Last night’s Tony Awards show was a nice surprise.  It seems they have finally taken a page from Hollywood and decided to provide "teaser trailers" to the nominated shows, whether it be through extended musical numbers by the original artists or through short film shots from the plays in question.

In this day and age of tight economics, people want an idea ahead of time of whether their money will be well spent.  And given last night’s performances, I sure wish I had more money and could take the time off to go to Broadway!  There seems to be a treasure trove of great musicals and plays, with some really great actors treading the boards.  (Unfortunately, Michael T. Weiss’ play, IMPRESSIONISM, has already closed – seems no one in it rated a nod from the "Wing" this time around, even though it started before the end of nominating season.  Ah, well, better luck next year! At least he made Broadway this year!!)

Another thing I liked about this year’s Tony Awards was the host, Neil Patrick Harris, was on just enough to keep it interesting and funny, but unlike so many others, he didn’t feel the need to try to take over the show.  He kept the show going and got out of his own way.  (Plus he was quite a surprise at the end – didn’t realize he could sing so well.)

If you missed it, here’s a link I found:

BTW, is Angela Lansbury looking AMAZING for 84 years old or what!?!  What a totally classy lady.  And I’m positive she deserves all 5 Tonys she’s won, including this latest.  I’ve always liked her.

And I think it was wonderful they gave all 3 kids from BILLY ELLIOT a Tony.  (First time 3 people have ever shared the award for the same part in the same year.) After watching the number from the play, I can see why they deserved it, at least from the one kid’s performance. I felt sorry for Elton John, though.  He looked SOOOO tense when he was up for an award, only to lose to NEXT TO NORMAL.  (Especially since BILLY ELLIOT took most of the other awards.)  Guess they figured Sir Elton’s already got enough awards already? 

Another thing I liked was they didn’t feel the need to get reaction shots from the losers like they do on the Oscars and other shows. I mean, how horrible is it to have to sit there with a grin plastered to your face with a camera jammed in it while you’re sitting there hoping the winner will trip on the way to the podium and don’t want anyone to know what you’re really thinking? 

Here’s a list of the main Tony awards:

Best Actress in a Musical
Alice Ripley, Next to Normal

Best Revival of a Musical
Hair

Best Play
God of Carnage

Best Revival of a Play
The Norman Conquests 

Best Actress in a Play
Marcia Gay Harden, God of Carnage

Best Actor in a Play
Geoffrey Rush, Exit the King

Best Featured Actress in a Musical
Karen Olivo, West Side Story

Best Featured Actor in a Musical
Gregory Jbara, Billy Elliot

Best Special Theatrical Event
Liza Minnelli, Liza’s at the Palace

Best Direction of a Musical
Stephen Daldry, Billy Elliot

Best Direction of a Play
Matthew Warchus, God of Carnage

Best Original Score
Tom Kitt (music) and Brian Yorkey (lyrics), Next to Normal

Best Featured Actress in a Play
Angela Lansbury, Blithe Spirit

Best Featured Actor in a Play
Roger Robinson, Joe Turner’s Come and Gone

Best Book of a Musical
Lee Hall, Billy Elliot

Best Choreography
Peter Darling, Billy Elliot

Best Costume Design of a Musical
Tim Hatley, Shrek The Musical

Best Costume Design of a Play
Anthony Ward, Mary Stuart

Best Orchestrations
(TIE)
Michael Starobin and Tom Kitt, Next to Normal
and
Martin Koch, Billy Elliot

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