“Come on along and listen to…” the irrelevance of the Tony’s.
Ah yes, the 2010 Tony Awards. That night in June where the common man flips to CBS and says, “What the heck is this? Where’s my frickin’ 60 Minutes!?”
This is tough for me. I have a slew–genuinely–of friends who are in Tony nominated shows, and yet I still knock this particular awards show annually. In my own defense, I think everyone does.
Let’s be honest, it’s a pep rally for the Broadway crowd, a pat on the back for and from peers, mixed in with a few live performances from the nominated shows. For the producers, it’s an opportunity to sell more tickets, which I hope they do…so my buddies can have jobs for years to come.
(Worth noting: If you’re into awards shows, this one is much more entertaining than the Oscars or Golden Globes–though you probably won’t know what any of the shows are.)
Regardless, 2010 looks to be the continuation of a recent trend: More movie-star names; more people will watch. Jude Law, Christopher Walken, Liev Schriber, Alfred Molina, Denzel Washington: Names interchangeable with Oscar nominations. They’ll battle it out for best actor on the stage in 2009. The “competition” being so objective and all.
A few more of the biggies nominated: Kelsey Grammar, Catherin Zeta-Jones, Scarlett Johansson, Viola Davis, Linda Lavin, Valerie Harper, Laura Linney and Broadway royalty, Angela Lansbury.
Here is a complete list of the 2010 Tony Award nominees, offered by The American Theatre Wing.
(Image via: TimeOut New York)
