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The Tony Awards

The big winners, left to right: John Lloyd Young (Lead Actor in a Musical, "Jersey Boys"), La Chanze (Lead Actress in a Musical, "The Color Purple"), Cynthia Nixon (Lead Actress in a Play, "Rabbit Hole") and Richard Griffiths (Lead Actor in a Play, "The History Boys")

If the Tony Awards provide a good indication of the future direction of Broadway, at least in the short term, expect more shallow musicals and British imports. The British phenomenon, fueled by the fact that Britain supports theaters in a way that allows them to take risks, and their shows roll onto Broadway after months or years of fine-tuning, serves to distort the proceedings. How can a new play like David Lindsay-Abaire’s Rabbit Hole, produced and rehearsed specifically for its limited Broadway run, hope to compete with The History Boys, a solid but flashy import that had been playing for a year?

Abaire’s play is a challenging work about a family turned upside down by the accidental death of their child. The History Boys is a sprightly and beautifully crafted piece about the relationship of a group of university bound school boys to their brilliant but sexually needy teacher. Both are worthy plays. Rabbit Hole was the more complex and challenging work. The History Boys won.

The British seem so at home accepting Tony Awards that while picking up a Tony for The History Boys, British designer Bob Crowley actually sniped that he really deserved to win for Tarzan instead. How very gracious of him. Perhaps the Tony committee should defer to Mr. Crowley and allow him to select all the winners—after choosing which awards he will claim for himself. The awards can then be handed out from some suitable West End theater.

Among the musicals, Jersey Boys proved that the Jukebox Musical is not dead—despite the quick deaths of Ring of Fire, Lennon and Good Vibrations. With an artful book, a show can still succeed, and Jersey Boys’ retelling of the story of the real-life Four Seasons pleased both critics and audiences. This year’s Broadway musicals make up next year’s Shea’s season, which is good news, as shows like The Color Purple, The Drowsy Chaperone, Jersey Boys, The Wedding Singer and The Pajama Game should travel well. Those who were surprised that Jersey Boys beat out The Drowsy Chaperone for Best Musical should have checked the weekly grosses in VarietyJersey Boys is the hotter ticket!

The Tony Awards will always suffer from the perversity with which individuals are placed in categories. Whether you are “leading” or “featured” depends upon your billing above or below the title of the play on the opening night and your producer’s behind-the-scenes maneuvering—not on the size of your role. Therefore, Lynn Redgrave, who might well have won as featured for The Constant Wife, was lost in the leading category, won by Cynthia Nixon for her performance in Rabbit Hole. Sarah Bridge received a Tony for Bridge & Tunnel as a special event, while the legendary Chita Rivera was forced to compete as a leading actress for her autobiographical show, Chita Rivera: the Dancer’s Life—a decidedly special event.

In the category of “not everybody can win,” it might have been nice to see Harry Connick, Jr. win for his remarkable performance in The Pajama Game. Tyne Daly was quite robbed of a Tony for her performance in Rabbit Hole; the award went to Frances de la Tour for her capable but inexplicably popular performance in The History Boys.

I did not attend the ceremony at Radio City Music Hall this year, opting instead for the Actors’ Fund Tony Award party honoring Liza Minnelli in Los Angeles. (Yes Liza looks great; yes Liza is very sweet.) From L.A. the Tonys are all about what looks good on television. Sam Harris, the host of the L.A. event, opened ridiculing shows like Threepenny Opera and Sweeney Todd that looked severe during their brief on-air presentations.

From L.A. there were also no surprises as most of the attendees had never seen the shows. LaChanze’s surprise win over Patti LuPone (who was favored) and Sutton Foster and Chita Rivera (who probably pulled votes) for Leading Actress in a Musical elicited no surprise at all in California where people are mostly oblivious to heated Broadway competition. Recognizable television and film stars excited loud cheers, even during the memorials, which was very peculiar.

Liza was presented with the Julie Harris Award for career achievement in the theater and was a model of graciousness in accepting it. Brian Stokes Mitchell, president of the Actors Fund, telephoned to congratulate her and sent regards from “Chita.” As quickly as the evening ended, in a great Broadway tradition, people tended to forget who had actually won. It’s a temporal art, after all. On we go into next year!