The Tony's are this weekend and here are my thoughts on who I think should win.
Before we get into it I should point out I have not seen every show this season so these opinions are based on what I did see and my knowledge of the performers themselves. And honestly is more an excuse to ramble on about them.
First one of my absolute favorite Broadway Actors. Honestly I love him he can do no wrong in my mind and I am still riding the high from seeing him live on Broadway in April Bryce Pinkham. Now he has only been nominated once before back in 2014 for best leading actor in a musical for originating Monty Navarro in "A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder" honestly one of my favorite shows. I unfortunately did not see that one live but I don't actually live in New York and at the time was still a child so I couldn't decide I wanted to go to New York and just do it. Anyway not the point. I believe he should have won the Tony for that performance but given that he lost to Neil Patrick Harris for his performance in "Hedwig and The Angry Inch" I suppose I can forgive them.
Now Bryce is nominated again this year for Best Supporting Actor in a musical for his role as The Arbiter in "Chess"
First of all this show is absolutely brilliant and if you haven't seen it yet. Run to the theater before it closes. I am so disappointed It's closing early. I was already planning to see it again when I went in September but alas I cannot 😭
Anyway back to Bryce, he absolutely stole the show for me. His performance was incredible. And he adds such incredible humor to the show. I just love him so much. I have yet to find something he has been a part of that I didn't enjoy and absolutely love his role in particular. I adore him. If you've been on my page for awhile you obviously know I love Stolas I've posted about Helluva Boss before. Superhero is another incredible show he did that was technically Off-Broadway 2019 the cast recording is on Spotify I highly recommend. Bryce plays the lead role of Jim who is the superhero . "Not like the Movies" is probably one of my favorite songs on the album. "My dad the superhero" is also fantastic that wasn't sung by Bryce though that was Kyle McArthur who played Simon. The entire cast is incredible so listen to that one if you haven't.
This post is already getting long and I've only talked about Bryce so if you want me to make another post rambling about how amazing Bryce is I can do that but let's talk about the other people I think should win.
Also from Chess we have Nicholas Christopher for Best Actor in a Leading Role in a musical . Holy shit where to start, I was not as familiar with him going in to see Chess. I feel like I might have heard his name in relation to a show. Oh he is playing King George in Hamilton right now. Kind of thing. But after seeing him in Chess oh my gods did he absolutely blow me away. He stole the show for me as much as Bryce. I knew going in Bryce would be one of my favorites. Full disclosure I went to Chess to see Bryce and to a lesser extent Aaron Tyvett. But Aaron it was more he would be cool to see at some point but he's not one of my favorites. I do like him. Anyway back to Nicholas, holy shit. The talent of this man. He blew me away so much that after he had been on stage for maybe five minutes I was already sitting there thinking damn I love you. He made my favorites list so fucking fast after five minutes of one show. And by the end I was hooked. I need to see you again. He after one performance got himself on my list of actors that I will buy the tickets just because you're in it and I don't care if you are standing perfectly still on an empty stage in the most boring costume reading the phone book in a monotone voice completely emotionless. The most boring wtf why would anyone think this should be a show it's a terrible kind of thing that I would never in my life choose to pay money for but just because you are in it I'm there. There are not many of those. Bryce is one of those and I have a handful of others. Anyway to make that list after one performance is a testament to his talent. Especially cuz I'm a big old theater nerd. I love Broadway. Love musicals and plays and all that Jazz ( yes that is meant to be a Chicago reference, it doesn't have to be but with me it is)
Anyway if you know me you know I know a lot of performers and a lot of shows so making it on my favorite list is saying something. Which doesn't mean much to them since I'm not important but just painting a picture for y'all to understand.
So yeah long story short Nicholas Christopher is amazing and I think he should win. Also he is the sweetest person ever. When I staged doored at Chess he talked to everyone and took pictures with us all. He must have been out there for at least an hour. And when I met him he was so sweet. He signed my playbill. And I happened to have a Stolas sticker on my phone and so he saw it and he like I see you're a Bryce fan too. Which okay first off you know enough about your costar to not only know vaguely that he voice acts or that he's in a popular animated series or even his character name or the show title. But to know his character on site when you see a small sticker on a random fan phone case. Then you choose to actively acknowledge it and then seem genuinely happy when said fan of course says yes I am and starts telling you about how much they loved him in this show but also how "Gentlmans guide to love and murder" is one of their favorites. To which he replied you must have adored him in this show. Which okay you are adorable for using adored but yes I did. But that comment tells me he knows enough to know Gentlmans guide to know that Monty and the Arbiter are similar character types and have sort of a similar role and comedic style. The best part is there are no cameras, and Bryce is not out there. He didn't stage door which I was a bit disappointed by but I'll catch him sometime. So the point is there is no reason for this to be performitive the only person close enough to us to hear what we were saying was the security guard. He could have not said anything about it and I wouldn't have thought anything of it because it is something most people wouldn't notice. But he noticed it and chose to acknowledge it making that moment about more than just him. Honestly that just makes me want to support him more because it shows that beyond just being an incredibly talented performer he is a genuinely kind person and supportive of his fellow performers. That is the energy we need more of. He opened that door and seemed genuinely happy I had such nice things to say about Bryce.
Lastly from Chess Hanna Cruz was nominated for best Supporting actress in a musical. And yes she was only on stage for 23 minutes but what a 23 minutes. She is wonderful. To be nominated for a Tony with only 23 minutes of stage time during a show that is almost 3 hours long. 2 hours and 40 minutes to be exact . But to blow everyone away in 23 minutes that they nominate you for a Tony is insane and incredible. That speaks for itself I feel like. And honestly it is well deserved. She was phenomenal as Svetlata. Such a mind-blowing performance.
Honestly this entire cast was incredible and I thought the show was amazing. I'm surprised it wasn't more popular.
In the category or Best Leading actor in a play the obvious and In my opinion the correct choice is Nathan Lane for Death of a Salesman. That is such a beautiful show and the way he played it was so incredibly moving and heartbreaking. Which it should be. It's one of those shows everyone should see once in their life. And this cast is just phenomenal. Nathan Lane is a legend for a reason.
Continuing talking about Death of a Salesman Laurie Metcalf for best featured actress in a play. Another incredible talent. She was perfect in this show. I think she deserves the win.
Christopher Abbott should also win best actor in a featured role for Death of a Salesman. This cast is just spectacular
Best performance by an actress in a Leading role in a musical. Sarah Chase smigadoon. She is amazing and so fun in this role.
I think Smigadoon should win for best musical. It is just such a fun show and a real love letter to golden age musicals which is just everything to me. I couldn't stop smiling the entire time. Another show I would love to see again if I can.
Best revival of a play, Death of a Salesman hands down
Anyway those are categories I have thoughts on.










