The Stage

Spamalot leads Tonys with 14 nominations

Published Wednesday 11 May 2005 at 12:50 by Judd Hollander

The Monty Python musical Spamalot has dominated nominations for the Tony Awards, garnering 14, three more than its closest competitor, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels.

Spamalot was nominated for the coveted Best Musical prize, as well as Best Book, Best Original Score, Best Direction, Scenic and Costume Design, Best Choreography, Best Orchestrations and Best Lighting Design. The show also earned lead acting nods for Tim Curry and Hank Azaria, as well as supporting nominations for Michael McGrath, Christopher Sieber and Sara Ramirez. Overlooked in the nominations was David Hyde Pierce, who played several characters, including Sir Robin.

Spamalot’s competition for the Best Musical prize are Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, a stage adaptation of the 1988 film, The Light in the Piazza, based on a novel by Elizabeth Spencer, and an original musical, The 25th Annual Putnam Country Spelling Bee, which takes a humorous look at the foibles and angst of a group of students competing in a spelling competition.

In the race for Best Play, Michael Frayn’s political drama Democracy will square off against Martin McDonagh’s dark comedy The Pillowman. This was the only nomination Democracy received, while The Pillowman picked up six, both works having originated at London’s National Theatre. Other plays in this category are August Wilson’s Gem of the Ocean, the ninth in a series of ten plays chronicling the African-American experience in the 20th century, and John Patrick Shanley’s Doubt, about a nun who suspects a priest of sexually abusing a young boy in 1964 New York. Doubt, which received eight nominations, the most of any new play, has already won the prestigious Pulitzer Prize for Drama this year.

Doubt star Brian F O’Byrne, who won a Best Supporting Actor Tony last year for playing a killer in the drama Frozen, received a Best Actor in a Play nomination this time for his role as the priest. In the same category this season are James Earl Jones for On Golden Pond, Philip Bosco for Twelve Angry Men, Bill Irwin for Edward Albee’s Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? and Billy Crudup for The Pillowman.

Other nominations for The Pillowman include Michael Stuhlbarg for the supporting actor prize, John Crowley for direction, Scott Pask for scenic design and Brian MacDevitt for lighting design. Going up against Stuhlbarg will be Alan Alda, Gordon Clapp and Liev Schreiber, all three from the revival of David Mamet’s Glengarry Glen Ross, and David Harbour from Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?

The other two Virginia Woolf cast members also received Tony nominations, with Kathleen Turner getting a Best Leading Actress in a Play nod and Mireille Enos receiving one for Best Featured Actress in a Play. The production received six total Tony nominations this year, tying with Glengarry Glen Ross for the most nominations among revivals. In addition to the four it received for acting, it also received one for Best Revival of a Play and one for costume design. Missing out on a Tony nomination was director Anthony Page.

However, Virginia Woolf playwright Edward Albee will be receiving a Lifetime Achievement Tony. Albee’s other stage works include The Goat, or Who Is Sylvia?, Three Tall Woman, Seascape, A Delicate Balance, The Play About The Baby and Tiny Alice. Virginia Woolf won the Tony for Best Play when it was originally produced on Broadway in 1963.

The musical Chitty Chitty Bang Bang scored five nominations, including Best Actress in a Musical for Erin Dilly, Featured Actor for Marc Kudisch, Featured Actress for Jan Maxwell, Scenic Design for Anthony Ward, and Lighting Design for Mark Henderson.

In the Special Theatrical Event category, Billy Crystal’s one-man show 700 Sundays will be going up against two other one-person vehicles, featuring Mario Cantone and Whoopi Goldberg, respectively, as well as Dame Edna: Back with a Vengeance!.

Two people were nominated twice in the same category this year, Jerry Mitchell, for his choreography on the musicals Dirty Rotten Scoundrels and La Cage Aux Folles and Donald Holder for his lighting design in the plays Gem of the Ocean and Tennessee William’s A Streetcar Named Desire.

Awarded the Tony for Regional Theatre was the Theatre de la Jeune Lune in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

The Tonys are presented annually by the League of American Theatres and Producers, the national trade union for the Broadway industry, and the American Theatre Wing. The nominations for the 2004/5 Broadway season were revealed at the Marriott Marquis Hotel on Tuesday, while the Tony Awards ceremony will be broadcast live from New York’s Radio City Musical Hall on Sunday, June 5. Reprising his hosting duties will be Tony-winner Hugh Jackman.

The full list is:

Best Play: Democracy; Doubt; Gem of the Ocean; The Pillowman.

Best Musical: Dirty Rotten Scoundrels; The Light in the Piazza; Monty Python’s Spamalot; The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee.

Best Book of a Musical: Dirty Rotten Scoundrels - Jeffrey Lane; The Light in the Piazza - Craig Lucas; Monty Python’s Spamalot - Eric Idle; The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee - Rachel Sheinkin.

Best Original Score (Music and/or Lyrics) Written for the Theatre: Dirty Rotten Scoundrels - David Yazbek; The Light in the Piazza - Adam Guettel; Monty Python’s Spamalot - John Du Prez and Eric Idle; The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee - William Finn.

Best Revival of a Play: Edward Albee’s Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?; Glengarry Glen Ross; On Golden Pond; Twelve Angry Men.

Best Revival of a Musical: La Cage aux Folles; Pacific Overtures; Sweet Charity.

Best Special Theatrical Event: Dame Edna: Back with a Vengeance!; Laugh Whore; 700 Sundays; Whoopi, the 20th Anniversary Show.

Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play: Philip Bosco - Twelve Angry Men; Billy Crudup - The Pillowman; Bill Irwin - Edward Albee’s Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?; James Earl Jones - On Golden Pond; Brian F O’Byrne - Doubt.

Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play: Cherry Jones - Doubt; Laura Linney - Sight Unseen; Mary-Louise Parker - Reckless; Phylicia Rashad - Gem of the Ocean; Kathleen Turner - Edward Albee’s Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?.

Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical: Hank Azaria - Monty Python’s Spamalot; Gary Beach - La Cage aux Folles; Norbert Leo Butz - Dirty Rotten Scoundrels; Tim Curry - Monty Python’s Spamalot; John Lithgow - Dirty Rotten Scoundrels.

Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical: Christina Applegate - Sweet Charity; Victoria Clark - The Light in the Piazza; Erin Dilly - Chitty Chitty Bang Bang; Sutton Foster - Little Women; Sherie Rene Scott - Dirty Rotten Scoundrels.

Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Play: Alan Alda - Glengarry Glen; Ross Gordon Clapp - Glengarry Glen Ross; David Harbour - Edward Albee’s Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?; Liev Schreiber - Glengarry Glen Ross; Michael Stuhlbarg - The Pillowman.

Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Play: Mireille Enos - Edward Albee’s Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?; Heather Goldenhersh - Doubt; Dana Ivey - The Rivals; Adriane Lenox - Doubt; Amy Ryan - A Streetcar Named Desire.

Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Musical: Dan Fogler - The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee; Marc Kudisch - Chitty Chitty Bang Bang; Michael McGrath - Monty Python’s Spamalot; Matthew Morrison - The Light in the Piazza; Christopher Sieber - Monty Python’s Spamalot.

Best Performance by a Featured Actress in a Musical: Joanna Gleason - Dirty Rotten Scoundrels; Celia Keenan-Bolger - The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee; Jan Maxwell - Chitty Chitty Bang Bang; Kelli O’Hara - The Light in the Piazza; Sara Ramirez - Monty Python’s Spamalot.

Best Scenic Design of a Play: John Lee Beatty - Doubt; David Gallo - Gem of the Ocean; Santo Loquasto - Glengarry Glen Ross; Scott Pask - The Pillowman.

Best Scenic Design of a Musical: Tim Hatley - Monty Python’s Spamalot; Rumi Matsui - Pacific Overtures; Anthony Ward - Chitty Chitty Bang Bang; Michael Yeargan - The Light in the Piazza.

Best Costume Design of a Play: Jess Goldstein - The Rivals; Jane Greenwood - Edward Albee’s Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?; William Ivey Long - A Streetcar Named Desire; Constanza Romero - Gem of the Ocean.

Best Costume Design of a Musical: Tim Hatley - Monty Python’s Spamalot; Junko Koshino - Pacific Overtures; William Ivey Long - La Cage aux Folles; Catherine Zuber - The Light in the Piazza.

Best Lighting Design of a Play: Pat Collins - Doubt; Donald Holder - Gem of the Ocean; Donald Holder - A Streetcar Named Desire; Brian MacDevitt - The Pillowman.

Best Lighting Design of a Musical: Christopher Akerlind - The Light in the Piazza; Mark Henderson - Chitty Chitty Bang Bang; Kenneth Posner - Dirty Rotten Scoundrels; Hugh Vanstone - Monty Python’s Spamalot.

Best Direction of a Play: John Crowley - The Pillowman; Scott Ellis - Twelve Angry Men; Doug Hughes - Doubt; Joe Mantello - Glengarry Glen Ross.

Best Direction of a Musical: James Lapine - The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee; Mike Nichols - Monty Python’s Spamalot; Jack O’Brien - Dirty Rotten Scoundrels; Bartlett Sher - The Light in the Piazza.

Best Choreography: Wayne Cilento - Sweet Charity; Jerry Mitchell - Dirty Rotten Scoundrels; Jerry Mitchell - La Cage aux Folles; Casey Nicholaw - Monty Python’s Spamalot.

Best Orchestrations: Larry Hochman, Monty Python’s Spamalot; Ted Sperling, Adam Guettel and Bruce Coughlin - The Light in the Piazza; Jonathan Tunick - Pacific Overtures; Harold Wheeler - Dirty Rotten Scoundrels.

Regional Theatre Tony Award: Theatre de la Jeune Lune, Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Special Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Theatre: Edward Albee.