When the Tony Award nominations are announced on Tuesday, May 3, “Hamilton,” Broadway’s biggest blockbuster in years, is likely to come away with the most. The big question will be whether it can equal or beat the total of fifteen nods, the record now held by “The Producers” and “Billy Elliot, the Musical.” Both shows went on to win the top prize, Best Musical, and you can bet the bank that “Hamilton,” already one of the most honored plays in the history of musical theater, will be similarly crowned.The suspense on June 12, when the awards are doled out on a live CBS telecast, will be not only be how many Tonys go to “Hamilton” but also in which categories might the other shows steal its thunder. Ten new musicals opened this season, with possibly another to be added on April 29. (More later on the pending decision whether “Shuffle Along” is to be considered a revival.) In the highly-coveted Best Musical category, one can reasonably expect two well-reviewed musicals associated with marquee names to join “Hamilton”: “Waitress,” with songs by Sara Bareilles, and “Bright Star,” with a book and songs by Steve Martin and Edie Brickell. If that holds true, then there will be seven others to compete for the fourth and final slot — “Allegiance,” “Amazing Grace,” and “Disaster!” can probably be discounted. That would leave the Tony nominators mulling the virtues of “School of Rock,” the Andrew Lloyd Webber hit based on the Jack Black movie; “On Your Feet!” the Gloria and Emilio Estefan bio-musical with the propulsive Latin beat; “American Psycho,” the Duncan Sheik musical based on the lurid Brett Easton Ellis novel; and “Tuck Everlasting,” the whimsical musical derived from the Disney movie about the temptation of eternal life. The nominators have their work cut out for them as a strong argument can be made for each. A thumb on the scale might be in favor of Andrew Lloyd Webber, who is enjoying his first commercial success on Broadway in nearly three decades with “School of Rock.” But a propensity to vote in that direction might be complicated with a choice that will be facing the Tony administration committee concerning “Shuffle Along,” a musical that boasts some of the most stellar names both behind and in front of the footlights: Audra McDonald, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Billy Porter, Brandon Victor Dixon, and Joshua Henry, with two-time Tony Award winner George C. Wolfe writing and directing, and Savion Glover, the pre-eminent tap dancer of his generation, choreographing.The producer is Scott Rudin, not only one of the most brilliant and prolific of Broadway impresarios (“The Book of Mormon”) but also one of the most cleverly tactical. It is he who has petitioned the committee for “Shuffle Along” to be considered a revival, most probably because it stands a better chance of winning the Tony Award for Best Revival than going up against “Hamilton” for Best Musical. The lavish $12 million production is based on the 1921 Eubie Blake-Noble Sissle musical, which was a milestone in Broadway history: a smash hit attracting the white downtown crowd and one of the first to play to fully integrated audiences. It also launched the careers of future icons such as Paul Robeson, Florence Mills, and Josephine Baker.The issue for the Tony administration committee is summed up in this production’s addition to the original title: “Shuffle Along, Or, the Making of the Musical Sensation of 1921 and All That Followed.” While the original had a thin plot about scheming politicians in fictional Jimtown, Wolfe takes a cursory look at the play itself and instead uses the phenomenon to contextualize and examine the blessings and burdens facing black entertainers of that era. “Shuffle Along” opens on Thursday, April 28, bringing the season to an official end. The reviews, especially their evaluation of Wolfe’s wholly reimagined libretto, may weigh on the committee’s decision.What’s fascinating is that even if “Shuffle Along” is ordained a revival, it will join a roster of very strong productions vying for the four slots in the Best Revival category, all of which earned positive, and in some cases rave, reviews: “The Color Purple,” “Spring Awakening,” “Fiddler on the Roof,” and “She Loves Me.” Tuesday, May 3, is shaping up to be a most revealing day for the Broadway season.
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