2013 Tony Awards Clip Countdown: #6 - SUNDAY/LA CAGE

Today we are continuing BroadwayWorld's 2013 Tony Awards Clip Countdown with a special spotlight focused on a major Best Musical battle of the 1980s - SUNDAY IN THE PARK WITH GEORGE versus LA CAGE AUX FOLLES.

The Best Of Times

While the 1980s were loaded with big Best Musical battle royales - look no further than NINE and DREAMGIRLS in 1982 (previously covered in this very column); as well as THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA and INTO THE WOODS in 1988 - the 1984 Tony Awards presented not only one of the finest and most star-studded telecasts in the show's impressive history, but also one of the closest and most debated races of all time. It would be difficult to imagine two shows more unalike, yet - just as in 1982 and 1988; and 1976 and 1959 and many other years - the top prize had to go to one or the other; and, it did. LA CAGE AUX FOLLES took home the Best Musical trophy, as well as Best Director for Arthur Laurents, Best Score for Jerry Herman and Best Book for Harvey Fierstein, in addition to Best Leading Actor In A Musical for George Hearn and Theoni V. Aldredge winning Best Costumes. SUNDAY IN THE PARK WITH GEORGE was nominated in all of those categories (and more), but contented itself with wins in technical categories alone, Best Lighting and Best Scenic Design. Nevertheless, SUNDAY IN THE PARK WITH GEORGE was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Drama.

The man behind the music for LA CAGE was Jerry Herman, the convivial and popular composer of such long-running hits as HELLO, DOLLY! and MAME, who subsequently found less success with other projects but for which LA CAGE exhibited a return to form. For many at the time, LA CAGE represented an old fashioned musical presented at its best, while tackling a topical subject at the same time (in this case, gay marriage; still a timely issue, unfortunately). Harvey Fierstein gave it extra flare as book writer, hot off of his Tony-winning TORCH SONG TRILOGY, and master director Arthur Laurents offered assured direction and a firm guiding hand to the tale of familial love and acceptance set on the French Riviera.

Diametrically opposed but also, incidentally, partially set in France was the very experimental SUNDAY IN THE PARK WITH GEORGE. Based upon a painting by Georges Seurat, SUNDAY depicted a presentational musing on the artist as he could have been in the years leading up to the creation of his masterpiece as well as the story of his distant progeny a hundred years later. James Lapine was responsible for the book while the esteemed Stephen Sondheim provided the lyrical and pointillism-inspired score that attempted to dramatically and musically explore the artistic process and the links between history and art.

While it may be impossible to choose a favorite, both LA CAGE AUX FOLLES and SUNDAY IN THE PARK WITH GEORGE showcase some of Broadway's finest artists creating masterful musicals and the 1984 Best Musical race will be remembered for many years to come as a result.

Hats off to both!

The 2013 Tony Awards air Sunday, June 9, at 8 PM on CBS. More information is available at the official site here.

Move On

So, now, let's look at some of the best musical moments relating to LA CAGE AUX FOLLES and SUNDAY IN THE PARK WITH GEORGE from Tony Awards telecasts.

First up, here is the 1984 Tony Awards performance by the original cast of LA CAGE AUX FOLLES, led by George Hearn.

Next, check out the 2005 Tony Awards performance by the LA CAGE revival company, led by Gary Beach and Robert Goulet.

Kelsey Grammer and that year's Best Actor winner, Douglas Hodge, perform at the 2010 Tony Awards. Don't miss GLEE lead and last week's InDepth InterView star, Matthew Morrison, too!

After that, let's turn to SUNDAY IN THE PARK WITH GEORGE with our next clip, highlighting Mandy Patinkin and Bernadette Peters on the 1984 Tony Awards.

The 2008 revival cast of SUNDAY, led by Daniel Evans and Jenna Russell perform on that year's Tony Awards telecast.

So, which 1984 Best Musical nominee is your choice for that year's top tuner - LA CAGE or SUNDAY? Furthermore, which musical's master composer/lyricist do you personally prefer - Jerry Herman or Stephen Sondheim? What a fierce match-up, no matter which one you may prefer!