Tony's Lookin' Rosie!

It's the talk of the town, "Will Rosie O'Donnell host the Tony Awards come the first Sunday in June?" Well, negotiations are underway. A ratings shot in the arm is what the Tony organization needs desperately. If it is to continue to appear on network television, it is hoped that CBS will renew the contract which expires this year. If not, and the other networks bypass the annual event, that would force the Awards show to seek other outlets like PBS or cable. However, this would hurt the American Theatre Wing financially for they receive compensation from the network thus allowing them to do the fine charity work they do all year.

It wasn't always like this. The Tony Awards started in 1947 in a ballroom in a New York hotel and continued that way until 1967 when it was moved to a Broadway Theatre. The show has been televised since 1956, and prior to '56, it was broadcast on radio.

Alexander Cohen was the producer in 1967 and he produced the Tony's for many years. Each year, the show was split evenly with awards and entertainment but time constraints had always been a problem. In the late '70's when I attended the Awards each spring, Alexander would always give a speech about acceptance speeches and their length, warning winners about the clock ticking down. The show was supposed to run two hours, but it always went over by maybe 15 to 20 minutes. Still, the ratings were good in those days and each year the Tony's picked a new theme for the show and it was quite enjoyable to attend.

In the '90's though, two hours means two hours and not a second longer. Awards are now given off screen, or at a previous luncheon. Acceptance speeches have been known to be cut-off in mid sentence. Technology makes taped performances look live and god knows what other tricks are employed to keep the broadcast under two hours. It's apparent to me that when you try and put a two and one half hour package in a two hour spot, something's gotta give, and it it's usually the entertainment value of the show. Viewers sense the rush job and simply turn off their televisions.

Rosie O'Donnell doesn't want to do the Tony's in a Broadway theatre. She would like to move it to Radio City Music Hall where the seating capacity is over 5,000, get a few more star presenters and have a big gala. I would hope that she is taken seriously because, if this works, the Tony Awards will garnish huge ratings. And if you think about it. Since they are at the bottom of the ratings heap, they absolutely have nothing to lose!

TIDBITS:Annie becomes more intriguing. It seems like the firing of Joanna Pacetti was a bit orchestrated. When she called in sick, the first understudy went on for the evening. The next day Joanna called to say she was fine, but she was told to stay out another day. That night, the second understudy went on. Her name is Brittainy Kissinger and she is the girl who got the part when Joanna was fired....

Last night Lord Of The Dance opened at Radio City Music Hall. This is the rival dance company to Riverdance. Lord is launching it's U.S. tour. It's all that sexy Irish folk dancin, doin' jigs and all that jazz. Audiences seem to love it. It's not my kind of dance for sure. I mean, I could like it if I were sittin' in a nice blarney pub havin' a wee pint or two...then get up, perhaps, and join in.

Capitol Steps is playing over at the John Houseman on 42nd Street. Audiences are screaming at this musical satire. The entire cast has, at one time or another, worked in some capacity on Capitol Hill. The show is nothing new but never old. It constantly changes with the face of politics and it has been around in various forms since 1981. Surely, you have seen the Steps on television. It's a fun night in the theatre.

Oberammergau it ain't! The little town in Bavaria made a pact with god to produce The Passion Play every ten years as a payment for being spared the plague hundreds of years ago. The play tells of the life of Christ and ends with the crucifixion. It is performed by local residents of Oberammergau and I saw it a few years back. It was just fine, but it's more a tourist attraction today than what was it's original intent. My fondest memory was seeing a tourist stop Jesus on the street and asking for his autograph. I always wondered.

Anyhow, the Park Playhouse in Union, New Jersey is doing their version of The Passion Play and angry ticket holders are demanding refunds and some are even calling the theatre with death threats. It seems a black male actor has been cast in the role of Jesus!

My, oh my! Imagine, if they had cast a woman in the role!

And of course, the joke is on all of us as human beings 'cuz imagine, if when ya' die and go meet the spirit in the sky and indeed, the divine creator is black, and is also a woman who uncannily looks like Whoopi Goldberg...then whatcha gonna do?

"Can't be", critics will say...."she opens in A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum tomorrow night at the St. James Theatre." "Oh yeah, right. But, her performance is divine!"