She Loves Me vs The Color Purple - Who will take the Tony? — Page 2

I wish it could go to Spring Awakening, but I doubt it.

I really loved both but gotta say I think The Color Purple. As much as She Loves Me was stunning and some incredible performances, The Color Purple has been truly revived AND made better from the original.

We also have to consider the out of town voters who would benefit more if a color purple tour came to town - with Tony's in hand. Have their been any tour announcements lately?

I wonder if Heather's performance is going to make TCP chance's higher as all reports are saying she is AMAZING. That's who most of the voters will see, yes?

ChiTheaterFan: Does anyone know when (if ever) a show that had a limited run ending before the nominations took the top award for which it was eligible?



Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf won best revival after it's limited run had ended.

Someone in a Tree2 said: She Loves Me has always been one of my favorite shows, but this production felt like it was straining to underline the comedy in musical comedy the whole evening. Even the divine Laura Benanti was given permission to ham it up no end. By the end I was so disappointed in what they did to this delicate, gently comic show.




I fully agree with this...I was so disappointed in this revival of, like many of you, a show that I feel is perfect. It was stylistically all over the place with modern, sitcom moments that have nothing to do with the world of the show. Laura Benanti is, and will always be, one of my favorite performers and she is SO funny. Her performance in WOMEN ON THE VERGE is one of my favorite performances and her best as far as I'm concerned. In this show she played 2 distinctly different people. A boyish, modern girl with 'sitcom quip' delivery and a classical soprano when she sang. It just bothered me so much. 'Romantic Atmosphere' was underwhelming. My opinion is that the fault lies with Scott Ellis and his direction. The set, while beautiful, put the actors into claustrophobic moments where they were having to upstage themselves to talk to the other person in the scene. Ex. 'A Trip to the Library'. I wanted it to be wonderful and it just didn't work for me.

THE COLOR PURPLE has an ensemble of vocalists that is among the best I've ever seen...if not the BEST. Cynthia Ervio has a voice that just melts the paint of the walls with emotion, power, and clarity. That aspect of her performance deserves every compliment that she has been given, but her characterization of Celie in her dialogue scenes was really odd. I couldn't feel for her, or empathize with that character until she sang. As a whole, I generally feel that John Doyle shows have a scene missing...CP has several. He doesn't allow for a breath between moments...a moment that the characters take to let these huge events wash over them and become realization. The scene with Shug and Celie where Shug is leaving is a perfect example. It's almost as if we were getting a cliffs notes version of these huge life events, with all the details left out.

I didn't explain that well, but that is how I felt. Both had positives, but the negatives just outweighed them for me. If I were a voter, I would cast my vote for SPRING AWAKENING.

I will also say, these are my opinions and my opinions only. I'm an actor as well, and I think these performers are magnificent and giving everything that they have...I also love these directors, but I think that they let the show as a whole down. The work that Walter Bobbie and Josh Rhodes on BRIGHT STAR did the opposite...they elevated the entire work and made it better than it is. I wish that the TONYs felt the same way.