The Tony Honors luncheon is always a special occasion for those of us in the theatre world. This is the day that folks who work behind the scenes get their well-deserved recognition for their artistry and service to Broadway. Recipients of the Tony Honors for Excellence in the Theatre are craftspeople for whom there is no specific category at the American Theatre Wing's Tony Awards®. But without their contribution, the show would not go on.
This year's Honors ceremony took place in the Crystal Room of the world-famous Tavern on the Green, the restaurant located in New York City's Central Park. It was certainly a star-studded event. Tommy Tune, winner of nine Tony Awards, was the master of ceremonies. Other luminaries in attendance included Marian Seldes, Patti LuPone, Mark Lynn Baker, Kathleen Marshall—to name just a few.
The afternoon started with a cocktail reception where attendees got a chance to mingle with and say hello to friends and colleagues. The program began promptly at 12:00 noon with a lunch of roast beef, green beans and couscous. The presentation opened with remarks by Sondra Gilman and Douglas B. Leeds, the Chair and President (respectively) of the American Theatre Wing, and Gerald Schoenfeld, the Chairman of the League of American Theatres and Producers. Those are the two organizations that jointly present the Tonys.
There were four honorees this year. The first was legendary dancer, choreographer and teacher Gemze de Lappe. Ms. de Lappe was a member of the Agnes de Mille Dance Theatre and is known for her recreation of Ms. de Mille's dances, as well as those of Jerome Robbins and others, for ballet companies and theatres around the world. Leslie Denniston and Francis Jue provided an excerpt of the "Shall We Dance" scene (sans dance due to space considerations) from The King and I, which they performed this summer under Ms. De Lappe's supervision at the St. Louis Muni. Then Ted Chapin, president of the Rodgers & Hammerstein Organization, introduced Ms.de Lappe, who recently celebrated her 85th birthday, though you would never know it. A diminutive woman, Ms. de Lappe accepted the honor with a short but gracious speech in which she expressed her feelings of gratitude and humility.
Also honored was the CEO of Hudson Scenic Studios, Neil Mazzella, who was introduced by producer Emanuel Azenberg, whose name has been above the title of most of Neil Simon's comedies. Hudson Scenic is responsible for building many of the sets for today's Broadway shows and has more than 200 Broadway productions to its name. The entertainment for this segment was a special treat – a sneak preview of one of Hudson Scenic's current Broadway productions, The New Mel Brooks musical Young Frankenstein, which is now in previews. A quintet from the show performed an a capella number called "Welcome to Transylvania."
Wardrobe supervisor Alyce Gilbert was the next honoree. Ms. Gilbert's credits include working with such theatre legends as costume designers Theoni V. Aldredge and Susan Hilferty, as well as directors Michael Bennett and Tommy Tune. Ms. Gilbert was the wardrobe supervisor on the entire original run of A Chorus Line and is now working as the wardrobe supervisor for Wicked. In tribute to Ms. Gilbert, the current leads of Wicked, Katie Adams and Julia Murney, sang "For Good."
Seymour Press, known universally in the theatre simply as "Red," was serenaded by Patti LuPone. She performed her own rendition of "You'll Never Get Away from Me" from Gypsy with inspired new lyrics incorporating Red's name. Mr. Press is a musician and musical contractor who is celebrating his 50th year on Broadway. As presenter Jack Viertel pointed out, he first worked on Broadway in 1957 on a one-woman show starring Shirley MacLaine. Before that he performed in the Benny Goodman and Tommy Dorsey bands. "I learned to play the saxophone in the Bronx with Stan Goetz and Alan Greenspan," Mr. Press said, referring to the jazz great and the former Federal Reserve chairman, who was also a Bronx boy. Fortunately (or not), said Mr. Press, Greenspan wasn't a particularly talented musician.
Andrew C. McGibbon
Website Manager, TonyAwards.com