Feature: Stages St. Louis Founder Jack Lane and Former Muny Associate Producer Mike Bosner Vie for the Musical Revival Tony Award

St. Louis is at the center of one of the most hotly contested races at this year’s Tony Awards. The producing teams of Ragtime and CATS: The Jellicle Ball have ties to St. Louis, and both are nominated for Best Revival of a Musical. Stages St. Louis founder Jack Lane is a co-producer of Ragtime. Mike Bosner, a John Borroughs High School alum and former associate producer at The Muny is the lead producer on CATS: The Jellicle Ball.

The two productions couldn’t be more different. Ragtime is a traditional musical with swelling orchestrations, soaring vocals, and sumptuous costumes. CATS: The Jellicle Ball is a celebration of the queer art of competitive underground ballroom voguing and runway set to Andrew Lloyd Webber’s score overlayed with a disco beat. While the productions may be nothing alike, both have received critical raves, are the best reviewed productions of the season, and are among the hottest tickets on Broadway.

Should Ragtime win Best Revival of a Musical, it would net Lane his fifth Tony Award in nine nominations. Lane was a previous winner for his productions of The Humans (Best Play), Fun Home (Best Musical), Company (Best Revival of a Musical), and last year’s Sunset Blvd (Best Revival of a Musical). Lane’s other previous nominations include his work producing Water for Elephants, & Juliet, The Prom, and Peter and the Starcatcher.

In addition to being nominated for Best Revival of a Musical, Ragtime was nominated for 11 Tony Awards overall. It is the second most nominated show of the season behind the original musicals The Lost Boys and Schmigadoon!, with each receiving 12 nominations. Its 11 nods places it among the most nominated musical revivals in the history of the Tony Awards. The only musical revival to receive more nominations was the 2000 revival of Kiss Me Kate that received 12 nominations.

Co-Producer Jack Lane says, “One of my greatest honors I’ve ever had as a producer was to be a part of the Ragtime producing team.” He continued, “To me it was always of the greatest American musicals ever created and with this production, and now this prestigious nomination, it truly takes its place in the theatre Parthenon.”

Ragtime picked up 5 acting nominations with honors going to lead actors Joshua Henry, Caissie Levy, and Brandon Uranowitz, and featured actors Nichelle Lewis, and Ben Levi Ross. In addition, Ragtime was nominated for Lear deBessonet’s direction, Ellenore Scott’s choreography, Kai Harada’s sound design, Adam Honoré, Donald Holder, and Studio 59’s lighting and projection design, and Linda Cho’s costume design.

Mike Bosner, a previous Tony nominee for his productions of Beautiful: The Carole King Musical and Shucked has yet to win a Tony. If CATS: The Jellicle Ball wins for Best Revival of a Musical, it would make Bosner a first-time winner.

He is the founder of Bosner Productions in New York City. Growing up in St. Louis allowed Bosner to get an early start in producing. He spent four years at The Muny as an associate producer. He credits the experience he gained at The Muny with giving him the taste needed to program for large audiences.

It was while working at The Muny that Bosner and Paul Blake conceived the idea for Beautiful: The Carole King Musical, giving Bosner and Jack Lane an opportunity to work together. Lane was one of Bosner’s investors in the national tour of Beautiful.

CATS: The Jellicle Ball has been nominated for nine Tony Awards, including Best Revival of a Musical. Broadway legend André De Shields was nominated for his featured role as Old Deuteronomy. St. Louis audiences will remember the Tony, Grammy, and Emmy winner from his turn as King Lear in St. Louis Shakespeare Festival’s 2021 production in Forest Park.

Other nominees include Zhailon Levingston and Bill Rauch’s direction, Omari Wiles and Arturo Lyons’ choreography, Andrew Lloyd Webber, David Wilson, Trevor Holder and Doug Schadt’s orchestrations, Rachel Hauck’s scenic design, Qween Jean’s costume designs, Adam Honoré’s lighting design, and Kai Harada’s sound design.

Kai Harada, Adam Honoré, and Qween Jean are double nominees this year.  Harada and Honoré are also nominated for their lighting and sound design for the revival of Ragtime. Jean picked up her second nomination for Best Costume Design of a Play for Liberation.

One thing is certain, based on the stellar reviews their shows have received, one of producers from St. Louis will be considered the odd-on favorites to win Tony Award for Best Revival of a Musical. There is little doubt that Mike Bosner and Jack Lane make St. Louis proud while they entertain the world with their theatrical endeavors.

Click the links to read Broadway World’s Review Round Up articles for CATS: The Jellicle Ball and Ragtime at Lincoln Center.