgetting that the connection between the two characters is at the heart of the conflict that is played out in the show and so the number became an energetic showpiece instead of remarkable storytelling. It was best in the moments when he had figured out what to do with Eva and Che and those moments where obvious in comparison with those where they were merely cogs in the wheel of what was going on on stage.

LEAP OF FAITH worked well as a performance out of context, but it's a pity the number itself is so underwhelming. Menken really has overextended himself the past few years and I think it is to the detriment of all of the shows upon which he has worked, with LEAP OF FAITH bearing the brunt of it.

ONCE featured great material, but the lack of context hurt it. It made it easy for detractors of the show to dismiss the show and to pretend that the show itself lacks context, craft and emotional impact, which is - of course - a ridiculous assertion.

NEWSIES delivered high energy, but the choreography still adds up to a bunch of energetic moves that don't tell the story. I wondered briefly what someone like Jerome Robbins might have crafted and lamented what was actually presented on stage. I wish that they'd gone with another number here, possibly "Carrying the Banner".

NICE WORK IF YOU CAN GET IT. What a mess. This made the show look exactly like the thing it doesn't want to be perceived as: a second-rate CRAZY FOR YOU. Matthew Broderick and his showfirls and the song and the staging just don't match up to the equivalent number in that show, "I Can't Be Bothered Now" nd "Someone to Watch Over Me" made little sense out of context despite being a song that doesn't rely on context to be effective, when it's sung whole, that is.

JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR was devestatingly bad. Poor staging. Poor vocals. Josh Young is just vocally out of his depth as Judas. It was painful to watch and hear.

GHOST was one of the low points of the night. This was the wrong song to showcase an already shaky score and it didn't read at all. Nice lighting though.

GODSPELL has a certain charm to it. That charm was lost here in a sea of overstated energy and an audience participation segment that was embarrasing and uncomfortable to watch. The vocals were insecure. The number was poorly chosen too. There are better numbers in the show that would have worked better here.

HAIRSPRAY was uneven in its quality, but sincere in its contribution. The leads impressed less than the chorus. It was nice that they chose to do those two segments of the show over "You Can't Stop the Beat", but the performances just weren't what they should have been in a broadcast of this nature.

[luvcaroline]

Posted: 6/14/12 at 7:05pm

Porgy and Bess so outclassed everything else that I'm not even going to rank the rest of them (even though the snippets were too short).

[WiCkEDrOcKS]

Posted: 6/14/12 at 7:10pm

ONCE: A
GHOST: D
NEWSIES: C+
PORGY AND BESS: B+
JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR: C-
EVITA: B-
FOLLIES: C
LEAP OF FAITH: C
NICE WORK IF YOU CAN GET IT: B-
GODSPELL: D-
HAIRSPRAY: C-
BOOK OF MORMON: C+
OPENING NUMBER: B+
CLOSING NUMBER: B+

ONCE's performance was in a league all its own.

[binau]

Posted: 6/14/12 at 7:20pm

In one of the quick shots of Bernadette watching the Godspell performance (before the awkward clapping). She seemed quite disturbed:

Updated On: 6/14/12 at 07:20 PM

[HeyMrMusic]

Posted: 6/14/12 at 8:27pm

I agree, WiCkEDrOcKS. There's really no comparison. That's one that would end up on one of those Broadway's Lost Treasures down the line.