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Which was the toughest competitive year for Best Musical?

Posted by:	Chazwaza 06:20 pm EST 01/16/14

Talking about Titanic below got me thinking about all the shows that won because of lack of competition, whether they were great shows or not great musicals (like Passion or Sunset Blvd)... and how some years just have 1 or 2 clear big competitors and then the others that don't reallllly have a chance of winning. It's funny how many great and classic shows that would be obvious winners actually won in a year with no real competition (certainly not anything that's lasted), many even in the great decades for new musicals... Annie, Sweeney Todd, Sunset Blvd, Company, Cabaret, Fiddler On the Roof, Bye Bye Birdie, How to Succeed, Evita, Cats, Big River, Drood, Rent, Hairspray, In the Heights, The Book of Mormon... all won in years when there was no other show that gave much realistic competition or "could have" or "should have" won, or that has lasted outside of a small fan base. It sure makes you think about timing and wonder what would have won if some of these opened in the same year. So I was going through to determine what years had the most legit competition. Meaning more than 2 shows nominated that could have or should have won, or could have won in another year without the juggernaut winner (like A Chorus Line or Lion King) and are lasting classics of popularity or acclaim or both. Below are the years I think are competing. It's debatable... so many years have two but not 3, like: ALNM & Pippin, Billy Elliot & Next to Normal, Follies & Grease, Into the Woods & Phantom, La Cage & Sunday in the Park, The Music Man & West Side Story, Spring Awakening & Grey Gardens, Passion & Beauty & the Beast, Titanic & The Life, The Producers & The Full Monty... Also, I'm not counting jukebox musicals. But if it has 3 I count it to compete: 1957: My Fair Lady, Candide, The Most Happy Fella, Bells Are Ringing (debatable) 1960: The Sound of Music, Gypsy, Once Upon a Mattress, Fiorello!* (debatable), Take Me Along 1963: A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, Oliver!, Little Me* (debatable), Stop the World – I Want to Get Off 1964: Hello, Dolly!, Funny Girl, She Loves Me, High Spirits 1966: Man of La Mancha, Mame, Sweet Charity, Skyscraper 1969: 1776, Hair, Zorba, Promises, Promises (debatable) 1976: A Chorus Line, Chicago, Pacific Overtures, Bubbling Brown Sugar 1982: Nine, Dreamgirls, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Pump Boys and Dinettes, (AND not nominated: Merrily We Roll Along) 1991: The Will Rogers Follies* (debatable), Miss Saigon, Once on This Island, The Secret Garden* 1993: Kiss of the Spider Woman, Blood Brothers, The Who's Tommy, The Goodbye Girl 2000 (I'm adding this only because of Aida which wasn't nominated): Contact, James Joyce's The Dead, Swing!, The Wild Party, (AND not nominated either: Marie Christine) 2004: Avenue Q, Wicked, Caroline, or Change, (AND not nominated: Taboo* (debatable)) 2005: Monty Python's Spamalot, The Light in the Piazza, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee In my opinion, the toughest years may have been: 1957 1960 1964 1966 1976 1991 1993 2004 2005 But I can't pick a winner...

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Thread:	re: Which was the toughest competitive year for Best Musical? - perfectlyfrank 01:35 pm EST 01/17/14 re: Which was the toughest competitive year for Best Musical? - TheOtherOne 08:26 am EST 01/17/14 re: Which was the toughest competitive year for Best Musical? - BroadwayTonyJ 07:00 pm EST 01/16/14 (4) re: Which was the toughest competitive year for Best Musical? - Chazwaza 07:10 pm EST 01/16/14 (3) re: Which was the toughest competitive year for Best Musical? - keikekaze 12:37 am EST 01/17/14 re: Which was the toughest competitive year for Best Musical? - chrisampm 07:32 pm EST 01/16/14 (1) re: Which was the toughest competitive year for Best Musical? - Chazwaza 07:38 pm EST 01/16/14 re: Which was the toughest competitive year for Best Musical? - EvFoDr 06:41 pm EST 01/16/14 (4) re: Which was the toughest competitive year for Best Musical? - Chazwaza 06:50 pm EST 01/16/14 (3) re: Which was the toughest competitive year for Best Musical? - allineedisthegirl 04:32 pm EST 01/17/14 re: Which was the toughest competitive year for Best Musical? - EvFoDr 06:58 pm EST 01/16/14 (1) Tony cut-off openings - Chazwaza 07:06 pm EST 01/16/14 re: Which was the toughest competitive year for Best Musical? - jimmie 06:37 pm EST 01/16/14 i love how you mark the winning musical as "debatable" - dramedy 06:36 pm EST 01/16/14 (1) i'm a complicated man - Chazwaza 06:39 pm EST 01/16/14 how can you skip 1972 - dramedy 06:29 pm EST 01/16/14 (4) re: how can you skip 1972 - BroadwayTonyJ 06:45 pm EST 01/16/14 (2) Follies - Chazwaza 07:03 pm EST 01/16/14 (1) Coupla points for Verona - thtrgoer 10:17 pm EST 01/16/14 Yes, add in 1972! - Chazwaza 06:37 pm EST 01/16/14 re: Which was the toughest competitive year for Best Musical? - Yikes11 06:29 pm EST 01/16/14 (8) re: Which was the toughest competitive year for Best Musical? - Page 07:10 am EST 01/17/14 re: Which was the toughest competitive year for Best Musical? - MikeR 06:35 pm EST 01/16/14 (3) re: Which was the toughest competitive year for Best Musical? - keikekaze 12:57 am EST 01/17/14 (1) re: Which was the toughest competitive year for Best Musical? - Chazwaza 04:18 pm EST 01/17/14 re: Which was the toughest competitive year for Best Musical? - enoch10 11:59 pm EST 01/16/14 but that was really between two musicals - dramedy 06:32 pm EST 01/16/14 (2) re: but that was really between two musicals - Chazwaza 06:40 pm EST 01/16/14 (1) I can do that - chrismpls 07:44 pm EST 01/16/14

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