As Broadway’s recovery from the pandemic shutdown gathers pace, Tony nominees have focused more on variety shows.
“Some Like It Hot,” a jazz-age show about two artists who witness a mob kill and dress up as women to escape the mob, earned the most nominations: 13. But it faces stiffer competition in the race for Best New Musical – Ticket. Buyers didn’t slam-dunk any contenders, and there doesn’t seem to be a consensus among industry insiders who make up the Tony voting pool.
The nominees for best new musical are wildly different from each other — the others include three that picked up nine nominations: “& Juliet,” which combines pop songs with an alternate story arc for Shakespeare’s star-crossed lovers; “New York, New York,” a dance-driven tuner about a pair of young musicians searching for success and love in a postwar city; and “Shakt,” a humorous folk comedy about a rural community facing a corn crisis. critical favorite “Kimberly Akimbo,” about a high school student with a life-changing genetic condition and a criminally dysfunctional family; It took eight nominations.
Sarah Bareilles, Jessica Chastain, Jodie Comer, Josh Groban, Sean Hayes, Samuel L. Jackson, Wendell Pierce and Ben Platt, as well as Broadway favorite Audra MacDonald, are among the popular artists nominated.
Competing in another prestigious category, for best drama, the nominees are “Ain’t No Mo’,” Jordan E. They chose Cooper’s wild humor, imagining a moment when America decides to solve its racial problems by offering one-way tickets to all black residents. Africa; “Between Riverside and Crazy,” Stephen Adley Gurkis’ drama about a retired police officer trying to hang on to his apartment; “Cost of Life,” a drama about caregiving and disability by Martina Majok; “Fat Ham,” a riff on James James’ “Hamlet,” is set in the North Carolina backyard of a family that runs a barbecue restaurant; and “Leopoldstadt,” Tom Stoppard’s autobiographical drama about a European Jewish family before, during and after World War II. Three Tony-nominated plays, “Between Riverside and Crazy,” “The Cost of Living” and “Fat Ham” have already won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama.
Of the 38 Tony-eligible plays and musicals this season, 27 received at least one nomination, while 11 were without any nominations. A highly recommended musical revival was “Sweeney Todd,” which had eight performances; The most recommended play revival is “A Doll’s House”.
For more news on the Tony Awards, including reaction from the nominees, as well as analysis from reporters and commentary from critics, check here throughout the day.
