Tony Time---2009's Jewish Tony Nominees | j. the Jewish news weekly of Northern California

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Tony Time—-2009’s Jewish Tony Nominees

1:21 pm Wednesday, June 3, 2009
by nate bloom

Tony Time

The Tony awards, for excellence in the Broadway theater, will be presented on CBS on Sunday, June 7, at 8PM. The following are the Jewish nominees I am aware of in the non-craft categories.

Jewish playwrights YASMINA REZA, 50, and MOISÉS KAUFMAN, 45, are nominated for best play for, respectively, "God of Carnage" and "33 Variations." “Carnage” is a comedy-of-manners about two affluent married couples who meet for dinner following a playground tiff involving their young children. The play's performers, none of whom are Jewish, were all nominated for best actor or best actress in a play (Hope Davis, James Gandolfini of “Sopranos” fame, Marcia Gay Harden, and Jeff Daniels).

Reza, a French Jew, is the daughter of an Iranian Jewish father and a Hungarian Jewish mother. “God of Carnage” was a hit in the British and French theater before being mounted on Broadway. Reportedly, James Gandolfini saw the play in London and was so taken with it that he helped bring it to the Broadway stage.

“Variations,” which has ended its run, is about Ludwig Beethoven. It co-starred Jane Fonda, who is up for a Tony for best actress in a play. Kaufman is perhaps best known for writing "The Laramie Project," about the real-life gay-bashing death of Matthew Shepard. A native of Venezuela, Kaufman has described himself as “the hardest-working Jewish Latino gay artist in the New York theater. “

MARC KUDISCH, 42, a veteran Broadway musical actor, earned his third Tony nomination for best featured actor in a musical for his portrayal of a sexist, egotistical boss in "9 to 5." (The musical is based on the hit 1980 film, starring Dolly Parton. Parton composed the Tony-nominated score for the Broadway show.)

CAROLE SHELLEY, 69, is nominated for best featured actress in a musical for playing the Grandma in "Billy Elliot, the Musical.” Shelley, a native of Britain, created the role of the daffy Brit Gwendolyn Pigeon in the original 1965 stage production of "The Odd Couple" and she reprised this part in the film. This is her fourth Tony nomination--she won the best actress Tony in 1979.

“Billy Elliot” is based on a hit 2000 film of the same name about a British working-class boy who trades-in his boxing gloves for ballet shoes. The title role in the stage show is played by a rotating trio of teenage actors. All three, including KIRIL KULISH, 14, are nominated for best actor in a musical. Kulish grew-up in San Diego, the son of Ukrainian Jewish immigrant parents. He has got it all—the face of an angel; a fine singing voice; ballet ability that puts him in the top tier of American dancers in his age group; and he’s quite an athlete—excelling at many sports, including karate.

Kulish Official website:

http://www.kirilkulish.com/