2015 Tony Nominee Predictions: Part III (Best Actress)

Tony Tuesday is right around the corner, with the 2015 nominees scheduled to be announced bright and early on Tuesday, April 28th. (I've always found it odd that a profession where most everyone works nights announces anything so early in the morning, but that is neither here nor there.) I've already discussed which productions and leading men I expect to score nominations, and now it's time to turn my attention to Broadway's leading ladies. The latest Tony rule change allows anywhere between five and seven nominees in each category, leaving me to puzzle out not only the names of the contenders but how many of them I expect there to be. I doubt every category to automatically expand to seven nominees, but I don't expect every category to stay capped at five either. And in the name of covering my bases for the inevitable Tony curveball nomination, I'm also naming a wildcard performer who I feel has the best chance of unseating one of my official predictions.


Best Actress

Dame Helen Mirren is practically theatrical royalty, and she is playing royalty in the box office smash The Audience. She is one of this year's few sure things when it comes to the Tony Awards.

There are very few givens for this year's Tony Awards, but one of those givens is that Helen Mirren will be up for Best Actress. The Oscar winner is reprising her much lauded portrayal of Queen Elizabeth II in The Audience, one of this spring's biggest box office successes. Some critics weren't overly impressed with playwright Peter Morgan's script, but everyone agreed Mirren made the show worth seeing, and in all honesty this award is likely hers to lose. And although not quite the lock Mirren is, Skylight's Carey Mulligan is another actress virtually guaranteed an invite to this year's ceremony at Radio City. 

I would be very surprised to see Constellations' Ruth Wilson excluded from this year's race, as she drew universal raves for her performance in Manhattan Theatre Club's two-hander. Less certain is a nomination for Elisabeth Moss, as the revival of Wendy Wasserstein's The Heidi Chronicles was not the critical home run many people were expecting and has already posted an early closing notice due to lackluster box office. Still, even those who weren't enamored with the production generally liked the Mad Men actress' performance, particularly her delivery of a key monologue during the play's second act. I'm going to cut the former Peggy Olsen some slack and consider her to be among this year's nominees.

Which still leaves at least one nomination up for grabs with no obvious candidate to fill it. Perhaps Maggie Gyllenhaal will join her brother Jake among this year's nominees for her performance in Roundabout's well liked (but not loved) revival of The Real Thing. Glenn Close's much ballyhooed return to Broadway in Edward Albee's A Delicate Balance failed to generate much box office heat, but the actress remains an industry favorite and the weaker field of competitors could work in her favor. Hand to God's Geneva Carr has been ruled eligible in this category instead of the Featured Actress race, and her strong performance combined with an obvious critical love for the boundary pushing play makes her a strong contender. In fact, I suspect Carr will edge out more famous names like Renee Fleming (currently playing an opera diva in Living on Love) and previous Tony winner Blythe Danner, whose fall play The Country House has been entirely absent from the end of season chatter.

Nominees
Geneva Carr, Hand to God
Helen Mirren, The Audience
Elisabeth Moss, The Heidi Chronicles
Carey Mulligan, Skylight
Ruth Wilson, Constellations

Wildcard
Glenn Close, A Delicate Balance


Best Actress in a Musical

Pint sized powerhouse Kristin Chenoweth is giving 110% in Roundabout's On the Twentieth Century, and will surely get a Tony nomination for her efforts.

Anyone who has been following this blog will know I am *heavily* rooting for Kelli O'Hara to win this damn award already! She is one of our most gifted singing actresses, and she is once again giving a masterclass performance in Lincoln Center's The King and I, a production I literally don't have enough positive adjectives for. There is no reality in which her reteaming with director Bartlett Sher fails to net the actress her sixth career nomination, as all three of their previous collaborations resulted not only in nominations but some of O'Hara's most legendary performances. I know several Tony voters specifically held off on voting for the golden voiced soprano last year under the assumption she was a shoe in to win this year (which is so not how these things should work, but that's a rant for another time); her failing to even get nominated would be one of the most shocking things to happen with the Tony nominations in years.

My unbridled love of O'Hara aside, I have to admit that Broadway's other blonde Oklahoma native is going to give O'Hara a serious run for her money. After a poorly received performance in Promises, Promises and five years away from the Broadway stage, Kristin Chenoweth is firing on all cylinders in On the Twentieth Century, a role that seems tailor-made for her unique combination of talents. Her nomination is guaranteed, and I think everyone agrees that she and O'Hara are this year's front runners. (Fun fact: Chenoweth and O'Hara both went to the same school and had the same vocal instructor, who must be ridiculously proud.) The final sure thing in this race is a nod for Broadway legend Chita Rivera in The Visit, with the actress once again paired with the writing team of Kander, Ebb, and McNally, who crafted both of Rivera's previous Tony-winning roles around her singular set of talents.

After that, things become much harder to predict. Brynn O'Malley *deserves* recognition for her sterling work in Honeymoon in Vegas, although I worry what the show's truncated Broadway run means for her Tony prospects. I'd also love to see a joint nomination for Side Show's Erin Davie and Emily Padgett, but the committee has already decided to consider the actresses separately and their show's premature closing will severely limit their chances. If pressed to pick a favorite, I'd give the slight edge to Padgett for the more emotionally complex of the two roles, as Tony voters have shown an increasing appreciation for nuance over flash in the past few seasons. This same trend also increases Beth Malone's chances for her moving portrayal of adult Alison in Fun Home, although I personally would consider it more of a featured role.

The final three actresses that I think have a legitimate shot are Gigi's Vanessa Hudgens, Finding Neverland's Laura Michelle Kelly, and An American in Paris' Leanne Cope. I suspect Tony voters are ultimately too snobbish to give a Tony nomination to former High School Musical star Hudgens, and the fact that her show was pretty resoundingly trashed by critics doesn't help. On the flip side, Kelly escaped the vitriol hurled towards Neverland virtually unscathed and possibly looking even better by comparison. And Paris has been doing surprisingly well at both the box office and in the various guild awards, all of which have singled out Cope for her Broadway debut. I give the edge to Cope and Kelly, but I wouldn't be shocked to see any of these women nominated come Tuesday morning.

Nominees
Kristin Chenoweth, On the Twentieth Century
Leanne Cope, An American in Paris
Laura Michelle Kelly, Finding Neverland
Beth Malone, Fun Home
Kelli O'Hara, The King and I
Chita Rivera, The Visit

Wildcard
Brynn O'Malley, Honeymoon in Vegas


That covers this year's leading performances; check back tomorrow for my analysis of the hardest categories to predict, the Featured Actor/Actress races. In the meantime, feel free to share which leading lady you'd like to see nominated in the comments, and don't forget to check out any Tony coverage you may have missed!

Tony Rule Change
2015 Nominee Predictions: Production
2015 Nominee Predictions: Best Actor

2015 Tony Nominee Predictions: Part II (Best Actor)

In honor of the impending announcement of the 2015 Tony Award nominees, I am continuing my comprehensive examination of the likely candidates in each of the Big 12 categories, providing my best educated guesses as to which performers and productions will be nominated for Broadway's highest honor. This year the acting races are extra tricky to predict, thanks to a recent rule change that allows anywhere between five and seven nominees in each of the performance categories. Since the only way to increase a category's size is through a tie, I doubt we'll see seven honorees across the board, but there will certainly be a least a few six and seven way races.

I'll do my best to predict not only who will wind up on the Tony ballot but how many slots each category will have, based on a combination of first hand experience, industry buzz, and past Tony voting trends. And because the nominations committee can always be counted on for a shocker or two, I will also nominate one wildcard performance in each acting category, indicating the person I think have the best chance of unseating one of my official nominees (or forcing a category expansion if I haven't predicted a maximum seven performers). We'll start with the men, including perhaps the most competitive race of the entire season.


Best Actor in a Play

Alex Sharp's phenomenal Broadway debut in The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time is the stuff legends are made of.

If any category is going to make it to seven nominees it will be this one, given both the sheer number and quality of the eligible performances. The three gentlemen I'd consider locks are Bradley Cooper, Alexander Sharp, and Steven Boyer. Cooper turned The Elephant Man into arguably *the* hottest ticket of the season thanks to his critically acclaimed performance as the disfigured title character, and he did it all without the aid of makeup or prostheses . Recent Julliard grad Sharp is making one of the most jaw dropping Broadway debuts in years as the autistic teen at the center of the fantastic Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time (a production sure to do well at this year's ceremony), and until very recently I would have considered him the man to beat. But then Steven Boyer came along with his mind boggling performance in Hand to God, turning a foul-mouthed sock puppet named Tyrone into the uncontested star of that production while simultaneously inhabiting the opposite end of the emotional spectrum as the unwilling teen host of Tyrone's antics.

Not a lock but still strong possibilities are Hollywood stars Hugh Jackman and Jake Gyllenhaal. Perennial Broadway favorite Jackman gave what many considered his finest stage performance in Jez Butterworth's The River, although the play itself proved off-putting to many members of the theatrical community. Gyllenhaal made his long anticipated Broadway debut in Manhattan Theatre Club's surprise hit Constellations, a two-hander that gave the Oscar-nominated actor plenty of time to shine. Another screen actor who drew rave reviews this season is Skylight's Bill Nighy, who will almost certainly be among this year's nominees. And Ben Miles' turn as political schemer Thomas Cromwell in the Royal Shakespeare Company's acclaimed Wolf Hall double bill certainly puts him in the mix as well.

Should all of the above gentlemen be nominated, that already puts us at the maximum seven nominees without even discussing several other worthy contenders. Nathan Lane is a consummate professional and one of our finest character actors, although past years have shown the committee is not above benching the two-time Tony-winner should his chosen vehicle not be deemed up to snuff (and It's Only a Play was unfortunately not up to snuff, no matter how good Lane may have been). Larry David may also find himself in contention for essentially playing himself in Fish in the Dark, as an acting nomination would be a way to acknowledge David for writing and staring in one of the spring's biggest hits even though the production itself is unlikely to crack the Best Play race (see: Holland Taylor's nomination for her solo show Ann back in 2013).

Nominees
Steven Boyer, Hand to God
Bradley Cooper, The Elephant Man
Jake Gyllenhaal, Constellations
Hugh Jackman, The River
Ben Miles, Wolf Hall Parts I & II
Bill Nighy, Skylight
Alexander Sharp, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time

Wildcard
Larry David, Fish in the Dark
Bonus prediction: any wildcard will take Jackman's spot, thanks to The River's mixed critical reception


Best Actor in a Musical

Michael Cerveris is the complex, conflicted father in the new musical Fun Home, which examines cartoonist Alison Bechdel's complex relationship with her now deceased father.

This category is more up in the air than Best Actor in a Play, and depending on how frugal the committee feels may actually remain at the traditional five nominees. There aren't any performers I would consider sure things, although some actors are definitely in better positions than others. The role of Gabey in On the Town fits Tony Yazbeck like a glove, and I expect his work in that sparkling revival to net the longtime Broadway hoofer his first Tony Award nomination. I would also be very surprised if Michael Cerveris didn't make the cut for his work as the deeply conflicted Bechdel patriarch in the high-minded Fun Home, a show whose premise and pedigree simply scream "Tony Award." And as one of the hardest working, most beloved character men around, Brian d'Arcy James will almost certainly be recognized for his hilarious leading turn in Something Rotten!

After those three men, things become much uncertain. Rob McClure did exceptional work in the gone too soon Honeymoon in Vegas, but that show's troubled Broadway run and poor showing in the other industry awards calls his competitiveness into question. I personally loved Ken Watanabe's King of Siam in Lincoln Center's jaw-dropping The King and I, and he would not be the first heavily accented actor director Bartlett Sher guided to Tony glory (that would be South Pacific's Paulo Szot). Watanabe also has the benefit of starring in one of the most buzzed about productions of the spring and has a legitimate shot at awards consideration, although he has the disadvantage of competing against the memory of Yul Brynner's iconic work both onstage and in the film version.

I have a good feeling about Robert Fairchild, whose performance in the well-reviewed An American in Paris also has the benefit of exceeding admittedly modest expectations for the dancer turned leading man. But Fairchild does face stiff competition from several other performers, chief among them Finding Neverland's Matthew Morrison. I've never been a huge fan of Morrison - I would have preferred Jeremy Jordan reprise his performance from the Boston tryout - but his work in one of the spring's biggest musicals was well received and therefore puts him in contention. Then again, Neverland received some of the harshest reviews of the season, and although Tony voters have gotten better about judging each element of a show on its individual merits that dislike could hold Morrison back. And by virtue of being Roger Rees, The Visit's leading man is also someone who deserves at least a mention.

Nominees
Michael Cerveris, Fun Home
Brian d'Arcy James, Something Rotten!
Robert Fairchild, An American in Paris
Matthew Morrison, Finding Neverland
Ken Watanabe, The King and I
Tony Yazbeck, On the Town

Wildcard
Rob McClure, Honeymoon in Vegas


That's all I have to say (which is admittedly quite a lot) about this year's leading actors. Check back tomorrow for an equally in depth analysis of the Best Actress races, and keep an eye on this blog throughout the weekend for even more Tony predictions! In the meantime, you can catch up on my previous coverage of this year's races below:

Tony Rule Change
2015 Best Production Predictions

2015 Tony Nominee Predictions: Part I (Production)

It's that time of year again! Now that spring has finally sprung and all of this season's Broadway productions have officially opened, it's time to discuss one of my favorite entertainment events of the year: the Tony Awards! They're Broadway's highest honor, designed to celebrate the industry's best and brightest stars and productions, and a strong showing at the Tonys can help turn an unsuccessful show into a hit (see last year's Best Musical winner A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder, which never would have recouped without the box office boost its win provided).

This year's nominations will be announced April 28th, and every day between now and then I will be posting my predictions and analysis of the likely nominees in each of the Big 12 categories (New Play/Musical, Play/Musical Revival, and the 8 acting awards). I've had a pretty good track record in the past, but each year things become more complicated thanks to the ever-changing rules that have seen the maximum number of potential nominees expand. This year, the Best Play, Best Musical, and Best Play Revival categories all have enough eligible productions to prompt an expansion to five nominees. But as last year's four horse Best Musical race proved, just because the committee can nomination five shows doesn't mean it will, which makes predicting how many slots there are to fill just as hard as whittling down the eligible productions.

I've put a lot of thought into this and am fairly confident in my choices, but every year the nominations committee throws the Broadway community at least one curve ball. In acknowledgement of this, I will be listing a Wildcard nominee in each category, representing the production I think has the best chance of sneaking past my official predictions and into Tony Award contention. So without further ado, here are the productions I think will be competing for those much coveted Antoinette Perry Awards!


Best Musical

Brad Oscar and Brian d'Arcy James provide two of the funniest performances in the glitzy new musical comedy Something Rotten!

This may be the trickiest of the production categories to predict, as while there are enough eligible productions to allow five Best Musical nominees, last year's awards showed that is by no means guaranteed. In an odd bit of Tony math, I actually think we'll see the maximum five nominations despite this year's crop of musicals being (in my opinion) less exciting and worthy of that honor. There has yet to be a breakout critical and commercial hit among this year's new musicals, which probably means more variety in the Tony committee's number one picks and therefore a greater chance of the kind of close vote that would provoke a five competitor category.

While there are not sure things, I think Fun Home and Something Rotten! are this year's contenders. Both are well reviewed and recently opened musicals, so the buzz on both is strong for very different reasons. Rotten lovingly mocks Broadway in the same way as past Best Musical winners The Producers and Spamalot, and both the cast and creative team is filled with well-loved industry professionals who have been doing this for years. Fun Home is the rare musical that has made the shortlist for the Pulitzer Prize (even if it didn't win), addressing such important issues as personal identity and parent/child relationships in a way that is both funny and thought provoking. If either show was left off the list on Tony Tuesday, I would be very surprised.

From there, things are a lot less certain. Finding Neverland seems to be the commercial success of the season, and Tony voters clearly love director Diane Paulus, with all three of her previous Broadway credits winning their production categories. That said, it was utterly trashed by critics, to the point where its box office prowess might not matter. The top-notch Honeymoon in Vegas deserves a spot on this list, but since it recently closed after a very rough Broadway run I feel its perceived status as a flop will hinder its chances. The same logic also doesn't bode well for Sting's The Last Ship, although I can also envision a scenario where enough time has passed since its January closing for some nostalgia to set in and see it squeak into the category. An American in Paris scored surprisingly strong reviews, enough to put it into serious contention, and one can't rule out The Visit, as it is the last time Tony voters will ever be able to nominate a new work by theatrical legends Kander & Ebb. And after a surprisingly strong showing in the other industry Best Musical races, ensemble comedy It Shoulda Been You stands a legitimate shot at cracking into this close race.

Nominees
An American in Paris
Fun Home
It Shoulda Been You
Something Rotten!
The Visit

Wildcard
Honeymoon in Vegas


Best Play

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time proves you don't need a realistic set to produce some mind-blowing images.

This category could be easily subtitled "The British Import We Liked the Best." The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time and Wolf Hall are virtual locks, given their ecstatic reception by the New York press. I would also consider it hugely surprising if The Audience wasn't nominated, as it is one of the most successful plays of the season and everybody loves Helen Mirren (even if critics weren't entirely sold on Peter Morgan's script).

Which doesn't leave a whole lot of room for competitors, even assuming a five nominee playing field. The homegrown show with the best chance of cracking into the Best Play race is Hand to God, whose Cinderella story from Off-Off-Broadway play to Main Stem critical hit is catnip to Tony voters who will surely overlook the show's somewhat troubling gender politics. In fact, there is a genuine chance that 2013 Pulitzer Prize winner Disgraced doesn't even get nominated, as interest in that production has cooled considerably since its critically acclaimed October premiere. Constellations (another British import) scored surprisingly strong reviews and is much fresher in voters minds, making it a serious contender for the fifth nomination slot. And one can't completely rule out box office smash Fish in the Dark, although Tony voters have recently proven far less influenced by box office success than they used to be; since Fish received kind but not glowing reviews, I don't think it really has a chance of spoiling anyone's fun, but stranger things have happened.

Nominees
The Audience
Constellations
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
Hand to God
Wolf Hall Parts I & II

Wildcard
Disgraced


Best Musical Revival

I could have danced all night with this Broadway power couple, both giving exhilarating performances in Bartlett Sher's jaw-droppingly gorgeous staging of The King and I.

With only five eligible productions, Best Musical Revival is the one category we can guarantee won't have five nominees as the Tony rules won't allow it. The committee could nominate as few as three productions, as they did last year, although I suspect they will go with the traditional four as I think last year's reduced field was done primarily to keep all the eligible productions from being nominated (although if we're being honest, Cabaret deserved a nomination last year much more than Les Miserables).

Prediction this category is relatively simple. On the Town and The King and I are both transcendent productions and my two favorite musicals, new or revived, of the season. Both are guaranteed nominations, and at this moment I am 100% certain the Best Revival award will go to one of them. Roundabout Theatre Company took a gamble on producing the somewhat dated On the Twentieth Century (it's one of the most complex musical productions the non-profit has ever done), something that largely paid off thanks to the irrepressible dynamo that is leading lady Kristin Chenoweth. Between Chenoweth's operatic antics and the show's tap dancing porters, Twentieth Century's nomination prospects are looking very strong.

The only real question here is if the fourth slot will go to Side Show, Gigi, or neither. Side Show got better reviews, although it also struggled at the box office and was kicked out of the St. James Theatre in early January to make room for the more profitable sounding Something Rotten! Gigi is currently running (always a plus with Tony voters) and the presence of former Disney Channel star Vanessa Hudgens has thus far proven to be a fairly reliable box office draw, which a few years ago would have had me predicting it for the final nomination slot. Given recent Tony trends, however, I'm giving the edge to Side Show, whose fans are much more passionate than Gigi's and will likely see a Best Revival nod as one way to make up for the show's short Broadway run.

Nominees
The King & I
On the Town
On the Twentieth Century
Side Show

Wildcard
Gigi


Best Play Revival

Yes, there were people in The Elephant Man not named Bradley Cooper (but for better or worse, Cooper is the one who sold the tickets).

Normally a hyper-competitive category, this year's Best Play Revival race is somewhat weaker than normal. Many of the nine eligible productions got respectful reviews, but few provoked much enthusiasm from the press, which makes me suspect that this category may stay at four nominees despite enough revivals to allow for a category expansion. The one sure bet (and likely winner) is the Bradley Cooper led The Elephant Man, which was the talk of the town this past winter and probably the strongest reviewed production in the bunch. Following close behind is the just opened revival of David Hare's Skylight, imported from London's West End with its leads intact.

The first three revivals of the season (This is Our Youth, Love Letters, and You Can't Take It With You) all got very strong reviews, but have also been closed for a very long time. I honestly had forgotten about both Youth and Love Letters until I was looking at a list of eligible productions, and I doubt many others will remember them without prompting, basically killing any chance they have at a nomination. I do expect You Can't Take It With You to make the cut, which leaves one more slot for Tony nominators to fill. It's Only a Play was one of the fall's hot tickets thanks to its starry cast, something that has allowed the production to hang on despite generally poor reviews. Interest has cooled considerably since then, but the fact it's still running and has recently welcomed back headliner Nathan Lane means it has to be considered. I personally don't think it will edge out both The Heidi Chronicles and The Real Thing for the fourth nomination slot - the latter two plays are much better respected than Terrence McNally's showbiz comedy - but you never know.

Nominees
The Elephant Man
The Heidi Chronicles
Skylight
You Can't Take It With You

Wildcard
The Real Thing


Those are my predictions in the production categories. Check back tomorrow for my Best Actor predictions, and don't be afraid to share your thoughts in the comments section!

Previous Coverage
Tony Rule Change

Welcome to the Fun Home

Review: Fun Home

Beth Malone (left) as the fully grown Alison reflects on her younger self (Emily Skeggs) in the new Broadway musical Fun Home.

There's much to admire about Fun Home, Jeanine Tesori and Lisa Kron's daring new chamber musical currently playing Broadway's Circle in the Square Theatre. This intimate story of a lesbian cartoonist's coming of age and her complex relationship with her father tackles aspects of the human experience rarely portrayed onstage, and Tesori's bravura score and Kron's nuanced book push the boundaries of the musical form into interesting and even surprising new places. But the show falls just shy of taking flight thanks to a couple of misguided dramaturgical choices that may accurately reflect the protagonist's life but don't make for the most effective theatre.

Based on the graphic memoir of the same name, Fun Home follows Alison Bechdel at three different stages of her life (for those who are interested, this is the same Alison Bechdel who coined the famed Bechdel test to evaluate gender bias in fictional media). The eldest of three children, the headstrong Alison was raised by her actress mother and closeted gay father, who also served as director of the Bechdel Family Funeral Home. After struggling with her sexuality throughout her adolescent and young adult years, the now grown Alison returns to her family home to reminisce about her upbringing and try to find closure to her relationship with her now deceased father.

It is an intensely personal story, undermined by the fact that it too clearly telegraphs where it's headed. Alison spells out exactly what kind of man her father was within the first couple of scenes, and unfortunately nothing in the following 90 minutes broadens that description or deepens it. While observing Alison's interactions with her family at different stages of her life remains engaging, all the characters stay much the same as when we meet them, which robs the show of the thrill of discovery. There is a slight but crucial difference between watching characters go on a journey and taking that journey with them, and unfortunately Fun Home tends towards the former when it would be so much more affecting to do the latter. The most maddening thing is that by removing just a few lines of expository dialogue at the beginning, that sense of discovery could be restored and Fun Home would be one of the most emotionally stirring musicals in years. (Imagine if Next to Normal spelled out exactly what was going on with Diana and her family by its third song; the show would still be very good, but it wouldn't have the emotional impact which garnered it universal acclaim.)

That said, this slight but crucial mistake doesn't take away from the brilliance of much of the writing, even if it does dampen our emotional involvement. Tesori has written her most accomplished score to date, weaving a variety of styles and musical genres into a cohesive, stimulating whole. The repeated melodic motifs are smartly implemented, and there are times when the moment to moment writing is so strong it makes you momentarily forget that you've already been told where this is all headed. "Changing My Major" is the purest expression of the joy and terror of a first sexual encounter ever put on stage. "Ring of Keys" is a wonderfully pure portrait of a young girl first realizing she's different but isn't alone, with Lisa Kron's deceptively simple lyrics framing a bevy of deep observations in the voice of a 10 year old child. These introspective character songs are interspersed with comedy pastiches like the throwback "Come to the Fun Home" (hilariously performed by the three elementary age Bechdel children) or the Partridge Family-esque "Raincoat of Love."

Tesori's score meshes seamlessly with Kron's highly nuanced book, in which the dialogue scenes are more akin to something you'd see in a play than your typical musical. In a medium where most things are overtly stated, a lot of the most interesting moments in Fun Home focus on what's not being said. Kron's dialogue is naturalistic and yet specific enough to give scenes dramatic shape, and that voice carries over into her largely unrhymed lyrics, further contributing to the show's conversational feel. Kron also handles the framing device of adult Alison narrating her life with aplomb, providing enough thematic connective tissue to prevent the constant shifting of time periods from feeling chaotic or confusing. Like Tesori's music, Kron's book is at its weakest when it falls into the habits that characterize more traditional musicals, making something explicit when the authors and audience are smart enough to handle a more implicit approach.

The cast is uniformly strong, effortlessly navigating the musical's tonal shifts and unusually nuanced approach. Beth Malone has the central and often thankless role of the fully grown Alison, who narrates the evening's events and watches them unfold with the audience. Malone doesn't really get to interact with her fellow performers until she replaces her younger self during the climatic "Telephone Wire" scene, when all the simmering intensity of her performance finally boils over in a desperate plea to be heard. As the youngest version of Alison (dubbed Small Alison in the program), newcomer Sydney Lucas dazzles in a beautifully naturalistic performance. Her delivery of the aforementioned "Ring of Keys" is first rate, and Lucas' large and knowing eyes convey dozens of thoughts and feelings her character isn't quite sure how to express. And Emily Skeggs perfectly portrays Alison during her formative college years, capturing the yearning and passion of someone who has finally given themselves permission to be the person they always wanted to be.

Michael Cerveris does fantastic work as Alison's father Bruce, virtually disappearing inside his character's nebbish skin. Bruce is a complex, deeply conflicted man, who like his daughter is struggling to express himself in a world that isn't really ready to acknowledge him. Although he fits the distant father archetype, Cerveris makes it abundantly clear that Bruce loves his daughter and feels a particularly strong kinship with her, even if his own identity issues prevent him from adequately expressing that love. It's unfortunate we don't get more of Bruce's side of the story, although this makes sense given that the musical is told almost exclusively from Alison's point of view; she wouldn't be privy to the reasoning behind Bruce's choices, particularly given his untimely death. It's also unfortunate that Judy Kuhn as Alison's mother Helen is largely relegated to the sidelines in favor of the Alison/Bruce relationship. Not only is Kuhn's voice heavenly, but her expert handling of the wistful "Days and Days" late in the show really makes you wish she had more of a presence throughout.

Director Sam Gold has done an excellent job shepherding this material to the stage, including seamlessly adapting to the Circle in the Square's famed and often problematic in the round staging. You'd never know the show was originally mounted in a more traditional proscenium setting during its Off-Broadway run, which goes to show how thoroughly Gold and his design team have rethought their approach. David Zinn's set makes excellent use of the stage, and combined with Ben Stanton's lights really help define the somewhat nebulous playing space into distinct and recognizable areas. Zinn's costumes also perfectly capture the disco-era setting of most of the musical's action, with a mighty assist from hair and wig designer Paul Huntley's delightful 70s bobs.

Overall, Fun Home is an incredibly strong and at times provocative piece of theatre. It pushes the boundaries of the Broadway musical in both form and content, giving voice to a segment of the community that rarely sees themselves portrayed seriously and honestly onstage. And yet the lack of dramatic tension caused by so clearly laying out the show's plot in the opening moments keeps it from fully engaging on an emotional level, an incredibly frustrating situation given the obviously intelligent and talented artists involved. Fun Home definitely deserves to be seen, a very good show that doesn't quite achieve the greatness one would hope.

Definitely Not Rotten, but Perhaps a Tad Stale

Review: Something Rotten!

Welcome to the Renaissance, or at least Something Rotten's comically askew version of it.

Will you look at that? An honest to goodness original musical has appeared at the St. James Theatre in the guise of Something Rotten, although "original" is a relative term here. While not based on any preexisting source material, this show about the fictional creation of the world's first musical is heavily influenced in structure and tone by past backstage musicals, most noticeably The Producers (with a healthy helping of Spamalot thrown in for good measure). It's an unfortunate comparison to invoke, as the misadventures of Bialystock and Bloom make for a more satisfying evening of theatre, but that doesn't stop Something Rotten from being a mostly charming confection that is one or two revisions away from real greatness.

Set in Renaissance England, this is the story of Nick and Nigel Bottom, two playwriting brothers who are struggling to attract any attention in a field dominated by everyone's favorite playwright, William "The Bard" Shakespeare. Desperate for respect and wanting to provide a better home for his family, Nick seeks the advice of a local soothsayer named Nostradamus (the cousin of the one you're thinking of), who peers into the future to give Nick the revolutionary and potentially terrible idea of adding song and dance numbers to his play. Amidst great skepticism, Nick and Nigel plunge forward with their newly created musical while trying to secure financing, avoid Puritan outrage, and prevent Shakespeare from stealing their idea and passing it off as his own.

Something Rotten is a love letter to the joyous ridiculousness of musical theatre, and your level of enjoyment will partially depend on just how versed you are in the medium's history. While anyone can appreciate the show's many sight gags and clever wordplay, Something Rotten is a show targeted squarely at the theatre kid who can identify "Big Spender" by its opening vamp and correctly recognize a single line of Shakespeare's iambic pentameter. If that's you, there is a nearly endless stream of knowing winks in the book and score guaranteed to make you smile, but if you have trouble telling Annie from La Cage aux Folles then you may find yourself wondering what everyone else is laughing at. The book by Broadway neophytes Karey Kirkpatrick and John O'Farrell is great at reference-heavy metahumor, but has less success establishing meaningful character relationships or coming up with a satisfactorily plotted ending (to be fair, the latter is an area in which even well-respected classics struggle).

The score by brothers Wayne and Karey Kirkpatrick freely quotes famous musicals from all eras, an amusing conceit that also robs the show of a strong musical identity of its own. Luckily, most songs are saved by the Kirkpatricks' exceedingly clever lyrics, which are filled with well-crafted rhymes while being self-aware enough to jokingly acknowledge when they resort to cheating. And with the extraordinarily talented Casey Nicholaw at the show's helm, every musical number is staged with an unabashed zaniness that makes it easy to forgive any melodic clunkiness. Nicholaw's choreography tends towards frantic here, but he has also crafted a couple of genuine showstoppers, the highlight of which is "A Musical," the extended fantasia in the middle of Act I which encapsulates nearly every iconic moment from the past 100 years of musical theatre.

The show's cast is very good, although they lack that indefinable magic that would elevate them to the level of a truly great comedic ensemble. Brian d'Arcy James leads the cast with supreme confidence and excellent timing as Nick Bottom, although it's a shame he's never truly given an opportunity to showcase his magnificent voice. John Cariani is less effective as the nebbish Nigel, partly due to his underwritten character and partly due to the actor's own unfocused - though undeniably charming - mannerisms. Brad Oscar absolutely kills as Nostradamus; he has the advantage the script's best jokes, but it is his impeccable delivery that elevates the character's wink-wink-nudge-nudge observations into side-splitting laugh lines. Heidi Blickenstaff and Kate Reinders handle their love interest roles with aplomb, and Brooks Ashmanskas is his usual hammy self in the role of self-righteous Puritan Brother Jeremiah.

And then there's Christian Borle. Borle hasn't been seen on Broadway since his Tony-winning turn as Black Stache in Peter and the Starcatcher, and the self-indulgent William Shakespeare is the perfect role for his triumphant return. The show portrays Shakespeare as a rockstar, right down to the exceedingly tight leather pants, and Borle's primping and preening is hilariously off-putting. Not every aspect of his characterization fits in with the rest of the show - Borle's faux British accent sounds nothing like anyone else onstage - but his is such an effectively pompous performance that you're apt not to care.

Visually, the show is a treat, a stylized rendition of Elizabethan England that exaggerates select elements to perfectly navigate that delicate space between whimsical fantasy and grounded reality. Scott Pask's versatile set is intricate without being flashy, and Gregg Barnes' gorgeous period costumes have a great deal of fun with the more elaborate elements of Renaissance garb (specifically, bustles and codpieces). Everything is beautifully lit by Jeff Croiter, whose brightly colored lighting design helps keep the piece airy and fun.

Something Rotten is certainly an entertaining show, and it's easy to understand why the producers bypassed a scheduled out-of-town tryout to fast-track its Broadway premiere. That said, the show probably would have benefited from some more fine tuning, specifically in the tone department. O'Farrell and the Kirkpatricks can't decide just how raunchy they want to be, occasionally self-censoring in a way that dampens the fun. They're seemingly fine with graphic descriptions of the body's reaction to the bubonic plague, but stop just short of making the obvious sexual innuendos implied by the protagonists' surname (if you're going to write a song called "Bottom's Gonna Be on Top," you can't be afraid to really go there). Still, they get points for creating something without pre-existing source material, and the game cast and strong direction help to smooth over any weaknesses in the writing. There are certainly worse ways to spend a night in the theatre, and while the show may not always feel fresh, it is very far from rotten.


*Note: This review is based on the second preview performance. While I have tried to take into account likely improvements, depending on how many changes the creative team makes this review may not be representative of the final product*

A Grandeurless Epic, Undone by Its Own Sprawl

Review: Doctor Zhivago

Kelli Barrett and Tam Mutu lead the company of Doctor Zhivago, the new musical epic that just opened at the Broadway Theatre.

The problem in adapting any epic novel for the stage, let alone the musical stage, is that large swaths of the original story are forced to be omitted in the name of time constraints. A great adaptation distills the source material's essence while excising the plot points and characters it doesn't have time to fully explore, which can shift the story's focus but is not necessarily a bad thing. Unfortunately, the musical version of Doctor Zhivago that just opened at the Broadway Theatre is not a great adaptation, with the resulting show long on bombast but short on narrative coherence or emotional impact.

Those lacking a strong familiarity with the source material and/or Russian history will be hard pressed to follow the plot, but at its most basic level Doctor Zhivago is the story of the titular doctor's life during World War I and the ensuing Russian Revolution. To be slightly more specific, Yurii Zhivago is orphaned at a young age and raised by friend's of his previously wealthy family; the Zhivago fortune was squandered away by Yurii's father, although his new guardians appear equally wealthy so this distinction is something of a moot point (the show goes out of its way to mention a lot of details that don't seem to really affect the main plot). Zhivago grows up and dutifully marries his childhood sweetheart Tonia, but their wedding (or is it just a Christmas party?) is interrupted when the beautiful and mysterious Lara appears and attempts to shoot her much older lover Viktor Komarovsky. Eventually war breaks out, Zhivago joins the revolution as a doctor, and he and Lara continue to cross one another's paths in the most unlikely of ways as a forbidden romance blossoms.

The above summary doesn't touch on Lara's husband Pasha (who eventually becomes a prominent figure in postwar Russia and one of the piece's main antagonists), Zhivago's secondary profession as a widely read and beloved poet, or the murky politics that lead to Zhivago and other members of the bourgeois being hunted like animals. Given how much ground there is to cover, it's hard to blame bookwriter Michael Weller, composer Lucy Simon, and co-lyricists Michael Korie and Amy Powers for the musical's unwieldy narrative, but that doesn't change the fact that Doctor Zhivago is exceedingly difficult to follow and that the broadly written characters are almost impossible to care about. Trying to cram so much narrative into two and a half hours leaves very little time for character development, which dampens any momentum or heat to be found in the central romance. The characters are also so busy rushing from one plot point to the next that they rarely have time to just be, and even after the final curtain falls you feel like you hardly know anyone onstage.

Given the Herculean task before him, Weller does a reasonably good job of communicating a lot of information quickly, but loses crucial character motivations as a result. Shortly before the finale Zhivago and Lara are offered the chance at a happy ending which they don't take for unclear reasons, and Pasha's entire character arc is almost incoherent. Weller can't seem to decided which element (politics, romance, a critique of the horrors or war) is most important to him, and the show feels wandering and aimless as a result. Simon's music is generally very pretty, avoiding the kind of bombastic belting that can make this type of show almost unbearable. If anything, Simon could stand a bit more bite to her music; the group numbers attempt to portray an epic grandeur but often end up feeling slight.

The performers compensate for the lack of specificity by going for big emotions and occasionally cross the line into overacting, no an easy feat in an epic musical playing one of Broadway's largest houses. Leading man Tam Mutu is certainly dashing as Zhivago and has a fine singing voice, but fails to fully make up for his character's underwittten nature and ill-defined motivations. He also lacks any kind of chemistry with the often histrionic Kelli Barrett as Lara, which makes their grand love story a very difficult sell given the pair's limited interactions during the first act. By their final scene together they have settled into an effective groove, although it comes as too little too late. Barrett does deserve credit for dialing down her performance for the show's finale, which almost manages to be moving despite the minimal engagement the musical provokes up until that point.

Paul Alexander Nolan is something of a miracle as the mercurial Pasha. His character's motivations are even less defined/developed than Zhivago's, but somehow Nolan manages to create the most interesting and coherent characterization of the night, acting as a reliable anchor when the narrative ship goes astray. His numbers are easily the most memorable, and he sells the show's most logic-defying twist in a way that ultimately feels believable and even somewhat earned. Nolan's performance feels authentically epic without ringing false, and goes a long way towards hiding the material's flaws.

Director Des McAnuff has done a poor job of coaxing believable performances out of his cast, but his staging sure is neat to look at. Making excellent use of Michael Scott-Mitchell's ever evolving raked set (and the upstage projections by Sean Nieuwenhuis), McAnuff creates a constantly engaging series of stage pictures that are often more interesting than the actual story. Choreographer Kelly Devine doesn't have much to do - the choreographers so rarely do in these period epics - but what little dancing is present is at least well executed. Paul Tazewell's costumes aren't quite as lavish as you'd like them to be, but there's at least some level of opulence to them, especially as lit by Howell Binkley.

There is something charmingly old school about the broadly drawn, overly earnest Zhivago, even if it ultimately reminds you why this particular brand of mega musical went out of style by the late 1990s. The show covers a vast breadth of material but contains only the smallest amount of depth, resulting in a show that ultimately seems inconsequential despite the grand language and themes it pays lip service to. Doctor Zhivago's producers had to know they were taking a pretty big risk with this show, and they should be commended for gambling on serious-minded, original material. The gamble fails to yield any exciting dividends, but then again, you can't win them all.

Something Truly Wonderful

Review: The King and I

Ken Watanabe and Kelli O'Hara are exquisitely matched in Bartlett Sher's knockout revival of Rodgers and Hammerstein's The King and I.

There's no such thing as perfection, especially in a subjective artistic medium like the theatre. That said, Lincoln Center's ravishing, radiant, and visually stunning revival of Rodgers and Hammerstein's The King and I is so close to an ideal evening at the theatre that for all intents and purposes it is exactly that. Perhaps even more than the non-profit's critically lauded South Pacific several seasons back, this revival removes all artifice, pretention, and preexisting baggage from a well worn show and reveals it anew as an emotionally complex, culturally relevant and deeply moving piece of musical writing from one of the greatest creative teams to ever live.

Following the pitch perfect overture (played by a 29 piece orchestra under the baton of Ted Sperling), we are whisked away to the beautifully exotic kingdom of Siam circa 1862. On the prow of an incoming ship we meet British schoolteacher Anna Leonowens (a luminous Kelli O'Hara), who has come to this faraway land with her son to educate the King of Siam's many children and wives in the ways of the West. The imposing and often temperamental King (a gleeful Ken Watanabe, in his Broadway debut) has more than a few clashes with the strong-willed Misses Anna as the show turns an intelligent and quizzical eye towards issues of imperialism, gender politics, and the qualifications of a good ruler. There are multiple subplots to round out the evening, but the central relationship of Anna and the King is the musical's primary concern, and it is one of the most richly textured and nuanced in the entire musical theatre cannon.

Despite the show's age, nothing about director Barlett Sher's superlative staging feels dusty or antiquated; indeed, many of Hammerstein's observations about gender politics and race relations remain relevant even today. Sher unearths the many layers in both the book scenes and the songs in such a way that everything feels necessary, and every line, lyric, and piece of incidental musical adds to our overall understanding of the characters and the plot. Unlike many productions of Rodgers and Hammerstein's work, there is nothing precious or twee about this revival, which treats the work with the same seriousness as a great drama without shying away from the piece's inherent humor and charm. And moreso than almost any other director working today, Sher knows how to make excellent use of the cavernous Vivian Beaumont Theatre's thrust stage, creating a neverending series of beautiful stage pictures that seamlessly ensure a good view of the action no matter where you're sitting (Christopher Gattelli's choreography is equally entrancing).

Once again, Sher guides his frequent collaborator Kelli O'Hara to a performance of startling depth and emotional honesty. Rodgers and Hammerstein's score doesn't allow O'Hara to show the full range of her gorgeous soprano, but that doesn't prevent her from sounding absolutely stunning on the score's many standards. When she wraps her golden tones around "Getting to Know You," it's every bit as warm and inviting as you'd hope, and her rendition of "Hello, Young Lovers" is positively captivating. But it's not just O'Hara's nearly unequalled vocal technique that makes her a joy to watch; her thoughtful, textured delivery of the lyrics makes these much sung songs sound like entirely new, spur of the moment thoughts (a quality best showcased during her superlative "Shall I Tell You What I Think of You?" towards the end of the first act). O'Hara makes you believe every syllable of what she's saying, and she imbues every gesture with a multitude of meaning in yet another stellar addition to her ever growing resume.

Her performance is matched every step of the way by an incredibly affecting and genuinely exciting star turn from Ken Watanabe as the King. Watanabe doesn't completely throw out the template created by Tony-winner Yul Brynner, but by the end of the show he has created a take on the commanding monarch that is wholly his own and just as effective. His King exhibits a palpable joy when learning more about his charge and her culture, and both the actor and the character clearly relish their frequent, playful sparring with O'Hara's Anna. Yet the immensely likable Watanabe is also capable of producing an intense anger that strikes fear in his subjects' hearts, a juxtaposition that explains why most of the characters seem both terrified and fiercely protective of their King. Most importantly, Watanabe has excellent chemistry with O'Hara, which pays off in spades during their exhilarating "Shall We Dance?"

The supporting cast is just as capable as the leads, often while being given decidedly less to work with. Ruthie Ann Miles is superb as the King's primary wife Lady Thiang, showing exquisite depth and nuance as she regally slinks across the stage and turning "Something Wonderful" into a legitimate showstopper. As the impetuous Tuptim, a young girl given to the King as a gift despite longing for another, Ashley Park displays beautiful vocal control during her soaring ballads and also grounds the particularly harrowing confrontation between herself and the King during the show's climax. Jake Lucas brings surprising honesty to his performance as Anna's son Louis, and shares a particularly lovely duet with Jon Viktor Corpuz's Prince Chulalongkorn, the King's eldest son and heir.

For the physical production, Lincoln Center and the show's design team have pulled out all the stops, creating one of the most unabashedly gorgeous musicals of the past decade. Michael Yeargan's gasp-inducing set is a continual delight, its rich color palette and thoughtfully detailed scenic units combining to create a world that is at once mystifying and intoxicating. Catherine Zuber's costumes are a show unto themselves, resplendent jewel toned creations that celebrate the musical's Asian setting without feeling tacky or disrespectful. There is a beautiful movement to all of her pieces, but most especially the showstopping dress O'Hara dons during the famous "Shall We Dance" waltz; watching the iridescent purple gown twirl about the massive stage is one of the most stunning and memorable images of the season. And everything is beautifully lit by Donald Holder in bold colors and patterns that make the already expansive set appear even larger than it actually is.

The King and I is must see theatre, the kind of event show that only comes along once in a great while. Everything about this revival sparkles, from Sher's direction to the uniformly fantastic performances to the absolutely breathtaking production design. It is difficult to imagine a more accomplished production of this oft-produced show, and this version is sure to stay with you long after the final ultimo emanates from the Beaumont's orchestra pit. It is something wonderful indeed.