Mormons, A Horse and Neil Patrick Harris make for one Awesome Tony Awards!

Attention future Oscar and Emmy Award producers~ I sure hope you were watching last night’s Tony Awards because that is how you put on a show! It was efficient, moving, hilarious and kinda amazing. It helps that you had one of the most talented hosts around in Neil Patrick Harris who was simply perfection in his second turn as master of ceremonies. (In fact, he won an Emmy for his first go round and I’m pretty sure Neil and the show will be in the running again next year for this great show). Along with Neil’s amazing singing, dancing and hysterical bits (how great was the number with Hugh Jackman?!!), you also had wonderful performances from Daniel Radcliffe, Sutton Foster and the cast of Anything Goes, plus all the other musical nominees, a potty mouth Brooke Shields, and a crazy Frances McDormand in a jean jacket accepting Best Actress in a Play. While Frances gave a nice speech (as did a very emotional and wonderful Ellen Barkin and John Benjamin Hickey, plus a wonderfully jovial Foster), the best speech came from newcomer Nikki M. James who won for The Book of Mormon in a speech that’s up there with the greats of all time like Cuba Gooding Jr’s Oscar speech… Speaking of Mormon, the show dominated pulling in 9 awards including Best Musical (kudos to those crazy South Park kids and Momon creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone). Also trampling the competition was the play War Horse which nabbed 5 awards. The revivals of the brilliant The Normal Heart and the incredibly entertaining Anything Goes both took home 3 trophies. For more info on the show and Broadway’s best, head to the Tony site here. And for tix to your favorite Broadway show, head here. Also, check out all the winners below and my favorite NPH moments from this wonderful program.

2011 Tony Award Winners:
Best Musical: The Book of Mormon
Best Play: War Horse
Best Revival of a Musical: Anything Goes
Best Revival of a Play: The Normal Heart
Best Actor in a Lead Role in a Musical: Norbert Leo Butz (Catch Me if You Can)
Best Actress in a Lead Role in a Musical: Sutton Foster (Anything Goes)
Best Actor in a Play: Mark Rylance (Jerusalem)
Best Actress in a Play: Frances McDormand (Good People)
Best Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical: John Laroquette (How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying)
Best Actress in a Featured Role in a Musical: Nikki M. James (The Book of Mormon)
Best Actor in a Featured Role in a Play: John Benjamin Hickey (The Normal Heart)
Best Actress in a Featured Role in a Play: Ellen Barkin
Best Director of a Musical: The Book of Mormon
Best Director of a Play: War Horse
Best Book of a Musical: The Book of Mormon
Best Orchestrations: The Book of Mormon
Best Choreography: Anything Goes
Best Sound Design of a Musical: The Book of Mormon
Best Sound Design of a Play: War Horse
Best Costume Design of a Musical: The Adventures of Priscilla~ Queen of the Desert
Best Costume Design of Play: The Importance of Being Earnest
Best Scenic Design of a Musical: The Book of Mormon
Best Scenic Design of a Play: War Horse
Best Lighting Design of a Musical: The Book of Mormon
Best Lighting Design of a Play: War Horse

Neil Patrick Harris’s opening number~ “Broadway isn’t Just for Gays Anymore”

Neil Patrick Harris v. Hugh Jackman

Neil Patrick Harris’s closing rap:

The Book of Mormon preaches at the Tony Award Nominations

The incredibly funny and totally awesome new musical from the creators of South Park, The Book of Mormon, led the Tony Award nominations this morning with a big 14 nods including Best Musical. The big surprise though was the now closed musical The Scottsboro Boys which came close behind with 12 nominations. Those two shows will compete against Catch Me if You Can and Sister Act for Best Musical while Good People, Jerusalem, The Motherfucker with the Hat and War Horse will square off for Best Play…. This year the acting nominees were a little less starry than last year when movie stars Scarlett Johanson, Viola Davis, Alfred Molina and Oscar winners Denzel Washington and Catharine Zeta Jones were among the winners. Instead we have only one three big  movie stars, Oscar winners Al Pacino, Vanessa Redgrave and Frances McDormand in the running, but several notable TV vets are up for awards including Emmy winners John Laroquette (Night Court), Edie Falco (Nurse Jackie), Bobby Cannavale (Will & Grace) plus John Benjamin Hickey (The Big C), Judith Light (Ugly Betty) and screen vets Ellen Barkin and Billy Crudup…. Some big surprises were the omission of Priscilla Queen of the Desert in the Best Musical category and no Harry Potter, ahem, Daniel Radcliffe (How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying) in Best Actor Musical…. Check out the full list of nominations below… and head to Broadway in NYC before June 5th to see all the nominees.

Best Play
“Good People”
“Jerusalem”
“The Motherf**ker With the Hat”
“War Horse”

Best Musical
“The Book of Mormon”
“Catch Me If You Can”
“The Scottsboro Boys”
“Sister Act”

Best Book of a Musical
Alex Timbers, “Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson”
Trey Parker, Robert Lopez, and Matt Stone, “The Book of Mormon”
David Thompson, “The Scottsboro Boys”
Cheri Steinkellner, Bill Steinkellner, and Douglas Carter Beane, “Sister Act”

Best Original Score (Music and/or Lyrics) Written for the Theatre
“The Book of Mormon,” music and lyrics by Trey Parker, Robert Lopez, and Matt Stone
“The Scottsboro Boys,” music and lyrics by John Kander and Fred Ebb
“Sister Act,” music by Alan Menken, lyrics by Glenn Slater
“Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown,” music and lyrics by David Yazbek

Best Revival of a Play
“Arcadia”
“The Importance of Being Earnest”
“The Merchant of Venice”
“The Normal Heart”

Best Revival of a Musical
“Anything Goes”
“How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying”

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Play
Brian Bedford, “The Importance of Being Earnest”
Bobby Cannavale, “The Motherf**ker With the Hat”
Joe Mantello, “The Normal Heart”
Al Pacino, “The Merchant of Venice”
Mark Rylance, “Jerusalem”

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Play
Nina Arianda, “Born Yesterday”
Frances McDormand, “Good People”
Lily Rabe, “The Merchant of Venice”
Vanessa Redgrave, “Driving Miss Daisy”
Hannah Yelland, “Brief Encounter”

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in a Musical
Norbert Leo Butz, “Catch Me If You Can”
Josh Gad, “The Book of Mormon”
Joshua Henry, “The Scottsboro Boys”
Andrew Rannells, “The Book of Mormon”
Tony Sheldon, “Priscilla Queen of the Desert”

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical
Sutton Foster, “Anything Goes”
Beth Leavel, “Baby It’s You!”
Patina Miller, “Sister Act”
Donna Murphy, “The People in the Picture”

Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Play
Mackenzie Crook, “Jerusalem”
Billy Crudup, “Arcadia”
John Benjamin Hickey, “The Normal Heart”
Arian Moayed, “Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo”
Yul Vázquez, “The Motherf**ker With the Hat”

Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Play
Ellen Barkin, “The Normal Heart”
Edie Falco, “The House of Blue Leaves”
Judith Light, “Lombardi”
Joanna Lumley, “La Bête”
Elizabeth Rodriguez, “The Motherf**ker With the Hat”

Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Role in a Musical
Colman Domingo, “The Scottsboro Boys”
Adam Godley, “Anything Goes”
John Larroquette, “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying”
Forrest McClendon, “The Scottsboro Boys”
Rory O’Malley, “The Book of Mormon”

Best Performance by an Actress in a Featured Role in a Musical
Laura Benanti, “Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown”
Tammy Blanchard, “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying”
Victoria Clark, “Sister Act”
Nikki M. James, “The Book of Mormon”
Patti LuPone, “Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown”

Best Scenic Design of a Play
Todd Rosenthal, “The Motherf**ker With the Hat”
Rae Smith, “War Horse”
Ultz, “Jerusalem”
Mark Wendland, “The Merchant of Venice”

Best Scenic Design of a Musical
Beowulf Boritt, “The Scottsboro Boys”
Derek McLane, “Anything Goes”
Scott Pask, “The Book of Mormon”
Donyale Werle, “Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson”

Best Costume Design of a Play
Jess Goldstein, “The Merchant of Venice”
Desmond Heeley, “The Importance of Being Earnest”
Mark Thompson, “La Bête”
Catherine Zuber, “Born Yesterday”

Best Costume Design of a Musical
Tim Chappel and Lizzy Gardiner, “Priscilla Queen of the Desert”
Martin Pakledinaz, “Anything Goes”
Ann Roth, “The Book of Mormon”
Catherine Zuber, “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying”

Best Lighting Design of a Play
Paule Constable, “War Horse”
David Lander, “Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo”
Kenneth Posner, “The Merchant of Venice”
Mimi Jordan Sherin, “Jerusalem”

Best Lighting Design of a Musical
Ken Billington, “The Scottsboro Boys”
Howell Binkley, “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying”
Peter Kaczorowski, “Anything Goes”
Brian MacDevitt, “The Book of Mormon”

Best Sound Design of a Play
Acme Sound Partners and Cricket S. Myers, “Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo”
Simon Baker, “Brief Encounter”
Ian Dickinson for Autograph, “Jerusalem”
Christopher Shutt, “War Horse”

Best Sound Design of a Musical
Peter Hylenski, “The Scottsboro Boys”
Steve Canyon Kennedy, “Catch Me If You Can”
Brian Ronan, “Anything Goes”
Brian Ronan, “The Book of Mormon”

Best Direction of a Play
Marianne Elliott and Tom Morris, “War Horse”
Joel Grey and George C. Wolfe, “The Normal Heart”
Anna D. Shapiro, “The Motherf**ker With the Hat”
Daniel Sullivan, “The Merchant of Venice”

Best Direction of a Musical
Rob Ashford, “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying”
Kathleen Marshall, “Anything Goes”
Casey Nicholaw and Trey Parker, “The Book of Mormon”
Susan Stroman, “The Scottsboro Boys”

Best Choreography
Rob Ashford, “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying”
Kathleen Marshall, “Anything Goes”
Casey Nicholaw, “The Book of Mormon”
Susan Stroman, “The Scottsboro Boys”

Best Orchestrations
Doug Besterman, “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying”
Larry Hochman, “The Scottsboro Boys”
Larry Hochman and Stephen Oremus, “The Book of Mormon”
Marc Shaiman and Larry Blank, “Catch Me If You Can”

Recipients of Awards and Honors in Non-Competitive Categories

Special Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Theatre
Athol Fugard
Philip J. Smith

Regional Theatre Tony Award
Lookingglass Theatre Company (Chicago)

Isabelle Stevenson Award
Eve Ensler

Special Tony Award
Handspring Puppet Company

Tony Honor for Excellence in the Theatre
William Berloni
The Drama Book Shop
Sharon Jensen and Alliance for Inclusion in the Arts

American Idol Recap 3/23/11~ “You Make Us Beg”

The judges weren’t too proud to beg and the contestants were more than happy to give them what they wanted on last night’s American Idol as the singers took on the music of Motown. This classic genre provided just the boost that our contenders needed as nearly all of them delivered very strong performances and several front-runners proved their mettle. We also saw what will likely be the end of my least fave contestant, plus lots of cooky Ryan moments (um, Gordon Ramsey from Hell’s Kitchen dissing Stefano’s mom’s cooking~ awkward), Steven Tyler making up new English phrases again and J Lo taking center stage as the best, most coherent judge with the smartest criticism. With all that said, it’s time to rank tonight’s tributes to the golden age of Motown…

American Idol Performance Rankings 3/23/11
1. Jacob: reining in his gigantic voice for an incredibly beautiful (Steven Tyler’s favorite word) and passionate performance, Jacob nailed Marvin Gaye’s 1968 # 7 hit  ”You’re All I Need to Get By” and grabbed the top of my leader board for the first time. His performance was fantastic and his vocals were perfection. He even got a standing “O” from the audience and Mr. Tyler, his mom and the whole front row ran up to condragulate, er um, congratulate him. Jenny from the block said it right that “you make us beg” as we just couldn’t get enough of that song.
2. Pia: a close second to Jacob because of her pure and perfect vocals, the best singer in the competition delivered the 1973 classic “All in Love is Fair” (later made famous by Barbra Streisand) with confidence and commitment. She also looked damn sexy and like the judges said, she can be the next Celine. However, unlike them, I could care less if she keeps singing ballads. Me likey some Pia ballads!!!
3. James: with his 3rd strong performance in a row, our resident rocker slayed Stevie Wonder’s # 8 from 1973 ”Living for the City” and made it contemporary and electric. It’s pretty shocking to me how much he has become a contender for the title when just a few weeks ago he was seen as Adam Lambert lite with a bit of an unlikable personality. Well done James!
4. Lauren: our country cutie came roaring onto the stage last night with a gorgeous, sexy and fun version of the Supreme’s # 1 from 1968 “You Keep Me Hangin’ On”. Her vocals were effortless and flawless and she finally was rocking some great style. Looks like Lauren is seriously back in the race.
5. Scotty: who knew this country kid would survive Motown night, let alone give us a shockingly good version of Stevie Wonder’s 1968 # 2 “For Once in My Life”. This is a song that has been done to death on the Idol stage, but Scotty gave us a country version that transcended the others and played right into his strengths… One note for Scotty~ I see a little cockiness and arrogance attempting to break through. Squash that now and you’ll sail into the top 5.
6. Stefano: after a couple of weeks of fantastic performances, Stefano came down to Earth with a nice if not amazing interpretation of Lionel Richie’s 1984 #1 smash “Hello”. His vocals were lovely (after a shaky start) and he remains a consummate performer. However, the judges were right that he needs to work on his connection to the audience and a stronger interpretation of the lyrics. He also might’ve done better had he not chosen a song David Cook literally slayed a few seasons back. That said, Stefano remains one of my faves in the competition.
7. Naima: arguably the most interesting singer in the competition, Naima took us to Africa with her fascinating and fun version of Martha and the Vandellas’ # 2 hit from 1964 “Dancing in the Streets”. Her vocals were a vast improvement over the previous weeks and she continues to make me excited about what she might do next. She is definitely someone who should make the tour. I just wonder if America is as intrigued by her as I am.
8. Thia: holy heck, out little teen princess broke out of her shell and gave her best performance to date on Martha and the Vandellas’ “Heatwave”. Her voice never sounded better and she showed some personality for once. However, is it too little too late?
9. Paul: well, I’ll say this~ Paul was a million times better last night on Smokey Robinson’s “The Tracks of My Tears” than the previous three weeks…. But, I’m still not drinking his Kool Aid. Yes, he’s a cool guy and has a cool voice, but this performance was just ok. I really think he just needs a band and a forum outside of Idol that would suit him better. And one more thing, as my roommate mentioned last night: “Is it me or does Paul sound like Cartman from South Park when he sings?” hehe.
10. Casey: speaking of not drinking his Kool Aid, I’m almost cancelling my tickets for the Casey caravan after his boring, forced and lackluster performance of Marvin Gaye’s # 1 from 1968 “I Heard it from the Grapevine”. Now, it wasn’t especially bad, but he can do so much better. I’m also afraid he’s veering into Taylor Hicks territory (for me) and that’s not a good thing. I look forward to him making me eat those words.
11. Haley: hooray, I think Miley Cyrus finally signed her divorce papers from Idol with this annoying affected and irritating performance of “You Really Got a Hold on Me”. She did nothing of the sort with me. It was kinda awful and who the heck told her she could wear that terrible outfit? She looked and sounded like Britney Spears auditioning on Star Search at age 8. That was cute for Brit Brit at that age, but terrrrrrrrible for Ms. Haley.

And now the predictions….
Bottom 3: Haley, Thia, and Naima (however, Stefano could be there due to middling judge comments, and we could also see Paul or Casey who deserve to be there)
Bottom 2: Haley and Thia
Buh Bye: Haley

As the Motown classic goes, “Oh what a night” we had last night with a great show full of strong performances. Only three singers, in my humble opinion, faltered. However, only one of them is likely to go home and if America gets it right we will finally see Miley, er Haley, go home and “that’s pretty cool”… So, place your bets before tonight and let me know who you think will get the boot. Then, tune in for the results show which will feature Oscar and Grammy winning Idol alumni Jennifer Hudson performing her new hit “Where You At?” from her just released (and wonderful) sophomore album, I Remember Me…. Oh, and one last thing~ I have a new drinking game for you. Every time Steven Tyler says “beautiful” you have to drink. If you were playing along last night, I’m pretty sure you have one massive hangover today. lol

And here’s Jacob’s incredible performance of “You’re All I Need to Get By”. Enjoy

“South Park” + Facebook = H-Y-LARIOUS!

Ok, I admit, I’ve fallen a little out of touch with South Park lately, and it’s a shame because the show is still on fire. It’s ballsy, unpredictable, outrageous and hilarious. It’s insane what they get away with. Thanks to several friends and my roommate’s urging I watched this week’s episode “You Have Zero Friends” and was ROFL, LOL, LMFAO, and every other kind of laughing possible as they skewered our society’s general obsession with Facebook. It is dead on in every way and a brilliant satire. I highly recommend you check it out. Here’s the link to the whole episode.

http://www.southparkstudios.com/episodes/267112

And here’s a clip of the Oscar nominated song “Blame Canada” from their hilarious movie South Park Movie: Bigger, Longer & Uncut

The official South Park website:

http://www.southparkstudios.com/