I agree with everyting you've said, although I do think you are conflating a bit the state of musical theatre (ie heavy jukebox and what one might call ininspired movie adaptations--subjective but hopefully good enough for this sentence) and the challenges of the Tony Awards.
Is it not true that you found much of this year's broadcast to be a pop concert because those are/were the shows that are being offered? Moulin Rouge, Jagged, Tina, American Utopia, Freestyle Love Supreme. My point is that in featuring those shows, the Tonys are not trying to lure in people who like pop, they are showcasing what the season offered. This was cast into even more stark relief when compared with the more traditoinal musical theatre songs in the evening. I was shocked (and pleased) that 4.5 Sondheim songs were featured. Plus Wheels of a Dream, And I am Telling You..., The Impossible Dream, For Good, What You Own, Beautiful City. I was simultaneously so happy and so sad to hear a showtune and not a pop song (happy because I love the showtunes, sad because they were all from old shows).
That said I do agree that in past years there seemed to be an effort to attract people to the broadcast who are not, and likely will not ever be, interested in watching. And at the expense of providing the fans who do, and always will watch, a satisfying experience. |
