 |
| Katie Finneran and Raul Esparza |
The 2014-15
theater awards season kicked into high gear today with the announcement of the
nominees for the 65th annual Outer Critics Circle Awards.
The big
takeaways: The new musical Something
Rotten, which doesn’t even have its official opening until later this week,
walked off with 12 nominations, the most of any show – new or revival. It was also a great season for director Scott
Ellis, who picked up nominations for two play revivals (The Elephant Man and You Can’t
Take It With You) and a musical revival (On The Twentieth Century).
Theater
stalwarts Raul Esparza and Katie Finneran made the announcements before a group
of Outer Critics Circle voters, members of the press, and other guests who braved the torrential rain to attend the gathering at the Friars Club.
Here is a
list of nominees, along with my discussion for each category.
Nominees
for OUTSTANDING NEW BROADWAY PLAY
The
Audience
The
Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
Wolf Hall
Wolf Hall
Surprises: These three made my list, but I was surprised
there were no others. Two that come to
mind are Constellations and The River. Both owe much to strong productions and
outstanding performances, but both took risks that made them very interesting
and worthy of being nominated.
Nominees
for OUTSTANDING NEW BROADWAY MUSICAL
An
American in Paris
It
Shoulda Been You
The Last
Ship
Something
Rotten!
The Visit
The Visit
Surprises:
Glad to see It Shoulda Been You
on the list. On the face of it, this show should not have worked, and a number
of the major-league critics lambasted it for its hokeyness. But, as the ads say: “You’ll laugh. You’ll cry. You’ll be home by
10!” It absolutely lives up to that
promise.
Nominees
for OUTSTANDING NEW OFF-BROADWAY PLAY
Between
Riverside and Crazy
The City
of Conversation
The
Nether
Rasheeda
Speaking
The Village Bike
The Village Bike
Surprises: Two strong contenders I thought ought
to have made the list ahead of a couple that did were Suzan-Lori Parks’s Civil
War-era play Father Comes Home from the Wars (Parts
1, 2, & 3) and Ayad Akhtar’s The Invisible Hand, about
an American businessman held captive by terrorists. Akhtar won the 2013
Pulitzer Prize for Disgraced; I thought The Invisible Hand was an
even better play. And speaking of the
Pulitzer Prize, congratulations to Between Riverside and Crazy and playwright
Stephen Adly Guirgis, who was awarded the Prize for 2015, as announced today. Father Comes Home from the Wars was a finalist.
Nominees
for OUTSTANDING NEW OFF-BROADWAY MUSICAL
A
Christmas Memory
Disenchanted
The
Fortress of Solitude
Hamilton
Lonesome Traveler
Lonesome Traveler
Surprises: No surprises, but happy to see Lonesome
Traveler make the list. It is a
heartfelt journey through the history of folk music as a (mostly) American
phenomenon from the 1920s through the 1960s
Nominees
for OUTSTANDING BOOK OF A MUSICAL
(Broadway
or Off-Broadway)
Hamilton
It
Shoulda Been You
The Last
Ship
Something
Rotten!
The Visit
The Visit
Surprises:
This is a strong list. I thought Itamar Moses’s adaption of Jonathan
Lethem’s The Fortress of Solitude would have been a stronger
selection over one or two others that made the cut.
Nominees
for OUTSTANDING NEW SCORE
(Broadway
or Off-Broadway)
Hamilton
It
Shoulda Been You
The Last
Ship
Something
Rotten!
The Visit
The Visit
Surprises: Sorry that The Fortress of
Solitude was not nominated for Michael Friedman’s terrific score. Check out
the original cast recording, available at Sh-K-Boom.com, Amazon.com, or on iTunes.
Nominees
for OUTSTANDING REVIVAL OF A PLAY
(Broadway
or Off-Broadway)
The
Elephant Man
Fashions
for Men
The Heidi
Chronicles
Skylight
You Can’t Take It With You
You Can’t Take It With You
Surprises: I would
have bumped one of these in favor of the New Group’s first-rate revival of
David Rabe’s Vietnam-era play Sticks and Bones.
Nominees
for OUTSTANDING REVIVAL OF A MUSICAL
(Broadway
or Off-Broadway)
Into the
Woods
The King
and I
On the
Town
On the
Twentieth Century
Side Show
Side Show
Surprises: No surprises, but I did rather enjoy the
revival of the seldom-seen Rodgers and Hammerstein musical, Allegro, at
the Classic Stage Company, enough so that I might have put it ahead of one of
the shows that made the list.
Nominees
for OUTSTANDING DIRECTOR OF A PLAY
Stephen
Daldry The Audience
Marianne
Elliott The Curious Incident of the Dog in the
Night-Time
Scott
Ellis The Elephant Man
Scott
Ellis You Can’t Take It With You
Jeremy
Herrin Wolf Hall
Surprises: This is a strong list, and kudos must be
given to Scott Ellis for an amazing year, with nominations for his direction of two Broadway
play revivals and a Broadway musical revival.
Nominees
for OUTSTANDING DIRECTOR OF A MUSICAL
Scott
Ellis On the Twentieth Century
Thomas
Kail Hamilton
Casey
Nicholaw Something Rotten!
David Hyde
Pierce It Shoulda Been You
Christopher Wheeldon An American in Paris
Christopher Wheeldon An American in Paris
Surprises: I would have selected John Rando for his
direction of On The Town over one or two that did make the list.
Nominees
for OUTSTANDING CHOREOGRAPHER
Joshua
Bergasse On the Town
Andy
Blankenbuehler Hamilton
Warren
Carlyle On the Twentieth Century
Casey
Nicholaw Something Rotten!
Christopher Wheeldon An American in Paris
Christopher Wheeldon An American in Paris
Surprises:
Nary a one. This may turn out to
be the most competitive category of all this year.
Nominees
for OUTSTANDING SET DESIGN
(Play or
Musical)
Bunny
Christie The Curious Incident of the Dog in the
Night-Time
Bob
Crowley An American in Paris
Scott
Pask Something Rotten!
David
Rockwell On the Twentieth Century
Michael
Yeargan The King and I
Surprises: I loved Beowulf Boritt’s design for On
The Town, which would have bumped one of these in my book.
Nominees
for OUTSTANDING COSTUME DESIGN
(Play or
Musical)
Gregg
Barnes Something Rotten!
Bob
Crowley The Audience
William Ivey
Long On the Twentieth Century
Christopher
Orem Wolf Hall
Catherine Zuber The King and I
Catherine Zuber The King and I
Surprises: Quite the season for period costumes.
Only room for five nominees, but a sixth for me would also go to Catherine
Zuber, for the sumptuous fin de siècle costumes she designed for the revival of Gigi.
Nominees
for OUTSTANDING LIGHTING DESIGN
(Play or
Musical)
Paule
Constable The Curious Incident of the Dog in the
Night-Time
Jeff
Croiter Something Rotten!
Rick
Fisher The Audience
Natasha
Katz An American in Paris
Japhy Weideman The Visit
Japhy Weideman The Visit
Surprises: None, though I was rather taken with
Lee Curran’s lighting design for Constellations – very supportive of the
many instantaneous scene and mood changes throughout the play.
Nominees
for OUTSTANDING ACTOR IN A PLAY
Reed
Birney I’m Gonna Pray For You So Hard
Bradley
Cooper The Elephant Man
Stephen
McKinley Henderson Between Riverside and Crazy
Ben
Miles Wolf Hall
Alex Sharp The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
Alex Sharp The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
Surprises: Another
strong list, though I would have made room for the performance of the always-amazing
John Douglas Thompson in the title role of the Theatre for a New Audience’s
production of Tamburlaine the Great.
Nominees
for OUTSTANDING ACTRESS IN A PLAY
Greta
Gerwig The Village Bike
Jan
Maxwell The City of Conversation
Helen
Mirren The Audience
Elisabeth
Moss The Heidi Chronicles
Tonya
Pinkins Rasheeda Speaking
Surprises: None. I am pleased that Jan Maxwell’s fine
performance in The City of Conversation has not been forgotten since the
show had its run at Lincoln Center’s Mitzi E. Newhouse Theater at the very
beginning of the 2014-15 season, nearly a year ago.
Nominees
for OUTSTANDING ACTOR IN A MUSICAL
Christian
Borle Something Rotten!
Brian d’Arcy
James Something Rotten!
Robert
Fairchild An American in Paris
Peter
Gallagher On the Twentieth Century
Tony Yazbeck On the Town
Tony Yazbeck On the Town
Surprises:
None. Cheers to Brian
d’Arcy James, who exited Hamilton for Something Rotten! and wowed
audiences in both.
Nominees
for OUTSTANDING ACTRESS IN A MUSICAL
Kristin
Chenoweth On the Twentieth Century
Leanne
Cope An American in Paris
Tyne
Daly It Shoulda Been You
Kelli
O’Hara The King and I
Chita Rivera The Visit
Chita Rivera The Visit
Surprises: Love Tyne Daly, but I wish there had been
room on this list for her It Shoulda Been You show-stopping colleague
Jenny Lisa Howard.
Nominees
for OUTSTANDING FEATURED ACTOR IN A PLAY
Paul
Jesson Wolf Hall
Richard
McCabe The Audience
Alessandro
Nivola The Elephant Man
Nathaniel
Parker Wolf Hall
Bryce Pinkham The Heidi Chronicles
Bryce Pinkham The Heidi Chronicles
Surprises:
Good list. If I could squeeze in
one more it would be Jacob Ming-Trent for his inventive over-the-top
performance as Odd-See the dog in Father
Comes Home from the Wars (Parts 1, 2, & 3).
Nominees
for OUTSTANDING FEATURED ACTRESS IN A PLAY
Annaleigh
Ashford You Can’t Take It With You
Patricia
Clarkson The Elephant Man
Francesca
Faridany The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
Julie
Halston You Can’t Take It With You
Lydia Leonard Wolf Hall
Lydia Leonard Wolf Hall
Surprises:
None. I did rather like Cush
Jumbo’s performance in The River and would have been very happy to see
her make the list.
Nominees
for OUTSTANDING FEATURED ACTOR IN A MUSICAL
John
Cariani Something Rotten!
Josh
Grisetti It Shoulda Been You
Andy
Karl On the Twentieth Century
Paul
Alexander Nolan Doctor Zhivago
Max von Essen An American in Paris
Max von Essen An American in Paris
Surprises: None.
One I would be just as happy to see on this list is Kevin Mambo for his
terrific work in The Fortress of Solitude.
Nominees
for OUTSTANDING FEATURED ACTRESS IN A MUSICAL
Heidi
Blickenstaff Something Rotten!
Victoria
Clark Gigi
Megan
Fairchild On the Town
Ruthie Ann
Miles The King and I
Mary Louise
Wilson On the Twentieth Century
Surprises: None. My stand-by would be Elizabeth Stanley
for her performance as the zany anthropologist in On The Town.
Nominees
for OUTSTANDING SOLO PERFORMANCE
Joe
Assadourian The Bullpen
Jim
Dale Just Jim Dale
Tom
Dugan Wiesenthal
Cush
Jumbo Josephine and I
Benjamin Scheuer The Lion
Benjamin Scheuer The Lion
Surprises: None.
Glad Cush Jumbo made it here, though I thought her work in The River
was also deserving of a nomination.
Nominees
for JOHN GASSNER AWARD
(Presented
for an American play, preferably by a new playwright)
Ayad
Akhtar The Invisible Hand
Halley
Feiffer I’m Gonna Pray For You So Hard
Elizabeth
Irwin My Mañana Comes
Markus
Potter Stalking the Bogeyman
Benjamin Scheuer The Lion
Benjamin Scheuer The Lion
Surprises:
None, though that word “preferably” does set up experienced playwrights
against novices.
The links below will take you to to Upstage-Downstage reviews of some of the nominated shows.
The Last Ship
Feel free to share this blog with your friends, and to share your own theater stories by posting a comment.
No comments:
Post a Comment