Posted: 3/24/16 at 3:13pm
I truly believe that Vanessa Hudgens deserved at least a nod for her portrayal of Gigi in Gigi this past year. Now, I've never seen the Audrey Hepburn version, but I'm sure that Vanessa went above and beyond these expectations and poured her heart and soul into the role. She is truly one of the best performers of our generation and she deserved a Tony nom, if not a Tony WIN, for this role.
Posted: 3/24/16 at 3:23pm
wonkit said: "Have to agree with the earlier post about Raul Esparza and David Hyde Pierce. The depth and subtlety of Bobby was so much more of an achievement than the "it's me in the raincoat singing quite ordinary songs" of the part Pierce played. A total mystery to me - and I saw both performances. Pleasant should hardly be considered comparable to fascinating.
"
Have to agree - saw both DHP, wasn't even the best thing about Curtains, nevertheless Best Actor.. Esparza was just so layered. His 'Being Alive' is still the most played song on my iPhone.
Posted: 3/24/16 at 3:33pm
Raul Esparza not winning the Tony for Company is one of the most egregious oversights in recent memory. I saw him do it 9 years ago and it still sticks out as one of the most remarkable, devastating things I've ever seen in the theater.
I also think Celia Keenan-Bolger should have won for what I believe is the definitive interpretation of Laura in The Glass Menagerie. That production completely changed my view of the play and its meaning and merits, and Celia's work was a huge part of that. She's one of the best actresses we have right now, and I've never seen her give anything less than a fully realized, truthful, and well-acted performance.
Updated On: 3/24/16 at 03:33 PM
Posted: 3/24/16 at 4:33pm
I completely agree that comic performances are often under-rated and I think you are also correct that it is doubly true where women are concerned. I did think Corden was wonderful - and it a lot of other years, I would have been quite happy with his performance being awarded a Tony. I thought Hoffman was one of the best performances I have ever seen in 30+ years of going to the theatre. His performance just rocked me to my core.
givesmevoice said: "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 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."
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.)
"
Updated On: 3/24/16 at 04:33 PM
Posted: 3/24/16 at 7:35pm
One of the most indefensible Tony awards in my opinion was Christine Ebersole's win for 42nd Street over Marla Schaffel.
THIS. Schaffel was collateral damage from a show that was obliterated by The Producers. 42nd Street was about as perfect a production it will ever have, but Ebersole's win for that role never made sense to me, particularly against Schaffel's tour de force performance. I'd be surprised if people still remember Ebersole was in 42nd Street.
Posted: 3/25/16 at 8:43pm
I had never seen Ebersole until Wednesday when she was a guest star, along with Liz Callaway, at Michael Feinstein's last Carnegie Hall show of the season. I checked in advance and found an enormous number of credits in film, television and Broadway, but wasn't expecting much from a 60+ year old veteran.
Christine bounced out on the stage wearing an above-the-knee dress, radiating mega-watts of energy out on the audience, which reflected it right back on her. I quickly understood why she had so many credits. She was someone you wanted to be around. Hey, that was my first impression anyway.
She even sang the most neglected of the five standards that Rodgers and Hart crammed into Babes in Arms: "Johnny One Note", which is a fun song in the right hands. But when I saw that she had won a Tony for playing Dorothy Brock in 42nd Street, that did throw me. I didn't think that the role was really big enough for a leading actress, and the Brock character is awfully morose for an actress so effusive.
Not a role you would think you could hang a Tony on. I wondered whether it was given to Ebersole for being Brock or to Ebersole for being Ebersole.
I saw the original production, but was nowhere near the theater on opening night.
Updated On: 3/25/16 at 08:43 PM
Posted: 3/25/16 at 11:54pm
Always have believed Nathan Lane got robbed in 1992.
Nothing against Hines in Jelly's Last Jam but Lane was spot on perfect as Nathan Detroit.
2011 sticks out.
I really believed Josh Gad should have come away with Leading Actor in a Musical.
I'm going to catch heat for this next statement but thought Pacino got beat in Leading Actor Play. His Shylock was amazing.
Posted: 3/26/16 at 8:33am
10086sunset said: "Always have believed Nathan Lane got robbed in 1992.
Nothing against Hines in Jelly's Last Jam but Lane was spot on perfect as Nathan Detroit.
2011 sticks out.
I really believed Josh Gad should have come away with Leading Actor in a Musical.
I'm going to catch heat for this next statement but thought Pacino got beat in Leading Actor Play. His Shylock was amazing."
I did not like Jerusalem and would love to have seen Pacino's Shylock, or Mantello's Ned Weeks, receive the Tony over Rylance. (I would love have seen Rylance nominated for La Bete instead)
Faith Prince got the raves and the awards for the 1991 revival of Guys and Dolls, but Lane was the high point of that production for me as well. Hines was so good, though. How do you pick? I often think the dramatic heft of a musical role will win out where competitive awards are concerned, and that is probably what happened here.
Posted: 3/26/16 at 9:33am
I am amused by the thought of Bernadette being "robbed" for some of her recent roles considering that she won for AGYG over Carolee's Lucille in Parade.
Posted: 3/26/16 at 9:46am
I'm not 100% sure if she would've still been eligible since she left the cast before the Tony Awards, but I would've liked to seeBernadette Peters get a nomination for Best Featured Actress in a musical for Into the Woods. I don't know about winning, since I don't know about the other nominees, since I was born after any of those shows premiered on Broadway (LONG after), but from what I've seen on the DVD for Into the Woods, Peters put in a unique blend of comedy and amorality and seriousness to craft The Witch. Then again, she probably wasn't eligible.
Posted: 3/26/16 at 9:57am
Randomlink1 said: "I'm not 100% sure if she would've still been eligible since she left the cast before the Tony Awards, but I would've liked to seeBernadette Peters get a nomination for Best Featured Actress in a musical for Into the Woods. I don't know about winning, since I don't know about the other nominees, since I was born after any of those shows premiered on Broadway (LONG after), but from what I've seen on the DVD for Into the Woods, Peters put in a unique blend of comedy and amorality and seriousness to craft The Witch. Then again, she probably wasn't eligible."
Of course she was eligible. Leaving a show before the Tonys has nothing to do with one's eligibility for an award. She simply wasn't nominated. Madeline Kahn and David Carroll are examples of actors who received nominations long after leaving their shows. I don't have time to do a search for other examples, but I'm sure there are more.
Updated On: 3/26/16 at 09:57 AM
Posted: 3/26/16 at 9:31pm
It is possible that Bernadette would not have been eligible, if she left the show before any Tony voters were invited. However, my guess would be that enough voters did see the show before she left (they don't all wait until after nominations are announced, especially with shows that open in the fall) so it probably was not an issue in regards to that.
