12 Best Star Turns On Broadway - Broadway Magazine
12 Days Of Broadway 2009
BROADWAY MAGAZINE - Happy Holidays! ‘Tis the season again to celebrate another calendar year on Broadway, and the man in red has delivered some of the lists for this year’s 12 Days of Broadway. Today, it is the 12 Biggest Star Turns on Broadway this season. Ranked in no particular order, Mr. Ferrell. Let us know what you think…and Happy Holidays.
1. Will Ferrell - Playing George W. Bush, Mr. Ferrell not only earned a Tony nomination, but he also helped pull the entire Broadway box-office out of a January slump. He made a snowball melt in a hellish January on Broadway.
2. Hugh Jackman - With A Steady Rain co-star Daniel Craig, Mr. Jackman reigned on Broadway. The pair set box-office records, made headlines with cell phones, and gave 2 excellent performances.
3. Daniel Craig - See above. The real question now is will both Mr. Jackman and Mr. Craig earn Tony nominations…or will the curse of the Tony short memory span hold firm?
4. Jude Law - Not only did he put Shakespeare back in the top 10 box office performers on Broadway (no small feat), he also gave an outstanding performance that was more nuanced than Ralph Fiennes rapid fire Hamlet that won Tony Awards a decade or so ago. Could Mr. Law be too popular to earn the proper credit for his excellent performance?
5. Catherine Zeta-Jones - Beautiful and talented, her work in A Little Night Music is earning praise and attention. Radiant and wonderful, let’s hope she keeps coming back to the Broadway stage!
6. Jane Fonda - She was outstanding in a production that earned Tony nominations (including one for Ms. Fonda). Celebrated by critics and audiences, Ms. Fonda gave Broadway a truely classic star-turn.
7. Laurie Metcalf - Captivatingly honest and strong in Brighton Beach Memoirs. Ms. Metcalf and company left Broadway too soon. While she may have made her name as Roseanne’s neighbor on television, Ms. Metcalf showed why she continues to hold a reputation as one of the best actresses on the stage in our generation.
8. James Spader - Lawyers have captured the Broadway imagination this season, and Mr. Spader’s work in David Mamet’s RACE is generating Broadway buzz. With David Alan Grier, Kerry Washington, and Richard Thomas too…well keep the star-power of RACE here, but acknowledge that it is a Broadway planetarium of stars.
9. Casts of God of Carnage - Tony Award for Marcia Gay Harden and noms for Jeff Daniels, and James Gandolfini and Hope Davis. Now, they’ve brought Jimmy Smitts to the Broadway stage too. Safe to say this is also like a Broadway planetarium for stars.
10. Geoffrey Rush - He wiggled and giggled and made Ionesco the talk of Broadway with Exit The King. Earning a well-deserved Tony Award for his imaginative and energetic performance, what will Mr. Rush do on Broadway next time?
11. Sienna Miller - Took on the challenge of making Strindberg’s Julie palatable, and had to most talked-about foot on Broadway! Could Hedda be next?
12– Bill Pullman and Julia Stiles? John Stamos and Gina Gershon? Nathan Lane and Bill Irwin? Angela Lansbury and Angela Lansbury? Ashlee Simpson in Chicago? Michael McKean in Superior Donuts? Carrie Fisher as Carrie Fisher? Tell us what you think!
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Tags: , Ashlee Simpson, Bill Irwin, Bill Pullman, Carrie Fisher, Catherine Zeta-Jones, daniel craig, Geoffrey Rush, Gina Gershon, Hope Davis, hugh jackman, James Spader, Jane Fonda, Jeff Daniels, John Stamos, Jude Law, Julia Stiles, Laurie Metcalf, Marcia Gay Harden, Michael Mckeon, Nathan Lane, Sienna Miller
