ADRIAN FLORIDO, HOST:
Broadway’s biggest night is the Tony Awards. They are airing live from Radio City tomorrow night on CBS and Paramount+. Reporter Jeff Lunden has seen every show on Broadway this season, and he is here to talk about what to look out for. Jeff, welcome.
JEFF LUNDEN, BYLINE: Thank you, Adrian.
FLORIDO: For people who haven’t been paying attention to the Broadway season, what are the big shows this year?
LUNDEN: This year, the most buzzy shows are revivals. On the musical side, it’s “Ragtime” and “CATS The Jellicle Ball,” which takes the Andrew Lloyd Webber show and puts it in the world of drag ballroom – think a runway and outrageous costumes. And on the play side, Arthur Miller’s “Death Of A Salesman,” with Nathan Lane as Willy Loman and a particularly intense performance from Laurie Metcalf as his wife, Linda.
(SOUNDBITE OF PLAY, “DEATH OF A SALESMAN”)
LAURIE METCALF: (As Linda Loman) I don’t say he’s a great man. Willy Loman never made a lot of money. His name was never in the paper, and he isn’t the finest character that ever lived. But he’s a human being, and a terrible thing is happening to him, so attention must be paid.
FLORIDO: Sounds like a gut-wrenching performance.
LUNDEN: Yeah, I think she’s going to win a Tony for it.
FLORIDO: Let’s pay attention to those musical revivals that you mentioned. “Ragtime” is based on a novel from E.L. Doctorow, and it’s an epic sweep of a historical story. What’s exciting to people about this production?
LUNDEN: It is epic, a huge cast and huge orchestra telling a story from the early 20th century. But previous productions had a lot of scenery, and this one focuses squarely on the actors and the intertwined stories of Jewish immigrants, white suburbanites and the Black community in Harlem. So it’s really not surprising that a lot of the cast is up for Tonys. And I think that Caissie Levy playing Mother and Joshua Henry playing Coalhouse Walker with his booming baritone will take home the best actor awards in a musical.
(SOUNDBITE OF MUSICAL, “RAGTIME”)
JOSHUA HENRY: (As Coalhouse Walker, singing) Go out and tell our story to your daughters and your sons. Make them hear you.
FLORIDO: Jeff, are there no new musicals on your list? And is there a musical that you think might sweep the awards this year the way “Hamilton” or “The Producers” did back in their day?
LUNDEN: It was a surprisingly thin year for musicals. Last year, there were 16 eligible. This year, there were only six, and two of them flopped very quickly. So, of the four remaining, I think “Schmigadoon!” which is a gentle parody of Golden Age musicals that started on Apple TV, has the best chance of winning several awards, including best musical.
(SOUNDBITE OF MUSICAL, “SCHMIGADOON!”)
UNIDENTIFIED ACTORS: (As characters, singing) Schmigadoon, where the sun shines bright from July to June, and the air’s as sweet as a macaroon.
FLORIDO: It is usually musicals that are the big news, but we reported earlier that it’s plays that have really captured Broadway this season. What plays are the potential big winners here?
LUNDEN: Bess Wohl’s semi-autobiographical play “Liberation,” which ran in the fall and isn’t even open now, is the favorite to pick up a Tony. It looks at the women of her mother’s generation in a feminist group in Ohio in the 1970s, and it’s already picked up a Pulitzer Prize and several other awards. But there’s a new import from England – “Giant,” starring John Lithgow as the prickly antisemitic children’s author Roald Dahl, which may get the 80-year-old actor a Tony this year.
FLORIDO: Can listeners expect any of these musicals or plays to tour after they’ve seen snippets of them at the Tonys?
LUNDEN: The Tonys usually don’t get very high ratings, but they are a great marketing tool for Broadway. And “Schmigadoon!” “The Lost Boys,” “Ragtime,” “Titanique” and even the one-person play “Every Brilliant Thing” – which was a huge hit with Daniel Radcliffe this season – have announced national tours starting next year. So they’ll be coming to theaters all across the country soon.
FLORIDO: I’ve been speaking with reporter Jeff Lunden about what to expect at tomorrow’s Tony Awards. Jeff, thanks.
LUNDEN: Thanks so much, Adrian. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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