Tony Award nominations have been announced, and a record was broken (Hamilton earned 16 nominations), some stuff was snubbed, and other stuff was remembered. Today, we shall be discussing what I was most glad to see nominated, which nominations surprised me, as well as the snubs.
What Was I Most Glad to See Nominated?:
Alex Brightman-Out of all the potential candidates there were for Lead Actor in a Musical, I’m very glad that Alex Brightman wasn’t left out for his star-making performance in School of Rock.
Carmen Cusack-Considering how competitive it was going to be to get a nomination for Lead Actress in a Musical this year, I wasn’t sure how much of a chance Carmen Cusack stood. But I’m very glad she was nominated for her Broadway debut in Bright Star (she was also my first Elphaba in Wicked).
Fiddler on the Roof-While it may have underperformed in nominations, I’m still glad to see the nominations the current Broadway revival of Fiddler on the Roof did receive; Best Revival of a Musical, Best Lead Actor in a Musical for Danny Burstein, and Best Choreography for Hofesh Shechter.
Megan Hilty-In her third Broadway outing as well as her first straight play, Broadway favorite Megan Hilty earns her very first Tony nomination for Best Featured Actress in a Play for Noises Off.
Joe Mantello-As he has two productions nominated this year (Blackbird and The Humans), the latter earned Joe Mantello his first directing nomination since 2005 for his revival of Glengarry Glen Ross (he was also nominated as an actor for his performance in The Normal Heart back in 2011).
Sergio Trujillo-After having been seriously overlooked for nominations in the past for his work on Jersey Boys and Memphis, this veteran choreographer finally receives his very first Tony nomination for On Your Feet!
Spring Awakening-As I talked about in a previous blog, the only possible way Spring Awakening would be remembered with a nomination for Best Revival of a Musical was if there was a close race between this and one other show in the nominating process which would then lead to the expansion of nominees from three to four. And apparently, there was as this is the first time there had been four nominees for Best Revival of a Musical since 2013.
Which Nominations Surprised Me?:
Bright Star-Considering the lukewarm response it received from the critics, I didn’t think it had much of a chance to get in for Best Musical, but it really overperformed with a total of 5 nominations (including Best Musical).
Brandon Victor Dixon-Out of all the featured men in Shuffle Along…, I thought Billy Porter would get in because of his powerhouse solo I’ve been hearing about. But Brandon Victor Dixon ended up receiving his second Tony nomination after having previously been nominated for the original production of The Color Purple ten years ago.
Richard Goulding-Considering how competition was building up for Featured Actor in a Play as well as how King Charles III took place earlier in the season, I thought Richard Goulding’s performance in the play was going to get lost in the shuffle. Yet, he was remembered.
Andrea Martin-As I talked about in another previous blog, I felt that having Andrea Martin eligible as a Featured Actress for Noises Off would make things harder for her to be remembered, but she was.
Laurie Metcalf-Three-Time Emmy Award Winner Laurie Metcalf not only received her third Tony nomination for the stage adaptation of Stephen King’s Misery, but also the third time she’s been the sole nominee for a show (the first two being for November and The Other Place).
Snubs:
John Gallagher, Jr.-With Gabriel Byrne, Jessica Lange, and Michael Shannon all receiving Tony nominations for their performances as members of the Tyrone family in Long Day’s Journey Into Night, John Gallagher, Jr. (a Tony Award winner for the original production of Spring Awakening) was the only one who was left out.
Jennifer Hudson-I thought that Hudson had a great shot at getting a Featured Actress in a Musical nomination for her role in The Color Purple, but did not happen. But since she’ll be leaving at the end of the week, the show should still do fine without a big star thanks to its 4 Tony nominations (including Best Revival of a Musical).
Spencer Liff-With the acclaimed Broadway revival of Spring Awakening being remembered by the nominators with three nominations (including Best Revival of a Musical), they did not remember the work Spencer Liff did with incorporating sign language into the choreography.
Audra McDonald-Probably the biggest shocker of all was that Six-Time Tony Award winner Audra McDonald was snubbed for a Tony nomination for Lead Actress in a Musical for Shuffle Along…, the second time in history where she opened a show on Broadway and did not receive a Tony nomination (the first being for Henry IV back in 2004).
Saoirse Ronan-I also thought that Ronan had a great shot at getting a Featured Actress in a Play nomination for her role in The Crucible, but again, did not happen.
Bartlett Sher-A master of reviving old classics with Tony-Winning productions of Awake & Sing, South Pacific, Joe Turner’s Come & Gone, and The King & I. Tony Award Winner Bartlett Sher missed out on a nomination for Best Direction of a Musical for his critically-acclaimed production of Fiddler on the Roof. If there were six nominees this year, he probably would’ve gotten in a little more easily.
Ana Villafane-Considering how competitive it was to get a nomination for Lead Actress in a Musical this year, I knew it was going to be hard for newcomer Ana Villafane to get in for her critically-acclaimed performance as Gloria Estefan in On Your Feet!
Benjamin Walker-Considering how divisive American Psycho has been received, I’m not too surprised by Benjamin Walker’s snub for a Lead Actor in a Musical nomination for his critically-acclaimed performance as Patrick Bateman.
What Was I Most Glad to See Nominated?:
Alex Brightman-Out of all the potential candidates there were for Lead Actor in a Musical, I’m very glad that Alex Brightman wasn’t left out for his star-making performance in School of Rock.
Carmen Cusack-Considering how competitive it was going to be to get a nomination for Lead Actress in a Musical this year, I wasn’t sure how much of a chance Carmen Cusack stood. But I’m very glad she was nominated for her Broadway debut in Bright Star (she was also my first Elphaba in Wicked).
Fiddler on the Roof-While it may have underperformed in nominations, I’m still glad to see the nominations the current Broadway revival of Fiddler on the Roof did receive; Best Revival of a Musical, Best Lead Actor in a Musical for Danny Burstein, and Best Choreography for Hofesh Shechter.
Megan Hilty-In her third Broadway outing as well as her first straight play, Broadway favorite Megan Hilty earns her very first Tony nomination for Best Featured Actress in a Play for Noises Off.
Joe Mantello-As he has two productions nominated this year (Blackbird and The Humans), the latter earned Joe Mantello his first directing nomination since 2005 for his revival of Glengarry Glen Ross (he was also nominated as an actor for his performance in The Normal Heart back in 2011).
Sergio Trujillo-After having been seriously overlooked for nominations in the past for his work on Jersey Boys and Memphis, this veteran choreographer finally receives his very first Tony nomination for On Your Feet!
Spring Awakening-As I talked about in a previous blog, the only possible way Spring Awakening would be remembered with a nomination for Best Revival of a Musical was if there was a close race between this and one other show in the nominating process which would then lead to the expansion of nominees from three to four. And apparently, there was as this is the first time there had been four nominees for Best Revival of a Musical since 2013.
Which Nominations Surprised Me?:
Bright Star-Considering the lukewarm response it received from the critics, I didn’t think it had much of a chance to get in for Best Musical, but it really overperformed with a total of 5 nominations (including Best Musical).
Brandon Victor Dixon-Out of all the featured men in Shuffle Along…, I thought Billy Porter would get in because of his powerhouse solo I’ve been hearing about. But Brandon Victor Dixon ended up receiving his second Tony nomination after having previously been nominated for the original production of The Color Purple ten years ago.
Richard Goulding-Considering how competition was building up for Featured Actor in a Play as well as how King Charles III took place earlier in the season, I thought Richard Goulding’s performance in the play was going to get lost in the shuffle. Yet, he was remembered.
Andrea Martin-As I talked about in another previous blog, I felt that having Andrea Martin eligible as a Featured Actress for Noises Off would make things harder for her to be remembered, but she was.
Laurie Metcalf-Three-Time Emmy Award Winner Laurie Metcalf not only received her third Tony nomination for the stage adaptation of Stephen King’s Misery, but also the third time she’s been the sole nominee for a show (the first two being for November and The Other Place).
Snubs:
John Gallagher, Jr.-With Gabriel Byrne, Jessica Lange, and Michael Shannon all receiving Tony nominations for their performances as members of the Tyrone family in Long Day’s Journey Into Night, John Gallagher, Jr. (a Tony Award winner for the original production of Spring Awakening) was the only one who was left out.
Jennifer Hudson-I thought that Hudson had a great shot at getting a Featured Actress in a Musical nomination for her role in The Color Purple, but did not happen. But since she’ll be leaving at the end of the week, the show should still do fine without a big star thanks to its 4 Tony nominations (including Best Revival of a Musical).
Spencer Liff-With the acclaimed Broadway revival of Spring Awakening being remembered by the nominators with three nominations (including Best Revival of a Musical), they did not remember the work Spencer Liff did with incorporating sign language into the choreography.
Audra McDonald-Probably the biggest shocker of all was that Six-Time Tony Award winner Audra McDonald was snubbed for a Tony nomination for Lead Actress in a Musical for Shuffle Along…, the second time in history where she opened a show on Broadway and did not receive a Tony nomination (the first being for Henry IV back in 2004).
Saoirse Ronan-I also thought that Ronan had a great shot at getting a Featured Actress in a Play nomination for her role in The Crucible, but again, did not happen.
Bartlett Sher-A master of reviving old classics with Tony-Winning productions of Awake & Sing, South Pacific, Joe Turner’s Come & Gone, and The King & I. Tony Award Winner Bartlett Sher missed out on a nomination for Best Direction of a Musical for his critically-acclaimed production of Fiddler on the Roof. If there were six nominees this year, he probably would’ve gotten in a little more easily.
Ana Villafane-Considering how competitive it was to get a nomination for Lead Actress in a Musical this year, I knew it was going to be hard for newcomer Ana Villafane to get in for her critically-acclaimed performance as Gloria Estefan in On Your Feet!
Benjamin Walker-Considering how divisive American Psycho has been received, I’m not too surprised by Benjamin Walker’s snub for a Lead Actor in a Musical nomination for his critically-acclaimed performance as Patrick Bateman.