Something I think about a lot is Deanna Dunagan winning the Tony is 2008 for August: Osage County. I absolutely loved her performance (and as wonderful as Estelle Parsons was, and Phylicia Rashad did fine work too, Dunagan really lived in that human like no one else), but on the many occasions I saw the play I always felt like Amy Morton was the real driving force and man oh man that Act II closing line really rings in my memory. It's hard to say whose role was the more challenging, weightier one or who executed with more technical precision and finesse. It was a play loaded with rich performances, but those two women really towered over everyone else and over a decade later I still think about their performances often. No real point to this post, I just often think if I were a Tony voter I would have waffled on that ballot for weeks.
In my fantasy world, we'll one day get a revival with Morton graduating to Violet. I would pay whatever thousands of dollars Broadway tickets will cost at that point to see that. |