A musical based on volume two, part five, of Tolstoy’s War and Peace pipped Bette Midler’s crowd-pleasing return to Broadway as the most nominated production on this year’s Tonys shortlist.
Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812, which began life in 2012 at a non-profit theatre in New York’s Hell’s Kitchen, picked up 12 nominations.
Many observers had predicted Hello Dolly!, with 71-year-old Midler triumphant in the starring role, would be the biggest recipient. Instead, it picked up a healthy 10 followed by Dear Evan Hansen with nine.
In the straight play categories A Doll’s House, Part 2, an imagined sequel to the Ibsen classic, had the highest number of nominations with eight, followed by Oslo, a London-bound “intellectual thriller” exploring the backstory to the 1993 Israel-Palestine peace agreement.
After Hamilton’s domination in 2016, this year saw a far more even spread among productions vying for Tonys, awards that can make or break productions.
For once, the Brits were not coming. Apart from the Old Vic’s co-production of Groundhog Day the Musical – which won seven nominations including best director of a musical for Old Vic artistic director Matthew Warchus – there was precious little for British talent.
Among the strongest and most intriguing categories this year is the best leading performance by an actress in a play. All hugely established and accomplished figures, it pits Cate Blanchett – remarkably, a Broadway debutante – against two-time winner Jennifer Ehle, along with Sally Field, Laura Linney and Laurie Metcalf.
Corey Hawkins, best known as the action hero lead in Fox TV’s 24: Legacy, is in contention for best leading actor in a play for his role in Six Degrees of Separation. He is up against Kevin Kline, Jefferson Mays, Chris Cooper and 78-year-old Denis Arndt.
To absolutely zero surprise, Midler is nominated in the best actress musical category for her leading role in Hello Dolly! It is an unashamedly old-fashioned production and, reportedly, her voice is sometimes a touch raspy, but critics have lapped it up.
The Guardian’s Alexis Soloski wrote: “The spirit of the show is so infectious, and Midler such an adored and adorable presence ... The audience applauds her at entrance, exit and several times in between.”
She will be favourite to pick up the top prize when the winners are announced on 11 June, but faces competition from two titanic and adored Broadway divas – Patti LuPone and Christine Ebersole, who star together in War Paint, a musical about the rise and rivalry of cosmetics entrepreneurs Elizabeth Arden and Helena Rubinstein.
The shortlist is completed by two women at the start of their careers: Eva Noblezada, who starred in the 2014 London revival of Miss Saigon before reprising the role in New York; and Denée Benton, who plays Natasha Rostova in Natasha, Pierre and the Great Comet of 1812.
The overwhelming success of that musical, based on just 70 pages of Tolstoy’s epic novel, is probably the biggest surprise in this year’s nominations, although it has been acclaimed by critics. The Guardian gave it five stars, with Soloski saying it felt “thrillingly unlike anything else on Broadway”.
With an “indie-folk-electro” score, the journey to Broadway has been a slow one, moving from the tiny off-Broadway venue Ars Nova, to a cabaret-style supper club in the Meatpacking District before arriving at the huge Imperial theatre.
Its leading man is the multiplatinum-selling pop star Josh Groban, who is nominated in the leading male musical category. He will be up against Groundhog Day’s Andy Karl, David Hyde Pierce in Hello Dolly!, Christian Borle in Falsettos and the probable favourite, Ben Platt for Dear Evan Hansen.
Platt, who appeared in the Pitch Perfect films, is just 23 but was recently named No 17 in Time magazine’s 100 most influential people list.
Winners in the 24 categories will be chosen by 850 industry insiders. Kevin Spacey will host the awards show next month from Radio City Music Hall, New York.
