College Students Weigh in on Theater Awards

By Allison Klamkin

As the 2008-2009 theater season comes to a close, college students weigh in on award predictions.
Shrek: The Musical is a favorite contender among students, along with Billy Elliot, which garnered 15 Tony Award nominations, Next to Normal, and 9 to 5, which led the pack at the Drama Desk Awards with a record-breaking 15 nominations, while only receiving four Tony nominations.
Gary DeMedeiros, a freshman Drama major at Hofstra, has seen a few of this season's nominated productions, including 13, Shrek, and The Marvelous Wonderettes.
He says, “Shrek's all-star cast was a phenomenal choice to bring liveliness to the stage. Farah Alvin simply illuminated the stage in The Marvelous Wonderettes, and Jason Robert Brown’s genius lyrical style is unforgettable.”
Jill Minarik, a sophomore Television Production major at Hofstra has been attending Broadway shows since she was young.
This season she has only seen The Marvelous Wonderettes, but says that “From what I’ve heard, I think the choices were pretty good. I was a bit surprised with some of them, though, such as White Christmas receiving six Drama Desk nominations.”
Shawn Bolduc, a senior Music major at Rhode Island College has made several trips into NYC to attend the theatre and has seen Next to Normal, HAIR, 9 to 5, [title of show], and Liza’s at the Palace.
Bolduc rates the new revival of HAIR as “One of the best overall productions of a show I have ever seen. The entire cast was wonderful and the overall production was so organic and real,” with Liza’s at the Palace being “one of the greatest highlights of my theatre-going career.”
Several awards are given each season honoring distinguished new productions and performances, both on and off-Broadway.
This past year saw 47 plays and musicals dim their lights on the Great White Way but 51 new productions have opened in the same time span.
Minarik says “The Marvelous Wonderettes is an amazing show. It’s cute; it’s got great music, a great plot line, awesome costumes, it’s everything I look for in a musical.”
As far as their predictions as to which shows will take home awards, Minarik says, “Farah Alvin should definitely win Best Featured Actress in a Musical at the Drama Desks for The Marvelous Wonderettes, while Daniel Radcliffe is my pick for Best Actor in a Play for Equus, and Shrek for Best Musical,” based on the word-of-mouth she’s heard about both Shrek and Equus.
DeMedeiros says, “9 to 5 and Billy Elliot are both going to be big winners at every awards ceremony this season. However I do feel when it comes to acting awards, Shrek might take the cake, based on the show’s phenomenal cast.”
Although Bolduc didn’t care for 9 to 5, as he found the show too full of fluff. He says, “Next to Normal has some really great moments and Alice Ripley is phenomenal in the lead role of Diane. I also think HAIR will take home the award for Best Revival.”
Minarik also says that nominations are not only based on production value, but also on a show’s popularity. “The more popularity a show has, the better ticket sales will be, which helps keep the show running on Broadway, and having multiple award nominations can only add to that,” she says.
Complete lists of nominees for the 2008-2009 Tony, Drama Desk and Drama League Awards can be found here:
2008-2009 Tony Award Nominees
2008-2009 Drama Desk Nominees
2008-2009 Drama League Nominees