“Broadway A-listers are demanding CBS reverse its decision to air ‘Grease’ on Tony night. Meanwhile, Broadway’s marginalized communities are wondering if the threat of ‘Grease’ sing-a-longs are needed to force the changes they’ve been begging for.”
Read MoreYears ago, then CEO of CBS Les Moonves told NY Post’s Michael Riedel that as long as he’s at CBS, so will the Tony Awards. This quote came at a time when the ratings were in the basement compared to other award shows. However, a statement like that from the guy who ran the network was certainly a sigh of relief.
But now Moonves is gone due to the many accusations of sexual misconduct. Which means that the Tony Awards’ biggest network champion is gone. And the ratings are still in the proverbial toilet.
So what does this mean for the future of the Tonys on CBS?
Read MoreThere were many amazing, memorable moments from the 2018 Tony Awards: The students from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School's incredible and touching rendition of "Seasons of Love", the Carousel cast's show-stopping choreographed performance, Josh Groban and Sara Bareilles' quirky yet charming hosting, the Dear Evan Hansen cast's beautiful medley of "You Will Be Found" and "For Forever", Lindsay Mendez's acceptance speech, the #TonyDreaming montages, the list could go on and on.
Read MoreAnyone who watched the Tony award show in its entirety caught Robert De Niro’s bleeped-out remark about President Trump, and, of course, it spread through social media like wildfire. His f**k Trump statement was a quick, yet succinct, personal, and some would say political, comment that drew the ire of some and admiration from others. So, does this type of remark belong at an awards ceremony?
Read MoreA debate has arisen over Sunday night's win for Tony Shalhoub for his performance in The Band's Visit. While other nominees such as Ethan Slater sung and danced through Spongbob Sqaurepants and Joshua Henry had to take on the musical theatre doctorate known as "Soliloquoy", Mr. Shalhoub hardly sings at all. While I don't have the sheet music in front of me, having seen the show, I would guess that he sings roughly 32-64 bars in the entire show.
Read MoreOver the past couple of months, I've heard from more than one person that they are concerned that the over-commercialization of Broadway will mean that less "artistic" and original musicals will be recognized by the Tony Awards.
While I think they're overreacting, I don't think their concerns are completely unfounded. After all, this past year, there wasn't a single musical that wasn't based on a movie or TV show or that wasn't a jukebox collection.
Read MoreThis morning the nominations were announced for the 2018 Tony Awards. As per usual there were a number of surprises and snubs in virtually every category. Let's break it down and also see how we did with our own nominee predictions.
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