The 2016 70th Annual Tony Awards took place at the Beacon Theatre. We photographed the arrivals, and then the winners in the media room at the Jewish Community Center, 334 Amsterdam Avenue. There were no surprises. The Best Musical was Hamilton and the Best Play was The Humans. Jessica Lange and Frank Langella won as Best Actress and Actor in a play, and Cynthia Erivo and Leslie Odom, Jr. (that may have been a surprise, because he beat Lin-Manuel Miranda) for the Musicals. I was personally pleased that Jayne Houdyshell and Reed Birney won as Featured Actress and Actor in a play. They were well deserved. I have never seen a bad performance by either of them. Rick Miramontez's Tony After Party at the Baccarat Hotel was the highlight of a very long evening to morning, with many of the winners arriving to celebrate in one of most elegant hotels in New York, with delicious hors d'oeuvres and cocktails.

 

American Ballet Theatre (ABT) presented Swan Lake, choreography by Kevin McKenzie, music by Peter Ilyitch Tchaikovsky, the most popular ballet in its repertoire, and the Metropolitan Opera House was packed with eager ballet fans. They were not disappointed. They saw a spectacular production, with the outstanding ballerina Gillian Murphy as Odette-Odile. She was simply brilliant, one of the finest performances in the difficult role ever seen on stage. Her technique is astounding. Her acting is superb. She is totally believable as a princess turned into a swan, and in Act III, she is sensational as the black swan Odile, who causes Siegfried (Cory Stearns) to betray Odette. It was a memorable performance. The music is incomparable, and the orchestra, under the baton ofDavid LaMarche, played it beautifully. It was an unforgettable night at the ballet.

 

The Irish Repertory Theatre presented a Gala performance of Finian's Rainbow in Concert at Town Hall. It was magnificent, as always. The Irish Repertory Theatre, led by Artistic Director Charlotte Moore and Producing Director Ciaran O'Reilly is one of finest companies in New York, which presents the great works of Irish Theatre, with superb actors. I have had the pleasure of seeing them perform since their inception, and it has been one of most enjoyable experiences of my theatre reviewing over the past forty  years. Saorise Ronan hosted the event, and among the excellent performers, were Melissa Errico, Megan Fairchild, Malcolm Gets, Angela Grovey, Jim Norton, David Staller and Max von Essen. I had the pleasure of congratulating them at the scrumptious Filet Mignon dinner, with exquisite wines and cocktails and an after dinner shot of Jameson Irish Whiskey, at Bryant Park Grill, after the performance. It was a delightful evening, and we all went home very happy.

 

At MoMA, there is a wonderful series Universal Pictures: Restorations and Rediscoveries 1928-1937 until June 15. Broadway, by Paul Fejos, USA, 1929, is an historical oddity. The director used the biggest crane on a movie set with a camera attached to film one of the biggest nightclubs ever seen on screen. The film itself takes place over one night while the leading performer tries to get a chorus girl away from being involved with a bootlegger. The plot is silly, with two gangsters murdered, and a detective hanging around the club eating, drinking and solving the crimes. There are numerous different dance numbers with 24 sexy chorus girls and the leading man, and the final scene is in technicolor.