Photo Coverage: The Friars Club Honors Lee Roy Reams 2009/04/22

Broadway star Lee Roy Reams received The Friars Club Thespian Award while honored by friends and colleagues in a star-studded musical tribute on Monday, April 20th at 8:30PM at The Friars Club (57 East 55th St). BroadwayWorld.com was there to cheer the theatre favorite on as he was joined by the starry crowd!

In addition to his extensive Broadway credits, which include a Tony Award nomination for his acclaimed performance as Billy Lawlor in 42nd Street, Reams has performed in nearly 20 musicals at the Muny in Forest Park. Reams first appeared at the Muny with Lauren Bacall in Applause in 1971. His most recent Muny performance was as Roger De Bris in The Producers, for which Reams has received a Kevin Kline Award nomination as Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Musical. In addition to playing the role on Broadway, Reams also starred as Roger De Bris on the national tour (including the Fox Theatre) and in Las Vegas.

Other Broadway credits include Sweet Charity, Applause, Hello, Dolly!, La Cage aux Folles and Beauty and the Beast. An accomplished director, Reams both directed and choreographed the 1995 Broadway revival of Hello, Dolly! Directing credits at the Muny include both Hello, Dolly! and Singin' in the Rain.

There is no institution that has embraced Shakespeare's observation with so much unbridled bravado than that of the Friars Club. They have parlayed one hundred years of antics into a reputation that has been elevated to legendary status. Since 1904 The Friars Club has been wining and dining the top personalities of the times and in-between courses expounding and discoursing in their own unique fashion. From ribald comedy to musical merry-making the Friars have spent a century cultivating a tradition that has spanned several generations and spawned millions of laughs.

For more information please visit www.friarsclub.com.

Photos by Linda Lenzi

Honoree Lee Roy Reams