Will and Tony
Thursday, April 24th by scott malia
It’s that special time of year again. I’m not talking about spring, although the warmer weather is nice (even if it does bring along seasonal allergies with it). No, it is awards season in the world of theatre, as the gearing-up for the Tony Award nominations has begun. Wisely distanced from the glut of film awards in December through February, the Tony Award nominations are typically announced in mid-May, with the statuettes handed out the first or second weekend in June (after the close of the traditional theatergoing season).
Of particular interest this year is the Patrick Stewart-led production of Macbeth, which has played a number of venues over the past year en route to Broadway. Stewart is a virtual lock for a nomination (and possible win) as Best Actor in a Play, and the production seems a likely bet for Best Revival of a Play. An article about the impending nominations noted a relative lack of love for Shakespeare by the Tony Awards, pointing to a scant number of nominations in the Acting, Directing, and Revival fields, with even fewer garnering wins.
To be fair, these complaints are a bit misleading. First, the Best Revival of a Play category has only existed for roughly one third of the Tonys’ 60-plus-year history. Very few playwrights have appeared in this category multiple times and Shakespeare is one of them. As far as the Acting and Directing nods go, keep in mind that these awards don’t split up the nominations among revivals and new works. Thus, actors in contemporary American works go head-to-head with their Shakespearean counterparts. Whether you believe there is a bias or not, all bets are off this year as the acting prize appears to be Stewart’s to lose.
