Time Out For Talk About Tony Nominations

I had originally intended to post an entry on another of the shows that opened in the final weeks of the season but, like every other theater nut, I'm now obsessed with the Tony nominations that were announced yesterday. There's plenty of commentary around on who got one, who didn't, who should win and who shouldn't. Much of it is fairly routine but I've come across a few things that add something extra to the conversation and so thought I'd share them with you.

Much of the talk is about Spring Awakening, which got 11 nominations. This musical about group of young people and their sexual angst in 19th century Germany has been a critical favorite since it opened in December and has already won the New York Drama Critics' Circle and Outer Critics Circle awards. It's my favorite show of the season too but I still enjoyed reading the argument that Theatermania's Peter Filichia makes for why it shouldn't win the Tony for Best Musical. Proudly calling himself a traditionalist, Filichia criticizes Duncan Sheik's score ("anachronistic") Steven Sater's lyrics ("incorrect rhymes") and Michael Mayer's staging ("non-essential use of hand-mikes"). I don't agree with him at all (I found the staging inventive and engaging and I listen to the cast album all the time) but he still has some interesting things to say (click here to read his article). My feelings about Spring Awakening are more in keeping with those of MTV's John Norris (click here to read his piece) who praises the show for its relevance to contemporary teen life and urges the network's teen and twentysomething viewers to see it (click here to get a sneak peek at the show in a MTV video clip).

And if you're just looking for an unabashedly opinionated—and quite entertaining—take on the nominations, check out Chris Caggiano's blog, "Everything I know I Learned from Musicals" (click here to read it).