Ragtime vs. The Lion King

[ceebeegee]

Proposition:

The Lion King definitely deserved the Tony for Best Musical that year, since (IMO) it was the better-directed, tighter, more theatrically overwhelming piece of musical theater. (When the audience started applauding during the "Circle of Life" number, I knew right then which show would win. That number works beautifully, I wept when I finally saw the show.)

However, Ragtime should've won the Pulitzer, since it's a great example of American playwriting and tells its story better (better score, better book) than TLK. (I have no idea what won the Pulitzer that year, just saying I think Ragtime should've gotten that award instead of the Tony).

Thoughts?

Comments

[ceebeegee.livejournal.com]

As I said, it was the most theatrically overwhelming piece of theater, not just due to the direction. While TLK's score isn't as good as Ragtime's, it is certainly strong enough (especially with the addition of the African music--I love "Shadowlands" in particular) to contribute to a Best Musical Tony, as were the performances, the costumes, etc., all of which make up the award.

Have you seen TLK? The number as staged for the Tonys wasn't substantially different from its staging for the show. I have no idea what Taymor was thinking but I seriously doubt she was doing it to milk applause. And I can only speak for myself but I wasn't applauding the costumes--I was applauding the incredible dignity with which she invests the animals. It's a beautiful number.

[dry-2olives.livejournal.com]

Yes, I saw TLK on Broadway and during Circle of Life the entrance of each new costume got such long and loud applause that the lyric was unintelligible. From what I've heard that's a regular occurrence. I thought the score was fine but there was an inconsistency between the score and the cheap humor of the book. ("Hey, this didn't happen in the movie!") They didn't seem to be written for the same show. Take away the production values and I think the material of TLK is average at best and to me that doesn't make a best musical.