Preview: The 2008 Tony Awards

They are officially named The American Theater Wing’s Tony Awards, and “Tony” comes from Antoinette Perry’s nickname (She ran the ATW during World War II and was a Broadway singer and actress). Fun fact: Harold Prince holds the record for most wins – 21 in all including his 3 special Tonys for contributions to theater.

Enough with the trivia – let’s talk about the big races, the presenters, and the biggest slate of performances in Tony’s history…. details on this year’s extravaganza after the jump!



There will be 13 performances – which is AWESOME. Each Best Musical Nominee, each Best Revival of a Musical Nominee, three new shows that have other nominations, plus Lion King and Rent to celebrate their 10th anniversary and closing, respectively. Full list:

In The Heights
Passing Strange
Xanadu
Crybaby
Grease
Gypsy
Sunday In The Park w/George
South Pacific
A Catered Affair
The Little Mermaid
Young Frankenstein
Lion King
Rent


Presenters. I only have one quibble and her name is Julie Chen. REALLY? Is it in her contract that she has to appear on any CBS show? The only thing that makes this slightly okay is that it takes the spotlight off of asking why the hell Marisa Tomei was invited. (Yes, I know Marisa is in Top Girls. But still.) The rest are:

Alec Baldwin
Gabriel Byrne
Julie Chen
Kristin Chenoweth
Harry Connick, Jr.
Glenn Close
Laurence Fishburne
Richard Griffiths
Laura Linney
John Lithgow
Liza Minnelli
Mary-Louise Parker
Mandy Patinkin
David Hyde Pierce
Daniel Radcliffe
Brooke Shields
Marisa Tomei
Lily Tomlin
John Waters

So who will win? If I had to bet on it, here are my best guesses.
Best Musical: In The Heights
Best Revival of a Musical: South Pacific
Best Play: August: Osage County
Best Book of a Musical (Think Best Author): Passing Strange
Best Music and Lyrics: In The Heights
Best Revival of a Play: Boeing-Boeing
Best Actress in a Musical: Patti LuPone, Gypsy

Hmm...that list may actually be my hopes rather than my guesses. Whatevs.

The Tony Awards
Sunday June 15th
CBS, 8/7C