Meet Annaleigh Ashford, the Tony-nominated star of this season’s revival of SWEENEY TODD.
Photo by Matthew Murphy & Evan Zimmerman.
Ashford earns her third Tony Award nomination as Mrs. Lovett in the latest revival of Sondheim’s demon barber murder musical, this time for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical. She has already collected several of the season’s precursor awards for her performance, taking home a Drama Desk Award and the Drama League’s Distinguished Performance Award.
She has previously received Tony recognition for her role in the 2013 musical KINKY BOOTS and then for her performance in the 2015 revival of the play YOU CAN’T TAKE IT WITH YOU, for which she then won the award.
Photo by Joan Marcus.
A regular of the Broadway stage, Ashford has appeared in seven Broadway shows before this year’s revival, dating back to her turn as Glinda in WICKED. She was also seen in LEGALLY BLONDE, HAIR, SYLVIA, and SUNDAY IN THE PARK WITH GEORGE.
Get to know more about this distinguished diva of Broadway with our TONY TALK Q&A:
Who was the first person to text/call you when you got the nomination?
The first person to hug me and give me a kiss was my sweet husband who was sitting with me having our morning coffee as I was also getting my blood drawn for a physical. The blood draw timing was very apropos for Sweeney Todd.
Show some love to a fellow nominee this year. Whose work blew you away?
I have so many wonderful old friends and new friends who are nominated this year. I haven’t gotten to see any of the other shows except for Into the Woods. Sending big love to that beautiful production and all involved.
Top restaurant in the theater district?
Always Joe Allens. It’s a theatre legend and always top notch tasty.
The first Broadway show you ever saw?
Les Miserables.
When did you decide to become a theater artist?
Even as a young child I knew that I wanted to be a storyteller. I found theatre as a 7 year old and my soul immediately loved the light that came out of the dark space. I knew I was home.
What is your earliest Tonys memory?
I remember watching the Tonys with my theatre friends and cast mates in Denver, Colorado. Someone would always host a party and we would huddle around to watch the magic.
Who’s your favorite Tonys host in history, and why?
I can’t have a favorite host. They are all brilliant in their own ways. And I’m friends with a bunch of them. I can’t have a favorite.
All-time favorite Tonys performance on the telecast, and why?
I love the anniversary celebrations where they would perform snippets of past years. Angela Lansbury sang By the Sea to celebrate Sweeney Todd one year.
Most memorable Tonys acceptance speech, and why?
There have been so many incredible speeches but I will always remember Lin Manuel Miranda saying love is “love is love is love.” We needed to hear that right at that moment.
What is one play or musical (and role) would you like to perform on Broadway, and why?
A new play written by a female playwright with a strong female character… and Martha in Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf.
Meet Dane Laffrey & Lucy MacKinnon, the Tony-nominated team responsible for the scenic design in last holiday season’s one-man Broadway staging of A CHRISTMAS CAROL.
A Christmas Carol Live
The spooky magic surrounding Jefferson Mays’ tour-de-force performance as all the characters of the classic tale is largely attributable to Laffrey’s set and MacKinnon’s accompanying video projections transporting us through time and space. Laffrey conceived of the production alongside director Michael Arden, and also designed the production’s costumes.
This is neither designer’s first rodeo, with Laffrey having been Tony-nominated for scenic design of the 2018 revival of ONCE ON THIS ISLAND, and MacKinnon a prior Tony nominee for designing the video in JAGGED LITTLE PILL.
Spring Awakening. Photo by Joan Marcus
The pair previously worked together on Arden’s 2015 revival of SPRING AWAKENING, for which Laffrey also designed the costumes. Some of Laffrey’s other Broadway credits include . MacKinnon has designed video assets for nine productions, including THE LIFESPAN OF A FACT and HOW I LEARNED TO DRIVE.
Both designers are currently represented on Broadway! Laffrey designed the set for this season’s multi-nominated revival of PARADE, currently running at the Jacobs Theatre (another Arden collaboration), and MacKinnon provided video design for KIMBERLY AKIMBO, the Best Musical-nominated show running at the Booth Theatre.
Get to know more about this design duo with our TONY TALK Q&A:
Who was the first person to text/call you when you got the nomination?
Dane Laffrey: When the nominations were announced I was on a plane with no wifi – when I landed my phone did a great deal of pinging and vibrating. Hard to know who reached out first, but I received a lot of wonderful notes.
Lucy MacKinnon: My associate on the show! He called me early because he’d mistaken the predictions for nominations, but I appreciated it all the same.
Show some love to a fellow nominee this year. Whose work blew you away?
DL: I have to be biased and say my creative partner and dearest friend Michael Arden, nominated this year for Parade. We conceived A Christmas Carol together and he directed it brilliantly. His work on Parade is also staggeringly nuanced and expert. What can I say…he’s the best! I’m incredibly lucky to share all the work we have so far, and coming up.
LM: Bonnie Milligan in Kimberly Akimbo. I worked on the show so I’m biased, but every performance she gives is incredible.
Top restaurant in the theater district?
DL: Vice Versa
LM: Bea on West 43rd street.
The first Broadway show you ever saw?
DL: Not counting the big tours (eg. Rent, Les Mis, Miss Saigon, etc.) I believe on Broadway it was Dame Edna: The Royal Tour at The Booth in 1999. I laughed ’til I cried. May she (and her manager Barry) rest well!
LM: I saw The Lion King the year it opened with my fifth grade class. I went to PS139 in Brooklyn, and seeing that show was a big event for all of us.
When did you decide to become a theater artist?
DL: After struggling a lot in school and at other ’normal’ childhood pursuits, theatre was the first thing I encountered that I actually wanted to do. I was hungry for it, and looked forward to it and was sad when it ended. Basically it’s been clear to me for as long as I can remember that theatre was what I was supposed to do.
LM: Watching David Byrne’s Stop Making Sense over and over again on a VHS tape got me interested in design. Seeing William Kentridge’s Magic Flute at BAM made me want to try to become a projection designer in earnest.
What is your earliest Tonys memory?
DL: Watching (and re-watching) old Tonys telecasts on VHS with my theatre friends, naturally. Fast-forwarding through the commercials.
LM: When Fun Home won Best Musical in 2015. I was there with my husband, who was also nominated for the show, and it was the most thrilling moment.
All-time favorite Tonys performance on the telecast, and why?
DL: I’m going to say the Once On This Island performance in 2018. My first nomination was for that show, and I was SO happy that we managed to capture the feeling of Circle in the Square for the performance. It was also quickly followed by us winning Best Revival, which doesn’t hurt either!
LM: Sydney Lucas standing all alone on stage singing “Ring of Keys.” That performance was so simple, and it was such a remarkable display of courage on her part.
Most memorable Tonys acceptance speech, and why?
DL: It’s a tie. Ali Stroker for Oklahoma! Ali’s a friend, we did Spring Awakening together, which was both of our Broadway debuts. Her work in Oklahoma! was extraordinary and I was so thrilled to see her recognized. And Deirde O’Connell, last year for Dana H. That show off-Broadway was the last thing I saw before the pandemic and her work is burned in my memory. I think Dede is one of the best actresses we have and her encouragement to “Do the weird art” are words to live by.
LM: David Byrne accepting a special Tony award for American Utopia. His show didn’t quite fit the Tony boxes.
What is one play or musical you would like to scenic design on Broadway, and why?
DL: A wonderful new musical called Maybe Happy Ending which, fingers crossed, we’ll be bringing in very soon. Michael Arden and I did it out of town right before covid and it’s both a thrilling production and a fabulous, original story by Hue Park and Will Aronson. I’m very excited for the world to see what I know is going to be a very special show.
LM: I’d love to work with Kate Berlant on just about anything.
Broadway-to-movie-musical adaptations first emerged after the arrival of ‘talkie’ motion pictures at the end of the 1920s. Studios competed with each other to produce the highest-budget, glitziest spectaculars, and MGM was particularly known for huge musical productions. The genre thinned out when the studio system lost its prominence in the ‘70s and ‘80s, but has been in something of a resurgence in the 2000s, and with the two-part Wickedadaptation coming next year, the big-screen musical adaptation is here to stay. There are far too many to count, but here are some of the best Broadway to movie musical adaptations of all time.
1. Cabaret (1972)
Set in Berlin during the rise of Nazi Germany, Cabaret is a classic Broadway musical by John Kander and Fred Ebb that opened at the Shubert Theatre in 1966 and was adapted into a movie in 1972. The film starred Liza Minnelli and Joel Grey and won eight Academy Awards, including Best Director for Bob Fosse and Best Actress for Minnelli. The film is known for its dark and gritty portrayal of pre-war Berlin and for its iconic musical numbers, and its Academy Award-winning rhythmic editing. In that same year, 1972, Bob Fosse also directed Pippin on Broadway and the Liza With a Z television special, and won the Tony and the Emmy–making him the only person in history to win three such awards in the span of one year.
Cabaret is on all rental VOD platforms.
2. Oliver! (1968)
Based on the classic Charles Dickens novel, Oliver Twist, Oliver! is a beloved West End and Broadway musical. It ran in the West End from 1960 to 1966, and in New York at the Imperial Theatre in 1963-64. It was adapted into a movie in 1968 by Carol Reed, an English director who had himself helmed a Broadway play in 1930, On the Spot. The film won five Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, and a special award for choreographer Onna White. It starred Mark Lester and Ron Moody as Oliver and Fagin, respectively. With memorable songs like “Consider Yourself” and “Food, Glorious Food,” Oliver! is a timeless classic that is still enjoyed by audiences today. You can stream Oliver! On MAX.
3. The King & I (1956)
Based on the true story of Anna Leonowens, a British schoolteacher who became the governess to the children of the King of Siam, The King & I was adapted into a movie in 1956. The film starred Deborah Kerr and Yul Brynner and won five Academy Awards, including Best Actor for Brynner. It happens to be the Rodgers & Hammerstein musical that was turned into a movie the fastest – only five years between its Broadway premiere and film release (Oklahoma!, one of the duo’s prior Broadway hits,took 12 years to reach the screen.) It is also one of three films on this list in which the female lead’s singing was dubbed by Marni Nixon. The King & I is available for rent on VUDU.
4. Grease (1978)
Set in the 1950s, Grease is a Broadway musical that was adapted into a movie in 1978. It was a massive hit when it opened in New York in 1972, and ran at the Broadhurst Theatre and later the Jacobs, for 8 years. The film starred John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John and became a cultural phenomenon, inspiring countless imitations and becoming one of the highest-grossing movie musicals of all time. A parody of the naive and optimistic 1950s, it continues to be a huge crowd-pleaser decades later. The movie can be rented on all VOD platforms and the cult-classic sequel Grease 2 starring Michelle Pfeiffer and zero material from the original musical is on Paramount+.
5. Chicago (2002)
Set in the Jazz Age of the 1920s, Chicago, another Kander & Ebb classic,was adapted into a movie in 2002, after the original 1975 Broadway production, and the 1996 revival that is still running as of this writing. The film starred Renee Zellweger, Catherine Zeta-Jones, and Richard Gere and won six Academy Awards, for editing, sound, costume design, art direction, Best Supporting Actress (for Zeta-Jones’ turn as Velma Kelly), and Best Picture after being nominated in nearly every category. The editing in particular follows Fosse’s strategy for Cabaret, with quick cuts in rhythm with the music.Its cynical portrayal of the justice system, originally written in response to the Watergate scandal, resonated with audiences in the wake of the tabloid trials of the 1990s. It is available to stream on HBOMax and Hulu.
6. West Side Story (1961 and 2021)
Jerome Robbins originally had the idea to translate Romeo and Juliet to ethnic gang violence in Manhattan’s West Side, and collaborated with Leonard Bernstein (music) and a young newcomer, Stephen Sondheim (lyrics) to create West Side Story. Robbins ended up not just directing and choreographing the 1957 Broadway production, but co-directing and choreographing its 1961 film adaptation as well, raking in a Tony and two Oscars. The film starred Natalie Wood (with the singing voice of Marni Nixon) and Richard Beymer, and won ten Academy Awards, including Best Picture. In 2021, Steven Spielberg, who had been mentioning in interviews his desire to do a musical for decades, directed a new version with a rewritten script by Tony Kushner. A handful of dancers even did both the movie summer 2019 and the 2020 Ivo van Hove West Side Story Broadway revival, faring far better than their counterparts from 60 years ago, since no one from Broadway appeared onscreen in the 1961 movie. Spielberg’s take on the material was nominated for 7 Academy Awards including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Supporting Actress. History rhymed when Ariana DeBose won Best Supporting Actress for the role of Anita, the same role for which Rita Moreno became the first Latina Oscar winner ever in 1961. The original film leaves Paramount+ at the end of May, and the 2021 Spielberg version is on Disney+.
7. The Sound of Music (1965)
Based on the true story of the von Trapp family, The Sound of Music was less successful than previous Rodgers and Hammerstein hits when it premiered on Broadway in 1959. It was the 1965 movie version that propelled it into a household name. The film starred Julie Andrews and Christopher Plummer and won five Academy Awards, including Best Picture. Robert Wise, Jerome Robbins’ co-director on West Side Story, insisted it be shot on location in Austria, and the stunning Alpine scenery is almost another character in the film. (Fascinatingly, though, the film is not well-known in the Germanophone world.) It is currently available to watch on all VOD rental services.
8. The Music Man (1962)
Set in early 1900s Indiana, The Music Man is a classic Broadway musical that was adapted into a movie in 1962. The film starred Robert Preston and Shirley Jones and was a critical and commercial success, earning six Academy Award nominations and winning one, for Best Score. Preston was cast to lead the film as Harold Hill after originating the role on Broadway, much to the chagrin of Jack Warner of Warner Bros., who wanted to cast a bigger star. Preston got the part thanks to Cary Grant not only refusing it, but going out of his way to tell Jack Warner that Preston had been so good in the part on Broadway that he wouldn’t bother seeing it on screen without him.
The movie is on all rental VOD platforms.
9. My Fair Lady (1962)
Producer Jack Warner of Warner Bros. passed on Broadway’s original Eliza, Julie Andrews, and instead cast Audrey Hepburn, with the dubbed singing voice of Marni Nixon (the same singing voice of Maria in West Side Story a year prior). Hepburn found herself competing with Andrews and Mary Poppins at the Golden Globes. And when Andrews won, the first person she thanked in her speech? Jack Warner.
My Fair Lady was the longest-running and highest-grossing musical of its time, opening at the Mark Hellinger Theatre in 1956 and running until 1962. The My Fair Lady movie, with its Lerner and Loewe score and script based on Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw, was nominated for 6 Oscars, and winning for Best Score. Rex Harrison, also an established film actor who survived making Cleopatra with Elizabeth Taylor, got to keep the part of Henry Higgins between Broadway and the film.
The movie is on all rental VOD platforms.
10. Funny Girl (1968)
The melodramatic fable of Fanny Brice’s rise to fame and tragic personal life, Funny Girl features songs by Bob Merrill and Jule Styne like “Don’t Rain on My Parade” and “People.” It opened on Broadway at the Winter Garden Theatre in March 1964, and ran until 1967. Barbra Streisand starred, who had previously made a splash at age 19 as Miss Marmelstein in 1962’s I Can Get It For You Wholesale.Funny Girl was the highest grossing film of 1968, and was nominated for 8 Oscars. OnlyStreisand won for her performance as Fanny, crystallizing her film stardom – she has not appeared on Broadway since departing Funny Girl in December 1965. The film is a very rare instance of a Broadway star getting to reprise their stage performance on screen. The handful of other examples includes Robert Preston in The Music Man, Zero Mostel in A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, and Ethel Merman in Call Me Madam, but no film has announced the arrival of a major star quite like Funny Girl. The current revival, playing at the August Wilson starring Lea Michele, is running through Labor Day weekend 2023.
Meet Joshua D. Reid, the Tony-nominated sound designer of A CHRISTMAS CAROL.
This year’s nomination for Best Sound Design of a Play marks Reid’s first Tony nomination after serving as an Assistant or Associate Sound Designer on 11 Broadway productions over the last decade.
Some of Reid’s previous Broadway credits include AMERICAN PSYCHO, the 2017 revival of FALSETTOS, THE FERRYMAN, and FLYING OVER SUNSET.
AMERICAN PSYCHO: THE MUSICAL. Photo by Jeremy Daniel.
Last holiday season’s one-man iteration of A CHRISTMAS CAROL is recognized in several categories for this year’s Tony Awards, including in scenic design for set designer Dane Laffrey & projections designer Lucy MacKinnon, and in lighting design for Ben Stanton.
Learn more about Reid with our TONY TALK Q&A:
Who was the first person to text/call you when you got the nomination?
Within seconds of the nomination, my wonderful agent Amy Wagner at A3 Artists Agency was calling with congratulations. I was watching the live announcements and was in such a state of bewilderment that I’m not exactly sure what was said, but it was heartfelt and genuine. At the same time, I was receiving all kinds of messages from friends and family who were also expressing their admiration and adoration.
Show some love to a fellow nominee this year. Whose work blew you away?
If I absolutely only get to pick one, I have to send my heart to Crystal Lucas-Perry. Her performance in Ain’t No Mo’ left me feeling like I wanted to challenge my own thoughts towards others and make positive changes in my own life; and at the same time it was a performance that complimented every other actor and story being told. There were so many really amazing contributions to the broadway community this year; and I have to admit the personal bias of my choice. Crystal and I went to college together, and she is one of the most kind and caring people I know. So I feel personally fortunate to have seen her grow so beautifully as both an artist and as a person over the years. For both of us to be nominated in the same year, and in our broadway debut year, is something I’ll always be able to cherish and share with her.
Top restaurant in the theater district?
Definitely Glass House Tavern on 47th Street. I’ve spent so many occasions at this restaurant, catching up with friends, celebrating a special occasion, or simply unwinding before or after a show. The atmosphere is perfect for connecting with people, and there isn’t a single thing on the menu that I wouldn’t recommend. I’ve been going there for years, and have some wonderful memories with people I cherish. It’s definitely a staple of my time in the theatre district.
The first Broadway show you ever saw?
The 2008 revival of Sunday in the Park with George. It was my first time in New York City, and this was the first show of 6 that I saw with my mother over the course of a week. I couldn’t have asked for a more perfect first Broadway experience. The production and the performances were all pinnacle experiences, and really showed how selective focus could be used to enhance the storytelling and the audience’s experience. I left the show with fascination for what my own technical artistry could contribute to a live performance.
When did you decide to become a theater artist?
I really discovered my passion for theatre and live performance in high school; and I very much discovered it by chance. I was a musician who was asked to play in the pit orchestra for the spring musical of the Wizard of Oz. Once I saw the community that theater artists had, even at that young age, I knew it was something that I wanted to be a part of. I (very briefly) tried my hand at acting, but felt like my musicianship and technical skills were what I really wanted to cultivate. So over the next three years I helped out on the technical side of productions and discovered a passion for scenic and sound design. It wasn’t until my senior year that I even considered pursuing a collegiate education and making a career out of it.
What is your earliest Tonys memory?
I remember going to a friend’s house for a Tony Party in 10th grade. At this point, my theatrical knowledge was shallow at best; but all my friends were discussing the various shows, which were their favorites and who was performing in them. It was also my first time watching the Tony Awards, and the first time that I got to see what Broadway had to offer. To my friends, this was their Super Bowl, and I was simply there to be exposed and enjoy their company. But I’ll always remember the feeling of exhilaration, seeing all of the various artists nominated for making contributions that brought the productions to life, and the caliber that these productions were delivering. In a word, it really inspired hope – that this relatively new love I had discovered was something worth pursuing.
Who’s your favorite Tonys host in history, and why?
I have a particular adoration for Neil Patrick Harris as the host of the ceremony. I think in his time as the host he’s always known when to be comical and featured, and when it’s necessary to step out of the spotlight to provide praise and support to the productions and people that are being celebrated. Neil Patrick Harris was also a public role model for the LGBTQ community at a time in my life when I was searching for my own identity. So while I have great admiration for him, I also have tremendous respect for other hosts who have used this honor to reach out to their own communities.
All-time favorite Tonys performance on the telecast, and why?
In 2018, in the wake of the Parkland High School mass shooting, the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Drama students were invited to the stage to sing ’Seasons of Love’ by Jonathan Larson. It was a heartfelt moment that acknowledged the very same hope and community I felt when I first became a theatre artist. As an arts educator myself, I wholeheartedly believe that seeking and cultivating change begins at the entry point to industries; and in our industry, this begins by nurturing young artists as they are discovering theatre and their own artistry. This performance was a brief moment where the Broadway community shared their own national spotlight to reach out to local communities everywhere with their support and strength.
Most memorable Tonys acceptance speech, and why?
Broadway shows carry a message of their own that are able to reach far and wide through the retelling of their stories and music. But the Tony Awards offer a rare opportunity for the general public to hear directly from the people who create those works and compose those messages. Lin Manuel Miranda delivering his acceptance speech for Best Original Score in 2016 was a raw and heartfelt moment. The fact that he was able to deliver such a powerful address on the very evening of the Orlando nightclub shooting spoke to his character and empathy for a community in mourning.
What is one play or musical you would like to sound design on Broadway, and why?
Ragtime. Without a doubt. Every contribution to this production on its own is beautiful, and collectively it has the potential to be breathtaking. Ahrens and Flaherty wrote a truly beautiful complex symphony of both storytelling and musicality, and this musical brings audiences back to the hope that we all once felt when beginning to pursue the things we are passionate about. I also think that these are the types of stories that need to be told so that they can resonate and be reflected upon in today’s cultural climate. I love being able to design and be a part of the storytelling for any new production that challenges the status quo. Honestly, anything that holds a mirror up to society deserves to be celebrated.
