Was Audra's 1998 Tony win unexpected?- Page 3

[bwayfan7000]

Posted: 8/16/11 at 8:43pm

Threadjacks that become such enlightened and interesting discussions as the one above are one of the main reasons I read this board. All of this information is so interesting!

Meanwhile, on the original topic of the thread, as someone who knew nothing about the politics of the 1998 Tonys, it surprised me greatly that McDonald even had strong competitors. Most people I know who saw her performance regard it as one of the best they've seen, probably because she's Audra and has done so much wonderful work since then.

[Oldschool]

Posted: 8/16/11 at 10:02pm

A couple of thoughts...first, I couldn't agree more about Noll. Marin belts it, but she sings a bit like William Hurt speaks -- she emphasizes every syllable and it takes away from the performance. Too formal, too cold.

I'm not sure I agree with the idea that her taking in Sarah's baby is such a shock. We don't have much backstory on Mother, other than it being the turn of the century. What we do know is that although she doesn't put it together until the end of the show, she is looking for something missing in her life -- she eventually learns she's looking for respect and a more balanced relationship and some independence to do her own exploring. The baby, along with Father going off for his adventure, are the catalysts that put Mother's change in motion. Her taking in an infant, albeit a black one, is a perfectly natural act for a parent to do, even in those times.

Make them hear you. I get that it's anthem heavy in Act II, so there is a diminished impact, but I like the song and I think in the stripped down version that closed last year, it worked better because it wasn't under the weight of an over produced show.

Stokes. Stokes can sing his ass off, but I've yet to see him in a performance where he disappeared into the character. My experience would be improved if I shut my eyes during his performances, but I'm left with the sense that he can't act his way out of a paper bag. Quentin Darrington was better in the part, but he doesn't have Stokes' pipes.

[AEA AGMA SM]

Posted: 8/16/11 at 10:18pm

I definitely agree that Noll brought a warmth to Mother that her predecessors lacked, but I do feel that is largely due to the difference in direction and focus between the original production and the revival.

[Gypsy9]

Posted: 8/17/11 at 5:52am

Musicaldudepeter and AC: the aside in this Thread about Audra winning a Tony for the 1994 Lincoln Center production of CAROUSEL elicits this response from me: This was a truly wonderful show in all respects, with its darker aspects brought out and making sense, especially in Michael Hayden's superb performance--I just didn't mind the fact that Hayden had trouble hitting the high notes in "If I Loved You". Audra was wonderful in the part of Carrie which may be a secondary role, but it occupies a lot of stage time and the songs were so beautifully sung. I feel that she deserved her Tony.

Incidentally, it was Michael Hayden that impressed me the most in this production. What kind of award recognition did he receive that season? And why has he disappeared from Broadway?

The pit conductor for CAROUSEL was Eric Stern, perhaps unheralded as is generally true in assessing greatness in Broadway musicals, but important nevertheless. Stern as music director was responsible for the excellent musical cohesiveness of this work. I stage doored this CAROUSEL and spoke to Eric Stern who said he was dumbfounded that anyone would take the time to comment on his work in the show. I tried to meet up with Michael Hayden, but he sped off in a cab. I miss his presence on Broadway.

[best12bars]

Posted: 8/17/11 at 7:00am

"I'm not sure I agree with the idea that her taking in Sarah's baby is such a shock. We don't have much backstory on Mother, other than it being the turn of the century."

We know more than that just from the opening number and the scene that follows with Mother and Father on the pier. Mother is safe and protected in her "white" world of ladies with parasols, fellows with tennis balls. We also know that she is under the watchful thumb of her husband's guidance. He thinks for her and acts on her behalf, always. She's not a woman who champions causes or "gets involved" with anything. Her place is in the home and the "safe" environment around her. And it's because of her husband's prolonged absence that she takes charge and makes such a "shocking" decision on her own. She doesn't begin her change by attending a women's suffrage meeting or listening to radical thinker speak about race relations. No, she dives in head-first and takes a Negro child and her wayward mother into her home and personal care. It should be a hell of a shock to all concerned, and, if played right, the audience as well.

EDIT: She's even shocked at her own actions when she takes the baby inside ...

"What kind of woman would do what I've done?"

She doesn't know that answer to that question yet. She's never known anyone who would do such a thing.

Updated On: 8/17/11 at 07:00 AM

[Oldschool]

Posted: 8/17/11 at 8:12am

Point taken, to a degree. The lyric is different from what you quote, and can easily be read that she's not entirely shocked by her decision. She reflects about her choice, that it is different than the one others might make, but also that she doesn't like the implications of someone who would turn away:

"What kind of woman
Would do what I've done-
Open the door
to such chaos and pain!
You would have
Gently closed the door,
And gently turned the key,
And gently told me not to look,
For fear of what I'd see.

What kind of woman
Would that have made me?"

[AC126748]

Posted: 8/17/11 at 8:25am

Incidentally, it was Michael Hayden that impressed me the most in this production. What kind of award recognition did he receive that season? And why has he disappeared from Broadway?

Gypsy, Michael Hayden is still very much around; in fact, he just completed a run of Shakespeare in the Park, playing the great villain role of Angelo in MEASURE FOR MEASURE as well as a smaller role in ALL'S WELL THAT ENDS WELL. He was never really a musical theatre performer--more of an actor who sings, really--but he did appear as Clifford Bradshaw in CABARET for almost two years (I saw him twice--excellent) and as Adam Nehemiah in DESSA ROSE, also at LCT. He earned a Tony nomination in 2001 for JUDGMENT AT NUREMBERG and played Prince Hal in LCT's much-acclaimed HENRY IV (opposite Kevin Kline's Falstaff). So he's still a fixture on the New York stage, just not necessarily in musicals.

According to IBDB, Hayden won a Theatre World Award and was nominated for a Drama Desk for his Billy Bigelow, but failed to receive a Tony nomination.

[Gypsy9]

Posted: 8/17/11 at 8:43am

Thanks for the information about Michael Hayden's professional theatre work. I am very glad that he has been so busy. Living 300 miles from NYC now means I am not tuned into the many outlets that a good actor can have.

[AC126748]

Posted: 8/17/11 at 8:46am

He's definitely impressed me with his range on a number of occasions. How many actors can play Billy Bigelow and Prince Hal and be equally fantastic in each role?