Who deserved it more? — Page 2

The Other One said: "I wish Celia Keenan-Bolger had won for The Glass Menagerie over Anika Noni Rose in A Raisin In The Sun, though I have to admit I never saw Anika."

That was Sophie Okonedo who won, not Anika Noni Rose.

The Other One said: "I wish Celia Keenan-Bolger had won for The Glass Menagerie over Anika Noni Rose in A Raisin In The Sun, though I have to admit I never saw Anika."

That was Sophie Okonedo who won, not Anika Noni Rose.

Corrected. Thank you. I thought so! It was misprinted on the website I checked last night before posting my comment. My point was not to knock Anika or Sophie, only to praise Celia.

Updated On: 3/12/16 at 06:28 AM

Sutton Foster in Violet... Talk about a career redefining performance!

"Have to agree with the earlier post about Raul Esparza and David Hyde [Pierce]."

Mr, Pierce himself (whom I enjoyed very much in the role, but...) agreed on that point, when he was interviewed just after his show opened. I can't track it down now, but someone told him he was giving a Tony-worthy performance and he said "That's very nice of you to say, but have you seen Raul?" Of course by the time award season arrived, he trained himself not to say such things any more.

Reverting to the Glass Menagerie/Raisin in the Sun debate from two years ago, I have to say while I enjoyed the Glass Menagerie (which a lot have argued should have won that year), A Raisin in the Sun completely took my breath away and was honestly one of the best productions of a play I have seen. I found all of the acting to be so strong and profound and the direction was magnificent. After the last scene, I was just completely floored and almost couldn't respond out of amazement. And pretty much everyone stood up before the curtain even fell because it was so powerful. Again, not trying to bash Glass Menagerie but I agreed with the Tony voters in that instance.

Can we just take a moment to acknowledge the the fact that OP SPECIFICALLY asked for lesser-known, lesser-discussed Tony races, and yet something like 90% of you named well-known races from the past 6-7 years?

A few of you even brought up Kristin Chenoweth in On the 20th Century, which the OP also specifically wanted to exclude.

The KC reference would have been mine. By the time I came back to the boards to respond I might have forgotten that excluding such references were mentioned by the OP. For me it was more of a parallel to the Cuccioli/Naughton example.

I think roles that are physically demanding or comedically or vocally challenging are really quite impressive. So when I see them compared to a more nuanced role (which I'll agree can be challenging as well, especially if it's a role that has been done a lot, and how do you separate yourself from all the times it has been played before), I tend to lean toward the more layered performance that does include not only vocal and acting chops, but the comedic and physical aspects as well. I like to see those performances recognized when done well.

Yankee,



Agree with you re J/H and Cuccioli. Believe he was collateral damage in the Wildhorn pile on .

While I do think that a lot of musicals were clearly best musical material, and I personally think they have been stronger than other best musical winners, I haven't seen some of the shows that these works lost to, so I can't compare it (I wish Into the Woods had won best musical, but I haven't seen Phantom so I can't compare. And even though I think Music Man is kind of weak, I can't honestly say West Side Story deserved the tony since I haven't seen it(I know, but I don't watch bootlegs unless I'm obsessed with a show or am doing it, and I haven't had any oppurtunities to see WSS).

However, I can tell with upmost certainity that in 2002, Urinetown deserved the tony award over Thoroughly Modern Millie. Urinetown is, in my opinion, is one of the better shows with a spoof of musicals, as a)It is only mentioned by two characters, meaning that they are the only ones who can break the fourth wall, so the narrative flows much more smoothly, b)it was the first of its kind and it wasn't trying to ride upon a trend and instead was trying to tell a story, c)it had a strong plot behind it that could've stood on its own without the lampshading aspects of the musical, and d) It happens to blend an exceptionally depressing storyline with highbrow humor that is extremely hilarious, which is a hard thing to do well.

Millie, while being a decent show that deserved its nomination, is subpar to Urinetown. Even when I saw a performance of Millie done by incredibly talented actors and actresses, I look back upon this and realize it to be kind of boring. You really need sparks like Sutton Foster to perform roles such as these, and while it was a good musical, I felt that it was nothing groundbreaking like Urinetown.

Also, kind of off-topic , but the tony awards need to get straight what counts as a featured actor/actress. Marian in Music Man? John Jasper (AKA the leading male) in The Mystery of Edwin Drood? Featured actresses and actors are characters that, while serving importance to the plot as a whole, are more involved in the subplots of the musical. Marian is the love interest of the main character, has 3 large solo songs, 1 duet, is sung to in Madam the Librarian, serves major importance to the plot, and develops the character of Harold Hill. John Jasper is featured heavily in seven songs, and has solos in 2 songs. Get your act together, Tony Awards.

No offense, Random, but if you have never seen West Side Story, music by Leonard Bernstein and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, then you really should not be posting on a "best" thread. Bernstein's score stands alone for the cross-over between classical and Broadway music, whether you are listening to the original cast album or the orchestral symphonic dances derived from it.

And that is not to take away from Music Man, which represented almost the entire output of one man's life, that man being Meredith Willson. Blessed with Robert Preston and Barbara Cook in the starring roles, two days on this BWW message board could be devoted to debating which was the most deserving.of the Tony. The balcony scene from West Side Story, centered around the song "Tonight," is a gem of American musical theater, which Kelli O'Hara and Mathew Morrison have performed together at any opportunity. Yet I believe that the Music Man ballad Til There Was You has been covered more times than any single song from WSS, or any other first side cover. A recording by the Beatles is on one of their earliest albums, and is said to have been on one side of the first two-sided record that they ever recorded.

1981: While both were great productions & great performances, if I had a vote to give - I'd have given my vote to the Raul Julia for "Nine" over Ben Harney for "Dreamgirls' in the Leading Actor in a Musical category - and I'd have voted to the Karen Akers for "Nine" over her co-satr Lilliane Montevecchi in the Featured Actress in a Musical category.

1987: I'd have voted for Terrence Mann's Javert over Robert Lindsay from Me & My Girl. I still have trouble wrapping my brain around the fact that actually happened.

1988: I'm sure the fact that "Chess" closed so quickly all but assured their lack of award season success - but I'd have voted for David Carroll in "Chess" over Crawford's iconic performance in Phantom. While I enjoyed Crawford, Ramin Karimloo remains the definitive Phantom for me - and David Carroll remains one of the greatest stage performers I have ever seen. So very sad that his life and career were cut tragically short.

1990: I'd have voted for "Grand Hotel" over "City of Angels" for best musical - and David Carroll's performance in "Grand Hotel" over James Naughton for "City of Angels". I'd have voted for both Terry Kinney and Gary Sinise (Grapes of Wrath) over Charles Durning in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.

1991: I still can't believe "Will Rogers Follies" won Best Musical over "Miss Saigon". Seems crazy wrong to me.

1993: I'd have voted for Marcia Gay Harden in "Angels in America" over Debra Monk for "Redwood Curtain" - and I'd have voted from Ceveris for TOMMY over Anthony Crivello in Kiss of the Spiderwpman (loved the show and Brent Carver and Chita Rivera in it - but Crivello did not do that much for me).

1998: This is the year I really felt was a complete travesty. I would have picked "Ragtime" over Lion King". While I thought Alan Cumming was great in "Cabaret", Brian Stokes Mitchell's performance just cut me to my core - still so shocked he did not win for playing Coalhouse. And I know the Lion King costumes and puppets were fabulous, but I don't see how you give the Best Direction Tony to Taymor over Frank Galati (full disclosure - I was one of Galati's students at Northwestern.)

1999: I thought Side Man was fantastic - but Closer was even better - I'd have given Closer my vote for Best Play. I'd have voted for Brent Carver/Parade over Martin Short/Little Me. I'd have gone with Parade over Fosse for musical - and the super heartfelt "You're a Good Man Charlie Brown" over Annie Get Your Gun.

2011: I'd have voted for The MFer with the Hat over War Horse and Scottsboro Boys over Book of Mormon

2012: James Corden is adorable and wonderfully talented - but how on earth did he win over Philip Seymour Hoffman fro Death of a Salesman?!?! Hoffman's performance is a memory I'll treasure forever - I was bawling in the audience to the point I was worried about disturbing those around me. Andrew Garfield was frickin' amazing too - in an ideal world, he and Christian Borle would have tied for the win. I also would have voted for Ceveris in Evits over Michael McGrath.

2014: I love NPH - but my vote would have gone to Karimloo for Les Mis (probably in the top 3 men all time I've seen on Broadway)

Updated On: 3/24/16 at 05:10 AM

Jesus, I just haven't had an opportunity to see it. It's not like I'm a theatre fan who thinks Wicked is the best thing ever. I love Stephen Sondheim and have seen Sweeney Todd, Into the Woods, Sunday in the Park with George, and am going to see Company very soon. Again, I never said anything bad about West Side Story, and I want to see it. As for Music Man, I just think that while the music is amazing, as well as the underscoring, the book itself is weak, and could benefit from including more in the Tommy Zaneeta storyline after Shipoopi and stronger definitions as to why Harold Hill and Marian fall in love with one another.

nicnyc said: "2012: James Corden is adorable and wonderfully talented - but how on earth did he win over Philip Seymour Hoffman fro Death of a Salesman?!?! Hoffman's performance is a memory I'll treasure forever - I was bawling in the audience to the point I was worried about disturbing those around me. Andrew Garfield was firkin' amazing too - in an ideal world, he and Christian Borle would have tied for the win. I also would have voted for Ceveris in Evits over Michael McGrath."



I find that a lot of people have a hard time acknowledging the merit in a well-done comedic performance, and don't understand how it can win over a dramatic one. (I think it's especially a problem with female comedic performances, but obviously can also be an issue with men.)