Perhaps when Avenue Q won Best Musical back in 2004? I remember how shocked we all were that Wicked didn’t win... though that year was quite competitive for Best Musical.
I was attending university in NYC back in the early 2000s so I'm trying to remember what else could be iconic.
Just thinking more about it, another Bway moment back in early 2000s was when the Producers won 12 Tony awards back in 2001. It was in the news a lot and it was definitely THE hit show back then. I recall buying tickets to the show for my parents back in January 2001 while passing by the St. James. I didn't know anything about the show other than Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick were on it (parents were fans of both actors.)
The Producers also started the idea of premium pricing, which can be interpreted as an iconic Broadway moment as well.
My favorite Bway moment in the early 2000s is the Boy From Oz performance at the 2004 Tony Awards. I'm not sure if it's the first time a performer broke the 4th wall at a Tony performance but to me as a college student it was the first time I ever saw it while watching the Tony Awards live and loved it!!! To me it's an iconic bway moment.
One more to add ---- Baz Luhrmann's La Boheme on Broadway. I believe it was the first time a foreign-language opera was staged on Broadway.
I rushed for this during the freezing winter on Valentine's Day as I thought it would make a memorable date. It was spectacular and I loved how intimate it was on the Bway stage (compared to the family circle seats at the Metropolitan Opera house -- which was what I could afford at the time as a college student.) I remember the rush was $21.25 and seats were front row!! Plus the wait wasn't that bad as it is today.
Sadly it didn't recoup partly due to external forces (recession, iraq war, economic uncertainty, etc.) but I'm glad the producers made the risk of putting this on Bway.
Here's an article from playbill about the show back in 2002:
The rise of John Doyle's minimalist actor-muso productions can best be summed up with the famous image of Patti LuPone dancing and playing the tuba. Granted, it's a comic moment intended for absurdity, but still remains the best-remembered image of the whole Sweeney/Company era.
joined:8/22/18
joined:
8/22/18
Posted: 9/5/18 at 11:00pm