Friday Hot Guy: Bobby Cannavale

Don't hate me when I tell you that Bobby Cannavale is not only today's Hot Guy, not only starring in his own ABC show this fall, and not only the sexiest Jersey Boy in history...but he's also one of the guys I'll be spending my afternoon with at my day job. Yeah, I know, you hate me. But if you ask nicely, I'll be happy to stare into his deep, rich eyes just for you. [Related: Raphael Nadal, Carlo Masi, Chris Meloni, Gael Garcia Bernal]

Previous FHG: Naveen Andrews / Jensen Atwood / Jamie Bamber / Javier Bardem / Lorenzo Basso / Tyson Beckford / Valon Behrami / Gael Garcia Bernal / Gael Garcia Bernal 2 / Big Roger / James Blake / Jon Bon Jovi / James Bond / Jason Borish / Tom Brady / Marlon Brando / Reggie Bush / Santiago Cabrera / Jake Campione / Bobby Cannavale / Chris Carmack / Sean Cassidy / Matt Christianer / James Clement / John Cena / Keith Hamilton Cobb / Ben Cohen / Anderson Cooper / Matt Damon / Chris Daughtry / Damon DeMarco / Adam Dexter / Vin Diesel / Chris Evans / Sean Faris / Colin Farrell / Travis Fimmel / Pierre Fitch / Flo Rida / Dean Geyer / Nate Gonzalez / Kevin Gould / Logan Marshall-Green / Adrian Grenier / Josh Hartnett / Christian Helland / Daniel Henney / Juan Martín Hernández and Sean Lamont / Karl Herzer / Dynast Hollis / Josh Holloway / Djimon Hounsou / Charlie Hunnam / Cheyenne Jackson / Josh Jacques / Jase / Rusty Joiner / Takeshi Kaneshiro / Gregory Kieth / Taylor Kitsch / Boris Kodjoe / Lenny Kravitz / Reichen Lehmkuhl / Blake Lewis / Jason Lewis / Paul Licuria / LL Cool J / Mario Lopez / Kellan Lutz / George Platt Lynes / Make Me A Supermodel / Leandro Maeder / Malik / ManrammerSF / Nick Manzoni / Carlo Masi / Maven / Chris Meloni / Frederic Michalak / Frederic Michalak and Clement Poitrenaud / Mike / Sal Mineo / MusclePrince / Raphael Nadal / Edilson Nascimento / Dave Navarro /Romulo Arantes Neto / Daniel Norrell / Brett Novek / Vivek Oberoi / Josh Ohl / Dror Okavi / Tito Ortiz / Randy Orton / Kevin Peake / Darius Peek / Mateas Perez / Ryan Phillippe / Brad Pitt / Jeremy Piven / Brady Quinn / Ramon / Toby Rand / Reality TV Hotties / Cauã Reymond / Ryan Reynolds / The Rock / Bruno Rosendo / Sebastián Rulli / Matthew Rush / Bruno Santos / Dominic Savo / Seann William Scott / Jake Shears / Caleb Smith / Paul Telfer / Michael Trucco / Charles Turner / Simon Webbe / Tom Welling / Pete Wentz / Alton Williams / Pharrell Williams / Rafa Yapur / Ainslee

A Week Of Reviewing Nearly Everything (The Final Day)

Erasure, Live at the Royal Albert Hall (site)
Sometimes it seems that Erasure releases a live concert DVD after every single album. (Amazon counts at least four in the last five years.) The latest, which includes songs from their stellar CD from last year, Light at the End of the World, is more sumptuously captured than most, with a very immediate sense of the no-frills stage action and a saturated use of color. Although lead singer Andy Bell is looking a little worse for wear these days, his voice is in stellar form, providing masterful interpretations of hits like "Drama!," "Love To Hate You," and "A Little Respect." The half-dozen new songs fare pretty well, too, including a rousing "I Could Fall In Love With You." There's a rather amusing half-hour documentary about Erasure fans as well, some of whom have a rather energetic experience.

Simone, Simone on Simone (site)
Simone is the daughter of revered music legend Nina Simone; if you know her at all beyond her famous lineage, it's probably due to her stints in the Broadway companies of Rent and Aida. Her first full-length solo album is a tribute to her mother, but anyone expecting mere mimicry is in for a rude awakening. For one thing, the younger Simone's voice is a totally different instrument, with a Broadway belter's chops, trained rhythms and startling power. (Almost as a corollary, though, there's little of her mother's naked soulfulness or vulnerability.) The album is lovely, well-produced and accessible in the way that only jazz-crossover albums can be. But Simone rarely attempts anything daring with the material, often settling into a groove and staying there. It may be unfair to compare her to the elder Simone, but it's a comparison that she nevertheless invites with this recording. The jury is still out, however, on whether she'll reach the stratospheric musical heights her mother once reached so effortlessly.

Hilary McRae, Through These Walls (site)
Earlier this week, I read Natasha Bedingfield the riot act about her uninspired new CD. Had she made an album more like Hilary McRae's debut disc, Through These Walls, I would have been much kinder. Why? Because it features the kind of authenticity lacking in so much of pop music today: complex chord changes and textured instrumentation, a real horn section (scored by Charlie Calello, who has created seminal horn parts for Frank Sinatra and Bruce Springsteen), and a solidly assured voice smothering the whole affair in delicious, unexpected melodies. Sure, it's a little retro...anyone who uses real horns instead of keyboards today is retro. And there's nothing McRae is doing that hasn't been done better by Laura Nyro, Carly Simon, Swing Out Sister or Corinne Bailey Rae. But I defy you to find a catchier tune than "Consider Me Gone" anywhere in the Top 40, or a more hummable bounce than "Why Can't Now" as you're walking down the street with your iPod. A shimmering slice of audio joy for the summer of 2008...this is the disc I'll be enjoying in Central Park on every sunny weekend until Labor Day.

Au Revoir, Idol: Syesha Mercado

Well, in case you were wondering who the best American Idol was last night, I'm here to tell you...it was Fantasia. Girlfriend rocked it out with "Bore Me," and in the process reminded us, perhaps inadvertently (perhaps not), of how far Idol has fallen in the last few seasons. Say what you will about her, or Underwood, Clarkson, Daughtry, Studdard and Aiken...but they are all in a different vocal and performance league from Hicks, Sparks, and our current finalists, the Davids Known As Archuleta and Cook.

Which tells you, if you didn't already know, that Syesha Mercado ended her charming come-from-behind bid last night. It was hardly an unexpected eviction; the judges pretty much doomed her on Tuesday with their harsh comments, and her theatricalized version of Peggy Lee's "Fever" didn't do her any favors, either. (Idol lives in that rarefied part of Middle America that doesn't allow sexuality and teenagers to co-exist; a number like "Fever," with its potent undercurrent of erotic energy, was destined to turn off many conservative viewers, as "Jesus Christ Superstar" did to Carly a few weeks back. Middle America also, by the way, prefers to believe that David Archuleta has no genitalia of any kind.)

Now it's all about the Serious, Brooding Musician (Cook) versus the Angelic, Baby-Faced Crooner (Archuleta). Which David will you be voting for? And more importantly, which one of their albums will you buy next fall? For me, the answer is clear on both counts: Cook, all the way.

The Final Sendoff: Syesha Mercado, "One Rock and Roll Too Many"

Previous American Idolatry: Yoko Ono, Where Art Thou?, Au Revoir Amanda, God Bless Idol Country, Au Revoir Chikezie, Giving What Back, Exactly?, Idol Gave Back (And I'm Friggin' Exhausted), Au Revoir Michael Johns, David Archuleta Is Like Sarah Brightman In Drag, Au Revoir Carly Smithson, Songs Sung Really, Really Blue, Au Revoir Brooke White, The Heart of Rock 'N' Roll Is..., Au Revoir Jason Castro, In Search of Pop Gods and Goddesses

The Nearest Book Meme

When The Film Experience tags you for a meme, you damned well better do it...so here goes...

1. Pick up the nearest book.
2. Open to page 123.
3. Locate the fifth sentence.
4. Post the next three sentences on your blog and in so doing...
5. Tag five people, and acknowledge who tagged me.

The only book within arms reach of this desk at the moment is the Hugo and Nebula-winning novel Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card, which I was determined to re-read a few weeks ago (the first time since high school, I think):

She did not let her parents know, and above all never hinted to Peter how often she thought about Ender, how often she wrote him letters that she knew he would not answer. And when Mother and Father had announced to them that they were leaving the city to move to North Carolina, of all places, Valentine knew that they never expected to see Ender again. They were leaving the only place where he knew to find them.

Ender's Game is a classic of science fiction, but it's not one of my personal favorites; I'm more of a Rendezvous with Rama, Dune, Chung Kuo, Hyperion, Parable of the Sower guy...I only enjoy sci-fi in a larger social context of modern day issues. (Hence my fascination with a certain Battlestar, which by the by, had the best episode of its four-season run last week. Wow. Mind blown.) The "Ender" novels are interesting, but a little adolescent...as stories about children should be, I guess. I see a parallel to Harry Potter in them, all that rite of passage into adulthood stuff. Can't you see how stupid I am about books?

So I'm tagging smarter people than myself: My Cabinet of Distractions, A Strange Interlude, Stinkylulu, My Grey Garden, and Low Resolution.

A Week Of Reviewing Nearly Everything (Part Three)

The next installment in our week o' reviewing is the darkest in the series...kind of like that third Harry Potter movie, where everything got gloomy once Alfonso Cuaron took over. Prepare for some rough waters ahead, kids...

Plantlife, Time Traveller (site)
Producer Jack Splash (best known for his recent work with Alicia Keys, Raheen DeVaughn and John Legend, has created this conceptual alter ego to explore, apparently, his love of retro soul influences. (Any album that features tracks called "Rollerskate Jam" and "Be Beautiful (LuvBooogie2)" has a bygone era on the brain.) And as these indulgences go, Time Traveller isn't too bad; there's a early-Prince fabulousness to "Outta Control" and a Pointer Sisters-like beat to "U Messed It Up So We Took It Back." But if you're looking for a truly substantial trip through time, best to look elsewhere.

Portishead, Third (site)
Is it possible to admire electronic outfit Portishead as musicians...while admitting that I can't stand their records? I readily admit that the problem is mine, not theirs; while it's easy to recognize the superb production values and thoughtful approach to lyrics and instrumentation, it seems difficult to love their music as an entity unto itself. It has a coldness, a detachment, a disassociative element that I personally don't respond to. Returning after many years to active recording and touring, Portishead's legions of fans will find both their signature sound intact and a forward-thinking evolution on Third. For me, however, I'd admire it from afar, thank you very much.

Sarah Brightman, Symphony (site)
Up until now, the most disappointing thing about Brightman's recording career has been its wastefulness...a former Broadway starlet with a distinctive (if uneven) soprano range, her albums have often been overly-theatrical flights of fancy, "concept" albums that lack even one solid idea. With Symphony, however, Brightman's career hits an all-time low. Overblown and undercooked, the disc's Enya-on-acid formula is lyrically vapid ('the perfume of pain') to the point of idiocy; her orchestral arrangements are so earth-trembling, even Jim Steinman would hang his head in shame. For serious fans only, if there is such a thing.

The Top Ten Songs In The Universe

Bananarama : Love, Leave, Forget
Cazals : Somebody, Somewhere (Moulinex Mix)
Crystal Castles : Vanished
Donna Summer : Stamp Your Feet (Jason Nevins Extended Mix)
Go Home Productions : Rapture Riders
Jill Scott and Rev King : Golden (Chew Fu Ny Fix)
Modjo : What I Mean (The Crayon Aloud Mix)
Scarlett Johansson : I Don't Want To Grow Up
The Ting Tings : Shut Up and Let Me Go
Yazoo : Situation (Hercules and Love Affair Mix)
Classic of the Week : Mel and Kim : That's The Way It Is (12" Mix)

American Idolatry: In Search Of Pop Gods and Goddesses

Well, here we are, at the penultimate round of the seventh American Idol. How will we remember this year, a decade hence? Probably as the year the Idol cracked, the year that the ratings slipped, the year that the talent became far too obvious in their media-savvy presentation. But will we also remember it as the year Idol birthed a superstar? That's what I was looking for last night, a sign of who has the goods to be more than just a winner...a musical force of nature. A Kelly or a Daughtry, not a Studdard or a Hicks.

Did I find what I was looking for? Like a real musical legend, Bono, once sang...I'm still looking.

David Archuleta
Fashion Report: Black Members-Only Jacket, skinny tie...what is this, Ric Ocasek Tribute Night? For the second song, he changed into a...brown t-shirt. A fashion icon he is not.
Paula's Pick: "And So It Goes," Billy Joel
ModFab Score: B
Certainly pretty, and the a capella opening verse was a nice dramatic touch. But listening to it, I found myself wondering who on God's green earth would buy this as a single? My grandmother, perhaps. It isn't contemporary in the least; it feels like I'm watching Teen Week on Star Search. We know by now that he's got a pure voice and a cute smile, but is he an international pop star in our ironic, jaded age? Not for a second.
David's Choice: "With You," Chris Brown
ModFab Score: B
You can't more current than Chris Brown, and the easy rhythms of the song were well-suited to David's postmodern crooning. Was it dazzling? Was it spectacular? The only fair answer is no. It's simply not enough for him to lean on his adorable persona to get by...and a good vocal performance isn't going to impress viewers already familiar with him. He needs a game-changing moment, and he needs it soon.
Producer's Pick: "Longer," Dan Fogelberg
ModFab Score: B-
Ugh...what a terrible song. But probably perfect for a kid who channels Air Supply like the rest of us drink water. His voice definitely showed the strain of the evening by this point, but the melody is incredibly easy to sing, so I'm not sure anyone besides my husband (the professional classical singer) noticed. I ask the same question I started with: is he the next international music star? And if so, what about "Longer" proved that to you?

Syesha Mercado
Fashion Report: Dripping diamonds in a beaded gold evening gown, looking like a siren from the golden age of jazz. For the second song, she updated it into a beaded, sparkling minidress and stilettos. More spangles in the final song, a shimmering top over black hip-hugging pants. Hot, sister. Hot.
Randy's Pick: "If I Ain't Got You," Alicia Keys
ModFab Score: B+
Call me an old softie, but I think this was the perfect marriage of performer and material. Sure, she's not as gifted as Ms. Keys vocally, and the champagne evening gown wasn't exactly modern. But she really rocked the vocal, and I'm hoping that audiences will recognize her for it. She's facing an uphill climb to beat either of the Davids, but this was a good start upwards toward the peak.
Syesha's Choice: "Fever," Peggy Lee
ModFab Score: B
Wholeheartedly embracing her inherent theatricality, her vampish performance -- complete with the Liza Minnelli-in-Cabaret chair and an upright bass player -- danced right on the line between sexy and trampy. I'm not sure how it'll play in Middle America, especially with the grandmothers who are so completely in love with Little David. (She got creamed, surprisingly, by Paula, and not surprisingly by Simon.) But judging her on the musical presentation and the visual presence, it was good. It wasn't a pop star, but it was good.
Producer's Pick: "Hit Me Up," Gia Farrell
ModFab Score: B-
The most uptempo song of the evening, this clap-your-hands track also felt the most contemporary of the selections all night. She wiggled her hips and bounced it around, but I don't think she did anything with it that would convince voters to choose her over Archuleta. Paula was hard on her again...what does Paula have against her? Ultimately, Syesha was the underdog when the night began...and she didn't have that come-from-behind moment she desperately needed.

David Cook
Fashion Report: Black tuxedo jacket with t-shirt underneath. I guess this is an attempt at dressing up. I guess. He dressed down for the second number...just a black t-shirt. And for the big finale? He put the jacket back on. Definitely straight-guy fashion behavior.
Simon's Pick: "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face," Roberta Flack
ModFab Score: A
Simon threw him a curveball tune, for sure...unexpected and wildly against type. And if you were unsure about who should really win American Idol, the fact that David Cook made Flack's soulful ballad into a pop-rock tour de force should make it absolutely clear. Arguably, this might be my favorite performance of the entire season. As Kylie would say, Wow Wow Wow Wow.
David's Choice: "Dare You To Move," Switchfoot
ModFab Score: B
A wall of sound for the rock fans among the audience, a little sliding around the pitches for the rest of us. It was okay, but hardly spectacular. At this point in the evening, however, it was plenty, considering what had come before him in the second round.
Producers' Pick: "I Don't Wanna Miss A Thing," Aerosmith
ModFab Score: B
A string section...on an Aerosmith tune? I guess we can give him bonus points for a nontraditional arrangement (even if he did, ultimately, resort to power guitars in the final chorus). He didn't help himself by being a full note flat on the very last note. But does it matter, in the end? It was the ONLY song everyone in the audience knew completely by heart, a new-century classic (and with its Oscar-winning songwriter, Diane Warren, sitting in the audience...guess that must just be coincidence, right?). Cook may have had an erratic night, but he did more than enough to secure a spot in the finals...and, in all likelihood, to win the whole enchilada.

Best of Night: David Cook
Getting Cut On Wednesday: Syesha Mercado

Previous American Idolatry: Yoko Ono, Where Art Thou?, Au Revoir Amanda, God Bless Idol Country, Au Revoir Chikezie, Giving What Back, Exactly?, Idol Gave Back (And I'm Friggin' Exhausted), Au Revoir Michael Johns, Au Revoir Kristy Lee Flagwaver, David Archuleta is a Young Sarah Brightman in Drag, Au Revoir Carly Smithson, Songs Sung Really Really Blue, Au Revoir Brooke White, The Heart Of Rock and Roll Is...?, Au Revoir Jason Castro

A Week of Reviewing Nearly Everything (Part Two)

Continuing our week of new CDs and DVDs, here's the good, the bad, and the Bedingfield:

Natasha Bedingfield, Pocketful of Sunshine (site)
More middle-of-the-road pop from Britain's muted answer to Nelly Furtado. There's not one startling moment of surprise on this disc...it seems designed solely to appeal to those who loved her debut single, "Unwritten," a few years back. (I was not a fan.) There's a halfhearted attempt at Timbaland-lite currency on some tracks ("Pocketful of Sunshine"), faux-Mary J. Blige stylings on others ("Angel). But when, on the midtempo "Happy", she sings "it all seems meaningless," you know exactly how she feels.

Original Television Cast Recording, Evening Primrose (site)
Stephen Sondheim fans, take note: for a very limited time and in a very limited quantity, the long-desired recording of Evening Primrose -- a 1966 television musical on the ABC Stage 67 series, starring Anthony Perkins (Psycho) and Charmain Carr and broadcast only once -- has been released on CD. And what a delight it is; Primrose is a treasure trove for Sondheimanics, recorded and mastered with love and exquisite attention to detail. The awe-generating discovery is Perkins, who reveals himself to have a marvelous voice and a nuanced understanding of the material. Standout tracks include "If You Can Find Me, I'm Here" and "Take Me To The World," both of which have been recorded by other artists but never with such care and complexity. Maybe the best musical of 2008 is actually from 1966.

Pacifika, Asunción (site)
Born of a Peruvian-born singer and a Canadian guitarist and bassist, Pacifika is nearly overflowing with influences; in just the first track, "Sol," your can hear their palpable affection for flamenco and electronica, jazz and folk, pop and Latin rhythms. As you might guess about a musical stew like that, it's pretty much a mess. At best, Asuncion sounds like a Brazilian combo writing traveling music ("Libertad"); at worst, it's New Age easy listening. Lacking an authentic sound to call its own, this trio should take a step back, reassess, and pick a genre that can more effectively support their obvious musical chops.

Stage Addiction: 2008 Tony Nominations

Wow. Leave it to the Tonys to pull a few surprises, most notably the rejection of major titans of the theatre: Mel Brooks, Harvey Fierstein and Walt Disney. AND no love for Hollywood royalty, including the complete absence of Kevin Kline, Laura Linney, Frances McDormand, Morgan Freeman, Peter Gallagher, Terrence Howard, James Earl Jones, and more.

And what do we find in their place? Scrappy little musicals with Off-Broadway roots, and one helluva play from Chicago. Read on...

Best Play (ModFab Predix: 4 out of 4 correct)
August: Osage County
Rock 'N' Roll
The Seafarer
The 39 Steps

No surprises here. But read on, my friends, the shocks await you further down the page...

Best Musical (3/4)
Cry-Baby
In The Heights
Passing Strange
Xanadu

I'm at a loss as to how anyone thinks Cry-Baby is a better musical than A Catered Affair, but it's definitely a more commercial show, with a better chance to make money on the road. And there are some great people working on it, so I can't be too upset. (Still, I'd hate to be the poor guys and gals who have to have a production meeting with Harvey or Mel today.)

Best Book of a Musical (3/4)
Douglas Carter Beane, Xanadu
Mark O'Donnell and Thomas Meehan, Cry-Baby
Quiara Alegria Hudes, In The Heights
Stew and Heidi Rodewald, Passing Strange

See a trend developing? Clearly, the nominators liked Cry-Baby more than most critics, or most people, have. In this particular case, it was a moment of paying tribute to Meehan, who has in recent years become Mr. Broadway in this category.

Best Original Score (3/4)
Lin-Manuel Miranda, In The Heights
Alan Schlesinger and David Javerbaum, Cry-Baby
Alan Menken, Howard Ashman and Glenn Slater, The Little Mermaid
Stew and Heidi Rodewald, Passing Strange

Seeing the other trend? Boy, I totally missed the distaste the nominators would have for A Catered Affair...especially if they're willing to nominate the score of a 15-year-old animated film instead. I'm honestly surprised at the vitriol; it's an unexpected and difficult musical, but not an abysmally bad one. (For that, you'd have to go see Young Frankenstein, the other mega-musical skipped in the major categories.)

Best Revival of a Play (3/4)
Boeing-Boeing
The Homecoming
Les Liaisons Dangereuses
Macbeth

Steve On Broadway was right, as I half-expected: The Homecoming gets the final slot, over Top Girls. Sheesh, not a good day for complex material, huh? Not to say that Pinter isn't complex, but director Daniel Sullivan's got a showman's gift for crowd-pleasing, which he brought to the Pinter play. Seems to have worked.

Best Revival of a Musical (4/4)
Grease
Gypsy
South Pacific
Sunday in the Park with George

The only shock would have been to see Cry-Baby in this category, because the nominators liked it so much.

Best Performance By a Leading Actor in a Play (4/5)
Ben Daniels, Les Liaisons Dangereuses
Laurence Fishburne, Thurgood
Mark Rylance, Boeing-Boeing
Rufus Sewell, Rock 'N' Roll
Patrick Stewart, Macbeth

I'm a little surprised at the inclusion of Sewell over Nathan Lane, the belle of Broadway...I figured he was a bit of a shoo-in, considering how much audiences love seeing him in comic performances. But clearly the Tony folk were in a British mood; all of the nominees save Fishburne are from the U.K. That may not be a first-ever, but it's certainly rare.

Best Performance By a Leading Actress in a Play (3/5)
Eve Best, The Homecoming
Deanna Dunagan, August: Osage County
Kate Fleetwood, Macbeth
S. Epatha Merkerson, Come Back, Little Sheba
Amy Morton, August: Osage County

The British obsession continues, with the inclusion of Best and Fleetwood here...but this time, it's far harder to understand the logic. Especially when it comes to Fleetwood, who by any measure just isn't very good in the part. (My take: she makes very obvious choices, and telegraphs them to the back row without any dexterity.) This is also not a very good sign for Cat on a Hot Tin Roof...a nomination for Anika Noni Rose would have sent a subtle signal of support for the popular but panned revival.

Best Performance By a Leading Actor in a Musical (4/5)
Daniel Evans, Sunday in the Park with George
Lin-Manuel Miranda, In The Heights
Stew, Passing Strange
Paulo Szot, South Pacific
Tom Wopat, A Catered Affair

While I'm overjoyed that Evans scored a nod for his bravura turn as Georges Seurat, it comes at the expense of ModFab Boyfriend Cheyenne Jackson, so it's very bittersweet. Also of note: Catered Affair finally gets on the board, with a nomination for the eminently deserving Wopat.

Best Performance By a Leading Actress in a Musical (5/5)
Kerry Butler, Xanadu
Patti LuPone, Gypsy
Kelli O'Hara, South Pacific
Faith Prince, A Catered Affair
Jenna Russell, Sunday in the Park with George

And finally, ModFab gets a perfect 5 out of 5...but truthfully, this wasn't very difficult. No one else even came close to these five ladies this season.

Best Performance By a Featured Actor in a Play (1/5)
Bobby Cannavale, Mauritius
Raúl Esparza, The Homecoming
Conleth Hill, The Seafarer
Jim Norton, The Seafarer
David Pittu, Is He Dead?

My shakiest category, and I knew it would be. But who would have predicted five nominees, all of whom are from already-closed shows? I'd say that Norton was the frontrunner, but he may split votes with his scene partner Hill. Does that give Tony magnet David Pittu (Lovemusik) -- who I didn't even mention as a long shot -- a chance at a win? Or shall the Tony voters try to address last year's sore loser for Company, and give a consolation prize to Esparza?

Best Performance By a Featured Actress in a Play (3/5)
Sinead Cusack, Rock 'N' Roll
Mary McCormack, Boeing-Boeing
Laurie Metcalf, November
Martha Plimpton, Top Girls
Rondi Reed, August: Osage County

The most egregious omission so far, in my opinion, has to be Elizabeth Marvel, who lived up to her last name with a near-Shakespearean turn in Top Girls. But who can question the inclusion of Rondi Reed, so memorable as the loud, bitter aunt in August: Osage County? I certainly can't. (Well, I can say one other thing...Marvel should have been up for Leading, not Supporting.)

Best Performance By a Featured Actor in a Musical (4/5)
Daniel Breaker, Passing Strange
Danny Burstein, South Pacific
Robin De Jesús, In The Heights
Christopher Fitzgerald, Young Frankenstein
Boyd Gaines, Gypsy

It is one thing to skip Harvey Fierstein as a book writer for A Catered Affair. But to also skip him as a performer? It's unthinkable. Sure, I don't think it's his best work, but it certainly surpasses the mugging Feldman impression of Fitzgerald's Igor. I bet the Walter Kerr Theatre is a really unpleasant place to be this morning.

Best Performance By a Featured Actress in a Musical (1/5)
De'Adre Aziza, Passing Strange
Laura Benanti, Gypsy
Andrea Martin, Young Frankenstein
Olga Merediz, In The Heights
Loretta Ables Sayre, South Pacific

Again, the Tonys reject the old guard (Priscilla Lopez, Sutton Foster, Sherie Rene Scott, Mary Testa) in favor of new faces...three of these performers are making their Broadway debuts! This probably clears the path for Benanti, who has been working in the trenches for the last few years (Nine, The Wedding Singer) and deserves her moment in the sun. And I'll say it again: Martin's inclusion here, as much as I like her personally, is appalling. Just like her work in the show, which is mere parody of Chloris Leachman.

Best Direction of a Play (2/4)
Maria Aitken, The 39 Steps
Conor McPherson, The Seafarer
Anna D. Shapiro, August: Osage County
Matthew Warchus, Boeing-Boeing

I've only seen two of these so far (I see 39 Steps on Sunday for my birthday, and Boeing the following week), so it's hard for me to judge this category personally. But again there is the trend of rejecting established directors like Trevor Nunn (Rock 'N' Roll) and Daniel Sullivan (The Homecoming) in favor of Broadway newcomers like Aitken and Shapiro. And the inclusion of McPherson, who directed his own play (and didn't help it very much in that department...the play was great, the directing was merely adequate), seems curious.

Best Direction of a Musical (3/4)
Sam Buntrock, Sunday in the Park with George
Thomas Kail, In The Heights
Arthur Laurents, Gypsy
Bartlett Sher, South Pacific

Since we've now established that we hate all things related to A Catered Affair, I can see how John Doyle got skipped. And Kail is a perfectly fine choice to put in his place.

Best Choreography (3/4)
Rob Ashford, Cry-Baby
Andy Blankenbuehler, In The Heights
Christopher Gattelli, South Pacific
Dan Knechtges, Xanadu

Yeah, I probably should have put down South Pacific, as I mentioned in my predictions...I just thought Susan Stroman might still have some fans out there. This is a very strong category, though.

And although I didn't make picks in the following categories, here they are, for your amusement, enjoyment, and discussion in the comments...

Best Orchestrations
Jason Carr, Sunday in the Park with George
Alex Lacamoire & Bill Sherman, In the Heights
Stew & Heidi Rodewald, Passing Strange
Jonathan Tunick, A Catered Affair

Best Scenic Design of a Play
Peter McKintosh, The 39 Steps
Scott Pask, Les Liaisons Dangereuses
Todd Rosenthal, August: Osage County
Anthony Ward, Macbeth

Best Scenic Design of a Musical
David Farley and Timothy Bird & The Knifedge Creative Network, Sunday in the Park with George
Anna Louizos, In the Heights
Robin Wagner, The New Mel Brooks Musical Young Frankenstein
Michael Yeargan, Rodgers & Hammerstein's South Pacific

Best Costume Design of a Play
Gregory Gale, Cyrano de Bergerac
Rob Howell, Boeing-Boeing
Katrina Lindsay, Les Liaisons Dangereuses
Peter McKintosh, The 39 Steps

Best Costume Design of a Musical
David Farley, Sunday in the Park with George
Martin Pakledinaz, Gypsy
Paul Tazewell, In the Heights
Catherine Zuber, Rodgers & Hammerstein's South Pacific

Best Lighting Design of a Play
Kevin Adams, The 39 Steps
Howard Harrison, Macbeth
Donald Holder, Les Liaisons Dangereuses
Ann G. Wrightson, August: Osage County

Best Lighting Design of a Musical
Ken Billington, Sunday in the Park with George
Howell Binkley, In the Heights
Donald Holder, Rodgers & Hammerstein's South Pacific
Natasha Katz, The Little Mermaid

Best Sound Design of a Play
Simon Baker, Boeing-Boeing
Adam Cork, Macbeth
Ian Dickson, Rock 'n' Roll
Mic Pool, The 39 Steps

Best Sound Design of a Musical
Acme Sound Partners, In the Heights
Sebastian Frost, Sunday in the Park with George
Scott Lehrer, Rodgers & Hammerstein's South Pacific
Dan Moses Schreier, Gypsy

Special Tony Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Theatre
Stephen Sondheim

Regional Theatre Tony Award
Chicago Shakespeare Theater

Special Tony Award
Robert Russell Bennett (1894-1981), in recognition of his historic contribution to American musical theatre in the field of orchestrations, as represented on Broadway this season by Rodgers & Hammerstein's South Pacific.

TOTAL NOMINATIONS:
In The Heights, 13
South Pacific, 11
Sunday in the Park with George, 9
August: Osage County, Gypsy, Passing Strange, 7
Boeing-Boeing, Macbeth, The 39 Steps, 6
Les Liaisons Dangereuses , 5
Cry-Baby, Rock 'n' Roll , The Seafarer , Xanadu, 4
A Catered Affair, The Homecoming, Young Frankenstein, 3
The Little Mermaid, 2
Come Back Little Sheba, Cyrano de Bergerac, Grease, Is He Dead?, Mauritius, November, Thurgood , Top Girls, 1

A Week Of Reviewing Nearly Everything: Estelle, Erasure, Portishead and More

I love the many publicists who send me things to review....it's a marvelous thing, and I couldn't make this blog nearly as fabulous without them. Lately, they've been sending stuff every single day, and I'm waaay behind in sharing my two cents on the swag. So over the next few days I'll be presenting a smorgasbord of new CDs and DVDs, some of which you should grab immediately and some of which Sarah Brightman's heinous new album you should avoid at all costs. We'll kick off with some true finds:

Estelle, Shine (site)
I've made no secret of my slavish devotion to "American Boy," the duet (with Kanye West) by this talented British chanteuse. While there's nothing else on her sophomore disc Shine that approaches the feisty fun of that instant classic, there's plenty to love on this super-producer showcase (will.i.am, Wyclef Jean, Mark Ronson, John Legend, etc.). I'm especially partial to the midtempo vibe of "In The Rain," which strikes me as the kind of track Marvin Gaye might have left on the cutting room floor, and "Please Please (Love Me)," an head-bouncing pop duet with Cee-Lo. In a year that has already featured three or four stellar debuts by female artists, Estelle confirms that 2008 might just be the Year of the (New) Woman.

Kerli, Love Is Dead (site)
Still mourning the artistic collapse of operatic rock combo Evanescence? Not to worry, 21-year-old Estonian Kerli's here to rescue you with a batch of grandly-styled, emotionally-overwrought ballads, including her leadoff single "Love Is Dead." That is, when she's not trying to be a lost member of the Pussycat Dolls, as she is on "Beautiful Day." Or when she's channeling second-rate Kate Bush on "She's In Parties." I don't think Kerli's without talent, but she's terribly unfocused, probably due both to her youth and the lack of an assured producing hand who might have been able to shape this disc into something else than a mash of styles, genres, and flavors of the month.

Lizz Wright, The Orchard (site)
After excursions into the heart of soul and jazz on her first two discs, Wright's effortlessly transitions into straight-ahead blues on The Orchard, which features songs co-written with iconic lesbian sonwriter Toshi Reagon. The spare, heartfelt arrangements reveal the superb musicianship underneath; each track sounds like a beautiful refutation of pop's current infatuation with overproduction. I can't think of a song released in 2008 I like more than "I Idolize You," or a song that touched me deeper than the country-tinged "Hey Mann." In a perfect world, Wright would garner the accolades and stardom of an Amy Winehouse; as it is, she'll probably have to settle for being revered by a small but passionate group serious music fans. Count me among their number.

Three Unrelated Bits O' Television Goodness

BIT ONE: Before there was Galactica, there was...Caprica. Well, kind of. The prequel to the hit series, scheduled to film a backdoor 2-hour pilot soon, is revealing some serious casting power with its leading men. Not too shabby.

BIT TWO: If I could have hot sweaty mansex with a TV channel, it would definitely be HBO. Why? Because of stuff like this: their upcoming series, Hung, is about "a former basketball coach with a large penis." Insert your own dribble, basket, or shoot-the-hoop joke here.

BIT THREE: David Archuleta's overbearing stage dad gets sidelined on American Idol. Expect David to now follow his own artistic heart tonight, by singing the greatest hits of the Sex Pistols.

Living in the Present Tense

Yes, it's true...I've been cheating on you, bloglovers. I've fallen madly in love with Charles Borkhuis' PRESENT TENSE, a great new play I'm directing May 23rd and 24th at The Brick Theater in Williamsburg. It's a clever and mind-stretching new play; it spreads wildly into a multiple-dimension, wormhole-stretching work about actors, audiences, and the infinite space between the two.


Here's a little blurb to entice you: "In PRESENT TENSE, two characters find themselves slipping in and out of parallel lives through 'wormholes' in the space-time of the play. One believes he has dozed off at home with a book on his lap and the play is a curiously lucid dream. The other is convinced that their performances in front of a live audience are desperately real. Panic starts to set in as the play's complications and reversals become increasingly fascinating and frightening."

C'mon, admit it...you're intrigued, aren't you? It's part of the Tiny Theatre Festival, co-produced by the Ontological-Hysteric and The Brick; there are six short plays in total, 90 nonstop minutes. Come enjoy!

PRESENT TENSE
by Charles Borkhuis
featuring Frank Blocker & Ben Trawick-Smith
May 24 and 25 | 8pm | $15
at The Brick Theater, 575 Metropolitan Ave, Williamsburg
(L Train, 1/2 block from Lorimer Stop)
RESERVATIONS: 866-811-4111 or Theatermania

ThingsYoungerThanJohnMcCain.com

Pretty brilliant. And damn, he's old.

Stage Addiction: Tony Nomination Predix

No other theatre blogs seem to be predicting the Tony nominations for tomorrow...probably because of a fear of guessing and then being proven wrong. But I have no fear of being wrong. In fact, I relish being wrong! So here goes. My only caveats are that I purposefully haven't looked at the chat room gossip before picking these, because I wanted to stay pure. And I still haven't seen Little Mermaid, 39 Steps or Boeing-Boeing yet. (Boeing and Steps are on the agenda for next week.)

ModFab Predictions for the 2008 Tony Award Nominations

BEST PLAY
August: Osage County
Rock 'N' Roll
The Seafarer
The 39 Steps
Possible Spoilers: Mauritius; Thurgood
Long Shots: November; The Farnsworth Invention

With the probable winner already well-established, it falls to the also rans to compete against the August juggernaut. I think it's relatively safe to assume that Tony magnet Tom Stoppard will pick up a nod for Rock 'N' Roll; the popular and critical success of 39 Steps makes it a strong candidate as well. The last slot will be a toss-up: the closed but well-regarded (Seafarer, Mauritius), and the open but flawed (Thurgood, November). If anyone can take it from Seafarer, I'm guessing it'll be Mauritius.

BEST MUSICAL
A Catered Affair
In The Heights
Passing Strange
Xanadu
Possible Spoiler: Young Frankenstein
Long Shots: Cry-Baby; The Little Mermaid

Strange and Heights have been the upstart toasts of the season, and despite a few withering reviews, A Catered Affair rebounded at the Drama League and Drama Desk Awards (and seems to be finding its audience). The fourth slot is a toss-up between imperfect vehicles, but I'm guessing (hoping?) that the energetic bliss and surprisingly healthy run of Xanadu will allow it to slay the behemoths of Mel Brooks and, to a lesser extent, John Waters.

BEST REVIVAL OF A PLAY
Boeing-Boeing