The Official Tony Nominations Thread- Page 16

[scooter38432]

Posted: 5/16/07 at 9:43am

"Oh... and Gavin Lee was nothing more than a glorified chorus boy in Mary Poppins. He left ZERO impression on me in the show. Easily replaceable, and no "personal" traits whatsoever in his acting. If he WAS acting, I missed it entirely. But he danced very well... as do the hundreds of unsung heroes in the chorus these days. Whatever."

I agree. Gavin Lee left me feeling nothing whatsoever. He basically walked through it (and tapped upside down) during the performance I saw. Boring. He won an Olivier for that??! Competition must have been pretty slim in the West End that year.

[Wanna Be A Foster]

Posted: 5/16/07 at 9:52am

Ebersole has some tough competition - could divided votes pull the win another direction?

If anything, the votes between McDonald and Murphy will be divided and Ebersole will come out on top.

Same with Esparza - this wouldn't be the first time a young upstart (GrofF) got the Tony from the experienced forerunner (see last year, with LaChanze over LuPone.)

LaChanze was hardly a young upstart. She made her Broadway debut in 1986 and received her first Tony nomination 16 years ago. Groff made his Broadway debut last year.

[unckristen]

Posted: 5/16/07 at 11:35am

If the voters want to spread the awards around to the key shows (which wouldn't be unheard of), then we're looking at SA, 110, Ebersole and Esparza winning

[ken8631]

Posted: 5/16/07 at 12:47pm

Esparza winning is what we are there for this year - he definitely deserves it (yes, saw Pierce's performance, but not the others).

Ken

[wickedrentq]

Posted: 5/16/07 at 2:34pm

I'm not sure what's gonna happen with the leading actor category. I'm beginning to think it's at least a possibility that Cerveris will take some of Esparza's votes, and as a result, Pierce could sneak in.

[orangeskittles]

Posted: 5/16/07 at 2:54pm

Same with Esparza - this wouldn't be the first time a young upstart (GrofF) got the Tony from the experienced forerunner (see last year, with LaChanze over LuPone.)

In addition to what WannaBe said, Groff won't win because he's pretty much filler in a category to make up for the lack of amazing lead male performances this season. LaChanze was a major contender for the Tony as her performance as Celie was widely praised. Jon Groff isn't even the best actor in Spring Awakening; everyone comes out of the show gushing about John Gallagher Jr's performance, not his.

[Roscoe]

Posted: 5/16/07 at 6:39pm

I'm disappointed but not surprised that O'Byrne got a Best Actor nomination. It must have been mainly for having to learn all those lines. If only O'Byrne had had a vague idea of what any of them meant...

I can't be too disturbed about PIRATE QUEEN's lack of a Best Costume Design nomination. If the category was MOST Costume Design, it would win in a walk, but if we're talking BEST, well, sorry.

But I'm really appalled at the sheer number of nominations for the idiotic CORAM BOY, most outrageously for Best Director. There was more intelligent direction in the final ten minutes of TRANSLATIONS than in the entire interminable running time of CORAM BOY. There's more to direction than setting up a turntable and creating a vast sheet of Saran Wrap.

[SeanMartin]

Posted: 5/16/07 at 7:25pm

>> The set is provocative and used well.

WHAT set??? C'mon, this is just grasping. The "set", such as it was, is a joke. A college production would be more interesting.

And insofar as the "nuanced" lighting ("Ooo! Red for conservative! Blue for liberal! Purple!"), again, give me a break. I've seen more "nuanced" lighting at a rock concert.

The nomination is just laughable.

[HeyMrMusic]

Posted: 5/16/07 at 10:41pm

I thought Spring Awakening's lighting was one of the best parts of the show. It was very much a part of the storytelling. I was moved by it and immediately thought it was Tony worthy. As for the set, I don't believe it's the best of the season (High Fidelity, yeah!), but it serves its purpose. It's atypical, much like the rest of the show. What would you have rather seen?

~Steven

[SeanMartin]

Posted: 5/17/07 at 3:35pm

BION, I'd have nominated LEGALLY BLONDE: the sets were witty, support the story beautifully, and -- from what I've seen in the trades -- are everything a Broadway musical should be.

I'll agree that the lighting is one of the best things about SA... but frankly that aint much to say.

[scooter38432]

Posted: 5/17/07 at 4:43pm

"BION, I'd have nominated LEGALLY BLONDE: the sets were witty, support the story beautifully, and -- from what I've seen in the trades -- are everything a Broadway musical should be."

The sets and lighting for LEGALLY BLONDE were nothing special. Exactly what you'd expect. In fact, other than the opening shot with all the windows of the Delta Nu dorm, the set was pretty forgettable. I dimly remember a judge's bench turning into a shower stall, which didn't work well at all. As far as lighting, SPRING AWAKENING has it all over LB. The lighting for LB was certainly not memorable (or award worthy).

IMHO, of course.