- Title: USA: 2000 TONY NOMINATIONS ANNOUNCED IN NEW YORK
- Date: 8th May 2000
- Summary: NEW YORK, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES (MAY 8, 2000) (REUTERS) NOMINATIONS FOR BEST PERFORMANCE BY A LEADING ACTRESS IN A PLAY
- Embargoed: 23rd May 2000 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: NEW YORK, NEW YORK, US
- Country: USA
- Topics: Communications,Entertainment
- Reuters ID: LVA27RUORPKP0XWI6RFDRQEP7WHU
- Story Text: The 2000 Tony nominations were announced in New York, Monday.The Tonys, the theatre's version of the Oscars, included nominations for Sir Elton John, and top Australian actress Toni Collette.
An acclaimed revival of "Kiss Me Kate," Cole Porter's musical riff on Shakespeare, scored 12 Tony award nominations on Monday while plays by Eugene O'Neill, Sam Shepard, Tom Stoppard and Arthur Miller led the drama category in the running for Broadway's highest honours.
The 2000 Tonys, the top U.S.theatre awards, had twosomes in mind, with several artists winning double nominations in the same category, as well as veteran Rosemary Harris competing against her daughter, Jennifer Ehle.
"Kiss Me Kate," with a score featuring Porter classics like "Too Darn Hot" and "Another Op'nin, Another Show," won nominations for best revival of a musical, for leads Marin Mazzie and Brian Stokes Mitchell, director Michael Blakemore, best scenic design, lighting, choreography, orchestrations, costumes and three nods for best featured (supporting) actor.
"Meredith Willson's The Music Man" took nine nominations, including best revival of a musical and best actor for film and television actor Craig Bierko, making his Broadway debut in a role once thought to be owned by the late Robert Preston.
Toni Collette, best known for her Oscar-nominated role as the mother in "The Sixth Sense," won a Tony nomination as best actress in a musical for "The Wild Party," one of two musicals this season based on the Jazz Age poem of the same name.The legendary Eartha Kitt was also nominated for the same show as best featured actress in a musical.
Other best actress nominees were Rebecca Luker in "The Music Man" and three-time Tony winner Audra McDonald in "Marie Christine," a musical retelling of Medea which has closed.
Best new musical nominations went to two dance shows with virtually no original music, "Contact" and "Swing,"
joining "James Joyce's The Dead," now closed, and "The Wild Party."
Best play nominees were Michael Frayn's "Copenhagen,"
Claudia Shear's "Dirty Blonde," Miller's "The Ride Down Mt.
Morgan" and Sam Shepard's 20-year-old play "True West" in its first Broadway production.
"Dirty Blonde," a late season transfer from off-Broadway that has been the subject of a raft of articles in The New York Times, won five nominations including a second nod for Shear as best actress in the title role, screen siren Mae West.
Best revival of a play nominees were "Amadeus," Miller's "The Price," Stoppard's "The Real Thing" and the late Nobel laureate O'Neill's "A Moon for the Misbegotten."
Other best revival of a musical nominations went to "Jesus Christ Superstar" and "Tango Argentino."
Film actors John C.Reilly and Philip Seymour Hoffman were both nominated as best actor for "True West" for their roles as dueling brothers in the Shepard comic drama, in which they switch parts every three performances.
Several Hollywood stars who put in Broadway appearances this season were overlooked, including Carol Burnett in "Putting it Together," Woody Harrelson in "The Rainmaker,"
Olympia Dukakis in the one-woman show "Rose" and Patrick Stewart in "The Ride Down Mt.Morgan."
Other best actor in a play nominees included Gabriel Byrne in "A Moon for the Misbegotten," Stephen Dillane in "The Real Thing" and David Suchet for "Amadeus."
Jayne Atkinson in "The Rainmaker" and Cherry Jones in "A Moon for the Misbegotten" joined Harris in Noel Coward's "Waiting in the Wings" and her daughter Ehle in "The Real Thing" as best actress nominees.
Christopher Walken, best known for playing offbeat characters in films, was nominated for best actor in a musical for "James Joyce's The Dead," joined by George Hearn for "Putting it Together" and Mandy Patinkin for "The Wild Party."
The lavish Elton John-Tim Rice musical "Aida," produced by Disney, was overlooked, although John and Rice were nominated for their score as was lead Heather Headley as best actress.
The Tonys loved director-choreographer Susan Stroman this year, handing her four nominations for "Contact" and "The Music Man." She will complete against herself in both the directing and choreography categories.
Michael John LaChiusa also won double nominations for his scores for "The Wild Party" and "Marie Christine."
The lavish production of "Saturday Night Fever," an adaptation of the 1977 film, was completely shut out.
Special Tony will be presented to "Dame Edna: The Royal Tour," while the annual award for regional theatre went to The Utah Shakespearean Festival of Cedar City, Utah.
Also honoured with special Tonys were actress Eileen Heckart, agent-manager Sylvia Herscher and the "Encores!"
series of musical revivals performed at City Centre.
The nominations were announced by former "Cheers"
co-stars Kelsey Grammer, about to star in "Macbeth," and Bebe Neuwirth at a news conference.They will be presented June 4 at a gala hosted by talk show host Rosie O'Donnell at Radio City Music Hall. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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