Tony Awards

[Caroline-Q-or-TBoo]

Posted: 10/17/05 at 11:11pm

for a long time i've thought that maybe they should have seperate Tonys for lyrics and music.

I know this isn't a well worded post but i just want to know your thoughts on the matter? do you think Piazza would've won both music AND lyrics had there been a different award for each?

share and discuss

[DickonDefysGravity]

Posted: 10/17/05 at 11:14pm

I would have given a 'lyrics" Tony to Spelling Bee.

[meagan9848]

Posted: 10/17/05 at 11:17pm

If they voted after the Katrina Benefit, they would have had Best Choreography in the bag!

[Caroline-Q-or-TBoo]

Posted: 10/17/05 at 11:19pm

i just think it makes sense that you would have two different awards because while the Spelling Bee lyrics were amazing, the music never failed to reach above the "adequate" level. So, great lyrics were never recognized.

last year "Q" clearly had the best lyrics but i would've given a music award to either "CoC" or "Taboo"

[meagan9848]

Posted: 10/17/05 at 11:23pm

If Av Q didn't win best score, Wicked should have. Steven Schwartz deserves a Tony.

[Caroline-Q-or-TBoo]

Posted: 10/17/05 at 11:26pm

yes, but NOT for Wicked. let him right a good score and i'll gladly give him the tony (lord knows he's writen enough). he doesn't deserve one just for working in the field. Caroline or Change had a BRILLIANT score and lyrics (not as witty or likeable as Q's) and Taboo also had a remarkable score and Boy George did a fantastic job with what could've been a crappy jukebox show, instead he gave it heart.

Updated On: 10/17/05 at 11:26 PM

[meagan9848]

Posted: 10/17/05 at 11:30pm

Pippin. Godspell. Don't say he hasn't written a good score.

Wicked's score is good. They lyrics aren't great, but the music is good. In my opinion, Taboo's score was dull and boring to me, but I've never been a fan of pop/rock songs turned showtunes.

Though, by your screen name it seems you may be biased.

Updated On: 10/17/05 at 11:30 PM

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 10/17/05 at 11:32pm

I agree, CQT. Q's win sort of solidified that for me. The lyrics far outshine the music, and that's probably how they won -- on the clever lyrics.

[meagan9848]

Posted: 10/17/05 at 11:34pm

I do agree with the initial point though, especially if the music and lyrics are written by different people!

[Caroline-Q-or-TBoo]

Posted: 10/17/05 at 11:36pm

yes... a likkle biased! Pippin and Godspell were very good, but Godspell never made it to broadway and pippin was in a year with better musicals... *sigh*

i love Q (incase u didnt know) but i know that the music isn't special, same with Spelling Bee. The lyrics for both shows are witty and very VERY good! they would've won the lyric tony.

i just don't think that it's very fair to have one giant award. i certainly don't think Piazza's lyrics were all that great, sure they're beautiful and i appreciate them and they're good but personally, Spelling Bee's lyrics were better. While Piazza's score was better.

so, the point i'm trying to make: it doesn't make sense

and don't get me started on Taboo

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 10/17/05 at 11:37pm

Taboooo.

I'm still so bitter.

[meagan9848]

Posted: 10/17/05 at 11:38pm

The ONLY thing I didn't like about Taboo was the unoriginal score. LOVED the cast...Cary Shields what? In a dress? OK.

I'm not trying to pick a fight.

:)

Updated On: 10/17/05 at 11:38 PM

[meagan9848]

Posted: 10/17/05 at 11:40pm

I'm sorry Emcee

[jimmirae]

Posted: 10/17/05 at 11:41pm

Which brings us to "Spamalot", while it was really a great show, I think it only had 3 songs it went back & forth between with different lyrics, Too many tunes sung to the exact same notes. This bother anyone else?

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 10/17/05 at 11:42pm

Taboo's score was, for the most part, original.

[meagan9848]

Posted: 10/17/05 at 11:46pm

I don't know, I guess it's just me. Maybe this is why I've never seen a Disney show, or a straight out jukebox show. I think when I know even a few songs from a score in a different context, that it distracts from the show.

I'm odd.

Clearly, it's personal preference.

Updated On: 10/17/05 at 11:46 PM

[luvtheEmcee]

Posted: 10/17/05 at 11:49pm

Only like two or three of the songs came from anywhere previous, though. I mean, there was Do You Want to Hurt Me? And then Karma Chameleon and Church of the Poison Mind... maybe one other that was in there somewhere? But it worked because it was about his life. Everything else was written for the show. I think people just assume that because Boy George is a pop artist and wrote a show that it was music he had written for his pop career, and then he just stuck it in his musical. But those were original songs -- Raul said something about it that I thought was really great. He said that George wrote a *true* pop/rock musical theatre score. It was in the pop/rock genre, but it was different because its originality rather jukebox-ness allowed the songs to be character-oriented. (The man is always spot on.)

Anyway, I think Taboo's score is brilliant, and wish that George could've won.

Updated On: 10/17/05 at 11:49 PM

[meagan9848]

Posted: 10/17/05 at 11:52pm

Maybe I just didn't know enough about Boy George going into the show. If I have the opportunity, I will see it again (tour, regional, something) with a more open mind.

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 10/17/05 at 11:53pm

I figured Spamalot had done that to make fun of shows like Phantom that are pretty much written with three different set of tunes to different lyrics-I know I'm exaggerating, but they probably did this in Spamalot to sort of mirror those shows. I agree that Piazza would probably not have gotten the Best Lyrics Tony were the two awards separated, I mean I always have issues with the lyrics for the opening sequence, they don't seem half as complex as the music.
I also believe that Avenue Q got the award mostly for its lyrics but I think the lyrics highly depend on the musical pattern so that's probably the major reason why this award is combined as best score; it is important to note that in early 1970s-don't remember the exact year but either 1970 or 1971-the award was divided in Best Lyrics and Best Music and Mr.Sondheim got both awards for Company, which he deserved of course.
I think that Schwartz probably did deserve a Tony for the music of the Wicked score but like Caroline-Q noted, there were other shows like Caroline... that had a more complex music score. I think the only Schwartz score that ever presented a competition to other Best Score nominees was Pippin and well, we all know Sondheim took the award home that year for writing what people think is his most "hummable" score-A Little Night Music.

[jimmirae]

Posted: 10/18/05 at 1:15am

I had a problem with not really getting, or not wanting to get "Caroline", It depressed me. "Wicked" has a very nice score but has been taken over by pre-pubescent girls forming the green girls against the pinkies and that weirds me out now. "Taboo" had a great score indeed and, I didn't know waht to expect in "Ave Q" and came out going "What The F&%$??"
I have no desire to see Piazza as I couldn't even endure the Tony scene from it. I love DRS and - I did enjoy all 3 songs in "Spamalot". Sara Ramirez is quite the belter!

[wickedrentq]

Posted: 10/18/05 at 1:19am

Umm...if there was a separate Tony for lyrics and music, everyone thinks Spelling Bee would have easily won lyrics over DRS? Personally I'd say DRS in a heartbeat, but then saw everyone saying Spelling Bee and I understand, but I think the comedy and cleverness of some of the DRS songs just go unrivaled

[Liz_Bennet]

Posted: 10/18/05 at 1:26am

I thought Jeanne Tesori's music for Caroline was the best that year as well as Kushner's lyrics. It's a fascinating, beautiful melting pot of a score.

[meagan9848]

Posted: 10/18/05 at 1:39am

This year I would've liked to see Dirty Rotten Scoundrels take it, but Piazza has a very nice score.

[camthom]

Posted: 10/18/05 at 2:11am

???

How did so many people let Caroline Q get away with the "Godspell never made it to Broadway" comment?

It was on Broadway in 1976-77 and it's only Tony nomination was for best score. :)

Sorry.

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 10/18/05 at 2:57am

I am not a big fan of the Godspell score so I honestly did not bother to check. Annie won the Best Score award for that season I believe and yes, I think that the Annie score is more memorable than Godspell's, again it only confirms that while Schwartz writes great material, it is never the best of the season. He should've composed something on that season when Sunset Boulevard opened in which the award went to this show by default, maybe then he would have had a chance, or maybe not even.