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Tony Awards 2015 – Best Revival of a Musical / Best Musical

Posted on: June 2nd, 2015 by B.I. C. No Comments

These are the productions nominated for Best Revival of a Musical:

Here are a few fun facts:

– “The King and I” won the 1952 Tony-Award for Best Musical. It’s amazing to think that 63 years later, and it still has such resonance and poignancy to be revived and nominated again!

– “On The Town” is based off of a 1944 ballet called “Fancy Free,” which was developed by Leonard Bernstein and Jerome Robbins.

– The original Broadway production of “On The Twentieth Century” opened on February 19, 1978 at the St. James Theatre. Judy Kaye replaced Madeline Kahn only 9 weeks into performances which turned her into an overnight star.

These are the productions nominated for Best Musical:

Here are a few more fun facts:

– In the film version of “An American in Paris,” the climax of the film is a 16 minutes ballet featuring Gene Kelly and Leslie Caron set to Gershwin’s An American in Paris. The ballet alone cost more than $500,000.

– “Fun Home” is based off the graphic memoir by American writer Alison Bechdel, and it stirred such controversy that a public library in Missouri once removed it from its shelves for five months after complaints from its residents.

– Karey Kirkpatrick and John O’Farrell, the creators of “Something Rotten!”, are also known for their work in the stop-motion animated film, “Chicken Run.”

– The musical adaptation of “The Visit” originally starred Angela Lansbury, and had planned to open on Broadway March 15, 2001. However, in July 2000, Lansbury withdrew from the show because of the death of her husband.

Tony Awards 2015 – Best Revival of a Play / Best Play

Posted on: June 2nd, 2015 by B.I. C. No Comments

These are the productions nominated for Best Revival of a Play:

Best Play Revival - Twitter

Here are a few fun facts:

– There’s no wonder why this production of “The Elephant Man” has been so successful, because it’s produced by Jimmy Nederlander who has made Broadway In Chicago thrive so vibrantly in the Chicago theatre community.

– “Skylight” has apparently already made back it’s investment. Although the producers didn’t confirm the full costs of the production, Broadway plays usually are around $3 million.

– The original production of “You Can’t Take It With You” premiered on Broadway in 1936, and transferred 3 different times from the Booth Theatre to the Imperial Theatre and then the Ambassador Theatre, playing a total of 838 performances.

– “This Is Our Youth” has progressed many young actors careers over the years. In 2002, a production in London included Hayden Christensen, Matt Damon and Colin Hanks as Dennis, Jake Gyllenhaal, Casey Affleck and Kieran Culkin as Warren and Anna Paquin, Summer Phoenix and Alison Lohman as Jessica.

These are the productions nominated for Best Play:

Here are a few more fun facts:

– “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time” got its title from a Sherlock Holmes quote in Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s 1892 short story “Silver Blaze.”

– “Disgraced” premiered at the American Theatre Company in Chicago January 30, 2012 — Mar 11, 2012. The production received four Joseph Jefferson Awards nominations.

– The role of Thomas Cromwell in the beginning stages of “Wolf Hall” was played by James McAvoy, but Ben Miles then took over the part.

– The lead producer of “Hand to God” is also the producer of “Avenue Q.” Apparently they like to keep it all in the puppet family!

Tony Awards 2015 – Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Play / Musical

Posted on: May 27th, 2015 by B.I. C. No Comments

Here are the men nominated for “Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Play” and “Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical”:

(Left to Right: Steven Boyer, Bradley Cooper, Ben Miles, Bill Nighy, Alex Sharp)

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Play

Steven Boyer, “Hand to God”

Bradley Cooper, “The Elephant Man”

Ben Miles, “Wolf Hall Parts One & Two”

Bill Nighy, “Skylight”

Alex Sharp, “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time”

Here are a few fun facts:

– Steven Boyer and Alex Sharp are both Juilliard School alumni, and equally credit their performances to the help of movement instructor, Moni Yakim.

– Bradley Cooper made his Broadway debut in 2006 in “Three Days of Rain” with Julia Roberts and Paul Rudd.

– Ben Miles was last seen as Tom in the Tony-winning revival of Alan Ayckbourn’s “The Norman Conquests.”

– Some films that you would recognize Bill Nighy in are “Love Actually,” “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows,” “Pirates of the Caribbean” and “Underworld.”

(Left to Right: Michael Cerveris, Robert Fairchild, Brian d”Arcy James, Ken Watanabe, Tony Yazbeck)

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical

Michael Cerveris, “Fun Home”

Robert Fairchild, “An American in Paris”

Brian d’Arcy James, “Something Rotten!”

Ken Watanabe, “The King and I”

Tony Yazbeck, “On the Town”

Here are a few more fun facts:

– Michael Cerveris has performed in many Stephen Sondheim musicals such as “Assassins,” “Sweeney Todd,” “Road Show,” and “Passion.” He then won the Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical for “Assassins.”

– Robert Fairchild’s sister is NYCB Principal Dancer Megan Fairchild, who is currently starring in Broadway’s “On the Town.”

– Brian d’Arcy James originated the role of Frederick Barrett in the musical “Titanic” and also originated the role of Sidney in “Sweet Smell of Success in 2002 for which he received a Tony Award nomination for Best Featured Actor in a Musical.

– You know actor Ken Watanabe from many films such as “Memoirs of a Geisha,” “The Last Samurai,” “Inception,” and “The Unbroken.”

– Some of Tony Yazbeck’s Broadway credits include Tulsa in “Gypsy” starring Patti LuPone, Billy Flynn in “Chicago,” Phil Davis in “White Christmas,” and Al Deluca in “A Chorus Line.”

Tony Awards 2015 – Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Play / Musical

Posted on: May 27th, 2015 by B.I. C. No Comments

Here are the women nominated for “Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Play” and “Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical”:

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Play

Geneva Carr, “Hand to God”

Helen Mirren, “The Audience”

Elisabeth Moss, “The Heidi Chronicles”

Carey Mulligan, “Skylight”

Ruth Wilson, “Constellations”

Here are a few fun facts:

– Geneva Carr is making her Broadway debut at age 44 in “Hand to God,” but you’d also recognize her recurring role as the mom in the AT&T Mobility phone commercials.

– Helen Mirren has played a Queen a total of six times: The Queen (2006), Elizabeth I (2005), The Prince of Egypt (1998), The Snow Queen (1995), The Madness of King George (1994), and Caligola (1979).

– You know Elisabeth Moss best from her portrayal as Peggy Olson on the AMC series “Mad Men.”

– Carey Mulligan’s Broadway debut was in a 2008 production of Chekhov’s “The Seagull.”

– Ruth Wilson won the Golden Globe for best actress in a TV drama for her role in “The Affair” and days later made her Broadway debut in “Constellations.”

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical

Kristin Chenoweth, “On the Twentieth Century”

Leanne Cope, “An American in Paris”

Beth Malone, “Fun Home”

Kelli O’Hara, “The King and I”

Chita Rivera, “The Visit”

Here are a few more fun facts:

– Kristin Chenoweth’s birth name is Kristi Dawn. She became “Kristin” when her musical theater teacher at Oklahoma City University, Florence Birdwell, suggested adding the “n” to make it sound more professional.

– Leanne Cope is currently on leave from London’s Royal Ballet to be performing in “An American In Paris.”

– Beth Malone made her Broadway debut in “Ring of Fire,” which played at the Barrymore Theatre in 2006.

– This year marks Kelli O’Hara’s 6th Tony nomination. Her previous nominations have been for her performances in “The Light in the Piazza,” “The Pajama Game,” “South Pacific,” “Nice Work If You Can Get It,” and “The Bridges of Madison County.”

– Chita Rivera has gained 9 Tony Award nominations throughout her career, with two wins for “The Rink” and “Kiss of the Spider Woman.”

Tony Awards 2015 – Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Play / Musical

Posted on: May 27th, 2015 by B.I. C. No Comments

Here are the men nominated for “Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Play” and “Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical”:

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Play

Matthew Beard, “Skylight”

Todd Freeman, “Airline Highway”

Richard McCabe, “The Audience”

Alessandro Nivola, “The Elephant Man”

Nathaniel Parker, “Wolf Hall Parts One & Two”

Micah Stock, “It’s Only a Play”

Here are a few fun facts:

– You may recognize Matthew Beard from his recent work in the Academy nominated film, “The Imitation Game.”

– K. Todd Freeman’s first Tony nomination came in 1993 for his portrayal of the title character in Steppenwolf Theatre Company’s transfer of “The Song of Jacob Zulu.”

– Alessandro Nivola worked with Bradley Cooper on the 2013 film “American Hustle,” and apparently spent the whole time on set talking about their future work together in “The Elephant Man.”

– Micah Stock performed in Terrence McNally’s play last fall called “And Away We Go,” which Nathan Lane and Jack O’Brien saw and loved Micah’s performance, helping him gain his role in “It’s Only a Play.”

Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical

Christian Borle, “Something Rotten!”

Andy Karl, “On the Twentieth Century”

Brad Oscar, “Something Rotten!”

Brandon Uranowitz, “An American in Paris”

Max von Essen, “An American in Paris”

Here are a few more fun facts:

– Christian Borle has been in the last two live musicals featured on NBC: 2013’s “The Sound of Music Live!” and last year’s “Peter Pan Live!”

– Andy Karl’s first Broadway productions included “Wicked” in which he was the Fiyero replacement and “Jersey Boys” where he was the Tommy DeVito replacement.

– Brad Oscar was the original Uncle Fester in the Broadway production of “The Addams Family.”