Another year, another
TONY Awards. The most memorable part of the evening for me was that it felt like
Hugh Jackman was actually hosting even though he turned the gig down this year because there he was during every commercial break... striking curious poses in commercials for the Vegas set musical (?) TV series
Viva Laughlin. How does he find the time? I'm assuming his is a recurring guest role rather than a lead... though the commercials lean heavily on his star magnetism.
Anyway, some thoughts on the night
Swoosie Kurtz (yay!), Harvey Fierstein (it aint televisions gayest night of the year w/out Harvey), Audra McDonald (a TONY goddess), Billy Crudup and Christine Ebersole (happy winners) Best Musical
Spring Awakening won just about everything it was up for except costumes (
Grey Gardens) and sets (
Mary Poppins) and acting. The nine hour Tom Stoppard trilogy
The Coast of Utopia was even stronger in the Best Play categories. What
didn't it win? The most deserving acting prizes went to the Beales of
Grey Gardens. And I hear that
Billy Crudup was sensational in
Utopia as a Russian intellectual so good on him.
Most Skeletal: Where has
Claire Danes gone? I'm glad her copresenter didn't slice himself open on her protuding bones. Can't find a suitably scary picture but I'm sure you'll see one soon.
Best Dressed: Angela Lansbury looked so classy.
Worst Dressed: Marcia Gay Harden, Christine Ebersole, and Melina whatshername from TV (pictured right with Jane Krakowski whom she is entirely unworthy to touch -- begone Melina!) The latter looked like she had a massive coke can tab hanging around her neck. Ewwww
Best Speeches: Mary Louise Wilson (
Grey Gardens) and Julie White (
The Little Dog Laughed) gave great acceptance speech. Funny and aware that it's a television show and not all about them. You still have to think about the audience when you're having your moment.
Worst Speech: Christine Ebersole (
Grey Gardens) was a deserving winner and I realize she's had the trophy in the bag for the whole theater season but this was the very definition of over rehearsed. I felt like I was in her bathroom staring into her mirror.
Best Performance:
Audra McDonald's warm and spirited performance of "Raunchy" did the trick. I wanted to buy tickets to
110 in the Shade immediately. I'm also surprised to say that Fantasia's
Color Purple number was surprisingly well acted. Why surprisingly? Well she was pretty terrible
as herself in that Lifetime movie --not that I watched the whole thing.
Most Hilariously Appropriate Co-Presenter Pairing: Kevin Spacey with
Jane Krakowski. That's a whole heap o' self love & smug right there. (I luv ya Jane! Don't be mad)
The Bad: They dissed
Raul Esparza (pictured, left) yet again for the musical actor prize? Awful. He was so good in
Company and he so obviously and desperately wanted to win. But the TONY voters are true starf***ers and David Hyde Pierce used to be on TV. It's maddening. When will Raul ever get the trophies he keeps on deserving ?
Best Speech in Worst Circumstances: David Hyde Pierce. It's nice that he's finally out of the closet --though it woulda been nicer while he was on
Frasier for all those years --and it's nice that it was a truly sincere and modest nod to the other nominees (particularly Raul) but it still makes me crazy that Raul lost, damnit.
The Ugly: Shunning the utterly brilliant duo
Kiki & Herb (pictured, right) for ventriloquism? That is just truly square. Like the Emmys and the Oscars, The TONY voters often have embarrassing blind spots and a lack of sophistication about their own artform.
The Curious: I haven't yet seen
Spring Awakening and I've heard people say it's the new
Rent. But I gotta tell you: I thought they meant that it was the new
Rent in the rock musical way. I didn't realize it was the new
Rent in the whole sense. A centerpiece number where horny young boys and girls dance on furniture and sing about masturbation? I've seen this before:
VIVA LA VIE BOHEME!
a few more
Posts
