A whole lot of Hollywood’s A-list didn’t make the checklist for subsequent month’s Tony Awards.
Thursday’s nominations unceremoniously snubbed three Oscar winners: Denzel Washington (“Othello”), Kieran Culkin (“Glengarry Glen Ross”) and Robert Downey Jr. (“McNeal”).
Washington’s co-star Jake Gyllenhaal didn’t make the minimize both. Nor did Rachel Zegler for “Romeo + Juliet.”
Good! The 40-some nominators did the correct factor. Their performs have been unhealthy, and the actors have been underwhelming in them. That tickets to “Othello” and “Glengarry” price as a lot as $900 and $700 respectively for OK seats should’ve additionally caught within the committee’s craw.
Contemplating the producers of “Othello” uninvited me from their present for criticizing their exorbitant costs, I’m grinning from ear to ear.
The award ceremony honoring Broadway didn’t solely say “no way!” to Hollywood, although.
Sarah Snook, who performed Shiv on HBO’s “Succession,” was referred to as out for her unbelievable flip within the high-tech “Picture of Dorian Gray.”
The Aussie, who tackles 26 components, has the Finest Actress in a Play class all wrapped up.
The ferocious Nicole Scherzinger was additionally nominated for her thrilling flip as pale display star Norma Desmond in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical “Sunset Boulevard.”
Scherzinger is in a couldn’t-be-closer race for Finest Actress in a Musical with Audra McDonald, who’s taking up the titanic function of Mama Rose in “Gypsy.”
And, piling on the drama, they’re proper throughout the road from one another! For the following month, West forty fourth is gonna appear to be the Sharks and Jets.
“Sunset” is more likely to emerge victorious as Finest Revival.
And its main girl? Proper now, I give the previous Pussycat Doll the sting too. Many citizens have instructed me they have been disenchanted in “Gypsy,” and really feel six-time winner McDonald has accomplished higher work in different reveals.
For some added glamour, George Clooney squeezed in. He’s completely tremendous as journalist Edward R. Murrow in “Good Night, and Good Luck.”
However the “Syriana” star gained’t win. Good Night time, and Powerful Luck. Finest Actor in a Play will go to Cole Escola for being completely bananas in “Oh, Mary!,” the sensible comedy about Mary Todd Lincoln.
One other large battle that’s accomplished and dusted, weirdly, is Finest Musical, which is often probably the most suspenseful of the night time. Not so, this 12 months.
“Maybe Happy Ending,” a bittersweet romantic comedy about two robots, ought to change its title to “Definitely Happy Ending.”
If anything in that class — “Buena Vista Social Club,” “Dead Outlaw,” “Death Becomes Her” and “Operation Mincemeat” — takes dwelling the gold, will probably be a serious upset.
This 12 months’s nominations have been principally not sizzling on splashy fare. “Smash” (trash!) scored simply two nods, whereas “Boop” (cute) managed three, together with for its unbelievable new star Jasmine Amy Rogers.
None of these have been for Finest Musical, which is the one award that issues for gross sales.
Relating to “Smash,” “Redwood” with Idina Menzel (zilch) and the Avett Brothers’ “Swept Away” (one nod for set), rising trade whispers have been confirmed true: Nothing kills a present like a rave from the New York Occasions!
What else is tight?
Darren Criss (“Maybe Happy Ending”), Tom Francis (“Sunset Boulevard”) and Jonathan Groff (“Just in Time”) are neck-and-neck for Finest Actor in a Musical. Groff, who’s a marvel as crooner Bobby Darin, would appear to be the seemingly front-runner.
Nevertheless, he gained solely final 12 months for “Merrily We Roll Along.” No musical performer has secured back-to-back Tonys since Gwen Verdon in 1959. I say: Stats, shmats.
My crystal ball may additionally use some Windex to assist predict Finest Play.
“Purpose,” the scorching household dramedy by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins, is a contender. So is “John Proctor is the Villain,” Kimberly Belflower’s classroom commentary on “The Crucible.”
However only one play — effectively, not counting the terrible A-list cash-grabs — has been a bona fide occasion this season: Escola’s “Oh Mary!,” which began off-Broadway and has changed into a much-loved hit.
As of as we speak, I count on Escola to hoist the trophy and shout, “Oh, Tony!”
However quite a bit can occur in 5 weeks. “Purpose” or “Proctor” may surge. And McDonald nonetheless has loads of time to carry out “Everything’s Coming Up Roses” with a megaphone.
