Naughty Naughty DD Nominations

SAY WHAT? Liev Schreiber and Audra McDonald at the Friars Club. That's theatergossip.com's founder (in black sweater and camel skirt) lurking in the corner. (Photo: Russ Weatherford)

CLEARLY, Audra McDonald wanted to say a dirty word.

It was this morning at the Friars Club in Midtown Manhattan. McDonald, the four-time Tony Award winner, and Liev Schreiber, who blew away the New York theater critics last year in "A View From the Bridge," were there to announce the Drama Desk Award nominations. And three nominations (including one for best play) went to Stephen Adly-Guirgis's dark comedy "The Motherfucker With the Hat."

Now people have been playing around with this title since the play began previews in March. We've seen it as "The Motherf**cker With the Hat," "The Mother With the Hat" and "The __ With the Hat." But Schreiber, being a straight-shooting kind of guy, just read out the title matter-of-factly. We, being a terribly mature, sophisticated crowd, giggled a little or at least smiled when he did. After the third time, McDonald complained, "I never get to say it." (They were alternating reading out the categories.)

Beyond that, things went pretty much the way things usually do at events like these. The greatest number of nominations went to "The Book of Mormon" (12), the seriously irreverent musical about naive young missionaries in Africa, and "Anything Goes" (10), the high-stepping musical revival with Sutton Foster in the Ethel Merman role.

Here are the nominees for the 56th Annual Drama Desk Awards. My favorite part is all the doubles, like Jack Cummings III's best director nominations for two very different Off Broadway musicals; Derek McLane's for the scenic design of a new play set in war-torn Iraq and of a musical revival set on a luxury ocean liner; and Steven Hoggett's choreography nominations for one show about boxers and another about a fantasy land with pirates and pixies. And there are more.

Outstanding Play
Jon Robin Baitz, "Other Desert Cities"
Adam Bock, "A Small Fire"
Stephen Adly Guirgis, "The Motherf**ker With the Hat"
Samuel D. Hunter, "A Bright New Boise"
Rajiv Joseph, "Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo"
David Lindsay-Abaire, "Good People"
Nick Stafford, "War Horse"

Outstanding Musical
"In Transit"
"Priscilla Queen of the Desert: The Musical"
"See Rock City & Other Destinations"
"Sister Act"
"The Book of Mormon"
"The Kid"

Outstanding Revival of a Play
"Born Yesterday"
"The House of Blue Leaves"
"The Importance of Being Earnest"
"The Merchant of Venice"
"The Normal Heart"
"Three Sisters"

Outstanding Revival of a Musical
"Anything Goes"
"Hello Again"
"How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying"

Outstanding Actor in a Play
Charles Busch, "The Divine Sister"
Bobby Cannavale, "The Motherf**ker With the Hat"
Al Pacino, "The Merchant of Venice"
Geoffrey Rush, "The Diary of a Madman"
Mark Rylance, "Jerusalem"
Michael Shannon, "Mistakes Were Made"
Paul Sparks, "Dusk Rings a Bell"

Outstanding Actress in a Play
Nina Arianda, "Born Yesterday"
Stockard Channing, "Other Desert Cities"
Frances McDormand, "Good People"
Laurie Metcalf, "The Other Place"
Michele Pawk, "A Small Fire"
Lily Rabe, "The Merchant of Venice"

Outstanding Actor in a Musical
Norbert Leo Butz, "Catch Me if You Can"
Colin Donnell, "Anything Goes"
Daniel Radcliffe, "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying"
Andrew Rannells, "The Book of Mormon"
Tony Sheldon, "Priscilla Queen of the Desert: The Musical"
Christopher Sieber, "The Kid"

Outstanding Actress in a Musical
Sutton Foster, "Anything Goes"
Beth Leavel, "Baby It's You!"
Patina Miller, "Sister Act"
Donna Murphy, "The People in the Picture"
Sherie Rene Scott, "Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown"

Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play
Brian Bedford, "The Importance of Being Earnest"
Christian Borle, "Peter and the Starcatcher"
Boyd Gaines, "The Grand Manner"
Logan Marshall-Green, "The Hallway Trilogy"
Zachary Quinto, "Angels in America"
Tom Riley, "Arcadia"
Yul Vázquez, "The Motherf**ker With the Hat"

Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play
Lisa Emery, "The Collection & A Kind of Alaska"
Edie Falco, "The House of Blue Leaves"
Julie Halston, "The Divine Sister"
Sarah Nina Hayon, "A Bright New Boise"
Celia Keenan-Bolger, "Peter and the Starcatcher"
Linda Lavin, "Other Desert Cities"
Judith Light, "Lombardi"

Outstanding Featured Actor in a Musical
Adam Godley, "Anything Goes"
John Larroquette, "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying"
Brian Stokes Mitchell, "Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown"
Rory O'Malley, "The Book of Mormon"
Bob Stillman, "Hello Again"
Tom Wopat, "Catch Me if You Can"

Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical
Laura Benanti, "Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown"
Kerry Butler, "Catch Me if You Can"
Victoria Clark, "Sister Act"
Jill Eikenberry, "The Kid"
Nikki M. James, "The Book of Mormon"
Patti LuPone, "Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown"
Laura Osnes, "Anything Goes"

Outstanding Director of a Play
Trip Cullman, "A Small Fire"
Joel Grey and George C. Wolfe, "The Normal Heart"
Moisés Kaufman, "Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo"
Davis McCallum, "A Bright New Boise"
Daniel Sullivan,"The Merchant of Venice"
Kirjan Waage and Gwendolyn Warnock, "Baby Universe"

Outstanding Director of a Musical
Rob Ashford, "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying"
Joe Calarco, "In Transit"
Jack Cummings III, "Hello Again"
Jack Cummings III, "See Rock City & Other Destinations"
Kathleen Marshall, "Anything Goes"
Casey Nicholaw and Trey Parker, "The Book of Mormon"

Outstanding Choreography
Rob Ashford, "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying"
Scott Graham and Steven Hoggett, "Beautiful Burnout"
Steven Hoggett, "Peter and the Starcatcher"
Kathleen Marshall, "Anything Goes"
Casey Nicholaw, "The Book of Mormon"
Siudy, "Between Worlds"

Outstanding Music
Brad Alexander, "See Rock City & Other Destinations"
Alan Menken, "Sister Act"
Trey Parker, Robert Lopez and Matt Stone, "The Book of Mormon"
Marc Shaiman, "Catch Me if You Can"
Mike Stoller and Artie Butler, "The People in the Picture"
David Yazbek, "Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown"

Outstanding Lyrics
Rick Crom, "Newsical the Musical — Full Spin Ahead"
Jack Lechner, "The Kid"
Adam Mathias, "See Rock City & Other Destinations"
Trey Parker, Robert Lopez and Matt Stone, "The Book of Mormon"
Glenn Slater, "Sister Act"
Scott Wittman and Marc Shaiman, "Catch Me if You Can"

Outstanding Book of a Musical
Kristen Anderson-Lopez, James-Allen Ford, Russ Kaplan and Sara Wordsworth, "In
Transit"
Iris Rainer Dart, "The People in the Picture"
Stephan Elliott and Allan Scott, "Priscilla Queen of the Desert: The Musical"
Adam Mathias, "See Rock City & Other Destinations"
Trey Parker, Robert Lopez and Matt Stone, "The Book of Mormon"
Michael Zam, "The Kid"

Outstanding Orchestrations
Mary-Mitchell Campbell, "Hello Again"
Bruce Coughlin, "The Burnt Part Boys"
Simon Hale, Jim Abbott and David Yazbek, "Women on the Verge of a Nervous
Breakdown"
Larry Hochman and Stephen Oremus, "The Book of Mormon"
Marc Shaiman and Larry Blank, "Catch Me if You Can"
Lynne Shankel, "The Extraordinary Ordinary"

Outstanding Music in a Play
Wayne Barker, "Peter and the Starcatcher"
Kathryn Bostic, "Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo"
Lars Petter Hagen, "Baby Universe"
Alan John, "The Diary of a Madman"
Tom Kitt, "The Winter's Tale"
Dan Moses Schreier, "The Merchant of Venice"

Outstanding Revue
"Fyvush Finkel Live!"
"Newsical the Musical — Full Spin Ahead"
"Rain: A Tribute to the Beatles on Broadway"

Outstanding Set Design
Rachel Hauck, "Orange, Hat & Grace"
David Korins and Zachary Borovay (projection design), "Lombardi"
Derek McLane, "Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo"
Derek McLane, "Anything Goes"
Tony Straiges, "Treasure Island"
Mark Wendland, "The Merchant of Venice"

Outstanding Costume Design
Tim Chappel and Lizzy Gardiner, "Priscilla Queen of the Desert: The Musical"
Desmond Heeley, "The Importance of Being Earnest"
Ann Hould-Ward, "A Free Man of Color"
Martin Pakledinaz, "Anything Goes"
Ann Roth, "The Book of Mormon"
Paloma Young, "Peter and the Starcatcher"

Outstanding Lighting Design
Jean Kalman, "John Gabriel Borkman"
R. Lee Kennedy, "See Rock City & Other Destinations"
David Lander, "Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo"
Laura Mroczkowski, "Spy Garbo"
Ben Stanton, "The Whipping Man"
David Weiner, "A Small Fire"

Outstanding Sound Design in a Musical
Lindsay Jones, "The Burnt Part Boys"
Michael Rasbury, "Hello Again"
Brian Ronan, "Anything Goes"
Brian Ronan, "The Book of Mormon"
Jon Weston, "In Transit"

Outstanding Sound Design in a Play
Acme Sound Partners, "The Merchant of Venice"
Acme Sound Partners and Cricket S. Myers, "Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo"
Ian Dickinson, "John Gabriel Borkman"
Brett Jarvis, "Baby Universe"
Bray Poor, "Wings"
Eric Shimelonis, "The Hallway Trilogy"

Outstanding Solo Performance
Daniel Beaty, "Through the Night"
Mike Birbiglia, "Mike Birbiglia's My Girlfriend's Boyfriend"
Juliette Jeffers, "Batman and Robin in the Boogie Down"
John Leguizamo, "Ghetto Klown"
Colin Quinn, "Colin Quinn Long Story Short"
Joanna Tope, "The Promise"

Unique Theatrical Experience
"Being Harold Pinter"
"Circus Incognitus"
"Gatz"
"Play Dead"
"Room 17B"
"Sleep No More"

Special awards will be going to:

The playwright A. R. Gurney
The actor Reed Birney
The Pearl Theater Company
The New Group
"War Horse"

And, for best ensemble:

"The Normal Heart"
"In Transit"

The Drama Desk Awards will be presented on May 23, 2011, at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York. The ceremony will be telecast on Ovation in June.

WANT MORE THEATERGOSSIP? Scroll on to read about Laurie Metcalf, a Drama Desk nominee for her role in "The Other Place." Then search to find lots of items about Drama Desk Award-nominated productions and performers, including "Gatz," "Peter and the Starcatcher," "The Book of Mormon," Al Pacino, Laura Benanti, Geoffrey Rush, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Colin Donnell, Sutton Foster and Lily Rabe.

Gossip Girl of the Week: Laurie Metcalf

PLAYING crazy ladies is always a chance for actresses (and occasionally, actors) to pull out all the stops and possibly get noticed in some awards-related way. Right now, down at the Lucille Lortel, Laurie Metcalf is doing just that, but she's also adding breathtakingly complex new layers to this kind of characterization. As a New York Magazine writer described her performance, "It's like watching a master surgeon perform a vivisection on herself." ("Laurie Metcalf, American Treasure!")

Metcalf, a veteran stage performer with 35 years in the revered Steppenwolf Theater Company behind her, did television for a while and has made some movies. Whatever medium she chooses to tackle, she always keeps her eye on the prize. As John Goodman, her former TV co-star, once said, "Laurie is very centered, very focused, like an expensive Japanese camera."

CURRENT GIG "The Other Place." She stars as a pharmaceutical researcher who specializes in Alzheimer's drugs but begins to spin out of control mentally herself.

AGE 55.

BORN AND RAISED Carbondale, Ill. Then north to Edwardsville. (Both closer to St. Louis than to Chicago.)

ALMA MATER Illinois State University.

BEST KNOWN AS The comedian Roseanne's complicated sister, Jackie, on the sitcom "Roseanne."

AVAILABILITY Married to Matt Roth, who briefly played Fisher, one of Jackie's love interests, on "Roseanne."

BROADWAY DEBUT "My Thing of Love" (1995), a black comedy about a suburban marriage. Despite its Steppenwolf pedigree, the play lasted just 11 days.

BREAKOUT STAGE ROLE A naive Midwestern prostitute in the 1984 revival of Lanford Wilson's "Balm in Gilead." Frank Rich pronounced her 20-minute second-act monologue a "tour de force . . . [of] unarticulated desperation."

AWARDS, AWARDS, AWARDS Three Emmys in the '90s for "Roseanne." Seven Joseph Jefferson Awards (the big Chicago theater prizes). Drama Desk, Obie and Theater World awards for "Balm in Gilead."

FAMOUS RELATIVE Her great-aunt was Zoe Akins, who won the Pulitzer Prize for drama for her 1935 stage adaptation of Edith Wharton's book "The Old Maid."

WHAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN "If I hadn't met those people who started Steppenwolf, I'd be a secretary in St. Louis today." ("Laurie Metcalf, Stepping Out From Steppenwolf")

"The Other Place," by Sharr White, directed by Joe Mantello, Lucille Lortelle Theater, 121 Christopher Street, (212) 279-4200, ticketcentral.com. Extended through May 1, 2011.

WANT MORE THEATERGOSSIP? Scroll on to read about the amazing puppetry and attendant stagecraft in "War Horse" at Lincoln Center. Then search to read about stars of "Anything Goes," "The Book of Mormon," "Catch Me if You Can," "Good People," "The Importance of Being Earnest" and a host of other Broadway shows, past, present and future.

A Horse Is a Horse, of Course, Even When It's Not

PAL JOEY Seth Numrich and the animal his character loves in the National Theater of Great Britain and Lincoln Center Theater's "War Horse."

PEOPLE raved and raved about "War Horse." A huge hit in London, they said. Theatrical enchantment, they claimed. There was great word-of-mouth from theatergoers who had seen it in previews here. And, these people pointed out, there are puppets.

I’m a sucker for puppets. But the photographs of these massive horses made of leather, steel and aircraft cable left me cold. (I prefer felt, yarn and Ping Pong balls.) I went to see the American production at Lincoln Center only because it was my job. And thank God it is.

“War Horse” is one of the most amazing pieces of theater to hit the New York stage in the last few decades. Other critics agree, including Ben Brantley of The New York Times, who referred to the stagecraft as "ineffably theatrical magic" ("A Boy and His Steed, Far From Humane Society") and David Cote of Time Out New York, who wrote that the show "will make you believe that puppets live and breathe, and perhaps even have souls" ("A Boy and His Horse Go to War").

This is the story of an English farmboy and his beloved pet. A young horse that he names Joey. A horse who grows up big and strong, at which point the boy’s father is ready to sell him. But the boy manages to hold onto Joey by teaching him to pull a plow.

Life goes on idyllically in Devon until the First World War erupts throughout Europe and the father breaks his son’s heart by selling Joey to the cavalry. The horse’s wartime experiences, along with the boy’s yearning and his heartfelt scheme to be reunited with his best friend, make up the rest of the tale, based on a children's book of the same title by Michael Morpurgo.

For an animal lover like me, that would probably have been enough. But then there were the breathtaking projections by 59 Productions, which take the audience to early-20th-century England and to European battlefields, with a thrilling and horrifying combatant’s-eye view. Not to mention the music, the sound design, the lighting, the cast.

But those people who had told me about the show were right. The brightest magic is in the puppetry. Here’s a toast to the Handspring Puppet Company, and to Toby Sedgwick, who directed the horse sequences. Joey (and a few equine comrades in arms) are operated by clearly visible puppeteers, but you would swear that these animals were breathing. And longing and striving and feeling pain.

"The puppeteers become shamans of the horse," Basil Jones, Handspring's head puppeteer, told Doug Strassler of Show Business. "The reason why the horse is so successful is that we went out of our way not to humanize him. What we offer is a real horse onstage."

“War Horse,” based on a book by Michael Morpurgo, adapted by Nick Stafford, directed by Marianne Elliott and Tom Morris, Vivian Beaumont Theater, 140 West 65th Street, (212) 239-6200, warhorseonbroadway.com. Opening night: April 14, 2011.

EDITOR'S NOTE: An earlier version of this post included an incomplete affiliation for the theater critic David Cote and an incorrect surname for Handspring Puppet Company's head puppeteer. As now shown, he is Basil Jones, not Basil Twist.

WANT MORE THEATERGOSSIP? Scroll on to read about Norbert Leo Butz, stealing scenes in "Catch Me if You Can," and Sutton Foster and Colin Donnell in the Roundabout’s exhilarating revival of “Anything Goes.” Then search to read about theater people like Cherry Jones, Geoffrey Rush, Julie Taymor, Marin Ireland and Alan Rickman, plus what James Franco is doing on Broadway this fall.

Gossip Guy of the Week: Norbert Leo Butz

DEPENDING on which reviews you read, "Catch Me if You Can" is either a breath of fresh musical air on Broadway or a lifeless piece of theatrical art, despite all the mega-talented artists who created it. But almost everyone agrees on one thing: Norbert Leo Butz steals the show. Disguised as a much older, seemingly dreary, cigarette-smoking man of the 1960s, Butz brings real heart to his character, a Javert-like F.B.I. man. And his Act I number, "Don't Break the Rules," brings the house down.


CURRENT GIG "Catch Me if You Can," playing Agent Carl Hanratty, who obsessively hunts the professional imposter Frank Abagnale Jr. (Aaron Tvelt).

WHAT THE TIMES THOUGHT "A witty portrait of the passion that pulses within one gray, weary soul." "The musical comes to ecstatic, surprising life during that song." ("Scamming as Fast as He Can")

AGE 44.

BORN AND RAISED St. Louis.

ALMA MATER Webster University in St. Louis. (But he started out as a journalism major at the University of Missouri.)

AVAILABILITY Married to Michelle Federer, who played Nessarose in "Wicked" while he was playing Fiyero.

BEST KNOWN FOR "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels" (2005). He was the schlubby con man to John Lithgow's more polished crook and became an overnight Broadway star when he sang the paean to greed "Great Big Stuff." No one was surprised when he won the Tony for best actor in a musical.

OTHER BROADWAY FUN Filling in (between the mercury-ridden Jeremy Piven and his replacement, William H. Macy Jr.) on very short notice as Bobby Gould in "Speed-the-Plow" (2008). Starring as Jeffrey Skilling in "Enron," a huge London hit that became one of Broadway's biggest 2010 flops.

PERSONAL TRAGEDY His sister was murdered by an intruder in her Seattle home in 2009.

HOW MUCH FINANCE BORES HIM/HOW HE GOT PAST THAT FOR "ENRON" "I put the business section of The New York Times in the recycle bin almost as soon as I get it, but the play creates metaphors and symbols about finance that I found very exciting theatrically."*

*"Corporate King: Actor Norbert Leo Butz Steps Into the Shoes of Enron's CEO" (The Star-Ledger, April 30, 2010).

"Catch Me if You Can," by Terrence McNally, Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman; directed by Jack O'Brien; Neil Simon Theater, 250 West 52nd Street, (877) 250-2929, ticketmaster.com. Opening night: April 10, 2011.

WANT MORE THEATERGOSSIP? Scroll on to read about the scintillating Sutton Foster and the newcomer-dreamboat Colin Donnell in Kathleen Marshall's revival of "Anything Goes." Then search to read about theater stars like Geoffrey Rush, Kristin Chenoweth, Mark Rylance (whose "Jerusalem" opens any minute now), Douglas Hodge and Liza Minnelli.

Cutest Non-Couple of the Season: Sutton Foster and Colin Donnell in 'Anything Goes'

THEY'RE not meant for each other. Reno Sweeney will end up with the wealthy, aristocratic Brit. Billy Crocker will ultimately win the debutante he loves. But don't Sutton Foster and Colin Donnell, who play Reno and Billy in Kathleen Marshall's fabulous new Roundabout Theater Company revival of "Anything Goes," look great together?

SUTTON FOSTER

It's always a happy occasion when Foster is onstage. We've known that since she starred as the title character in "Thoroughly Modern Millie" in 2002 and won that year's best-actress-in-a-musical Tony right out of the gate. But all that wide-eyed perkiness was eventually going to get old. I missed Foster in "The Drowsy Chaperone" (sorry) and as Princess Fiona in "Shrek" (not sorry), so seeing her Reno, the wisecracking, take-charge evangelist and nightclub performer at the center of "Anything Goes," was a revelation for me. Here's our little girl, brassy and self-confident at last!

Ethel Merman originated the role in 1934. Patti LuPone knocked 'em dead in the 1987 revival. But Foster makes Reno Sweeney totally her own. At 36, all grown-up and divorced (from Christian Borle), she may still be a small-town girl (Statesboro, Ga.) at heart, but we love seeing her as a '30s wicked city lady. She commands the stage and taps her heart out and goes vampish while showing how much she loves doing what she does (and admitting that she knows she's great at it). The title number at the end of Act I is to die for, and "Blow, Gabriel, Blow" is almost as good.

Also, Foster looks great as a blonde.


COLIN DONNELL

Who is this guy?

Donnell waltzes onstage in Act I with handsome written all over him. Billy Crocker may be a stockbroker, but there's nothing buttoned-up or conservative about this find of an actor-singer-dancer when he does his big numbers: "You're the Top" (with Foster), "Easy to Love" (solo) and "It's De-Lovely" (with Laura Osnes as the ingenue he wants to marry). Allow me to quote my colleague Ben Brantley ("A Glimpse of Stocking? Shocking"): When Donnell and Osnes "go cheek to cheek, it's with a yearning, melting elegance that makes you believe in love as a state of grace."

The show's publicists had no bio on him, just a list of credits, but we dug. He was on Broadway in "Jersey Boys" before this, as a replacement. He played the male love interest in "Wicked" on the national tour. A year ago, he was doing something called "Johnny Baseball" in Boston and writing his own Facebook posts. (He had a really nice trip to Paris last year too.) He grew up in St. Louis, where he starred as Tony in "West Side Story" in high school. He went to Indiana University.

Further Googling and Nexising revealed that he's 28. (No word on his marital status, sexual orientation, pets, shoe size or favorite color. But apparently he golfs.) He got into acting after he broke his ankle playing high school football.

And I don't know about other critics, but this is always happening to me: I learned that I had seen him before and reviewed him. In my New York Times review of the Irish Rep's 2006 production of "Meet Me in St. Louis," I called him "boyishly gorgeous" (at least I'm consistent, and he was maybe 24 at the time) and praised his chemistry with his female co-star. He played the boy next door that she just adored.

And here's something from his blog (donnellog.com) from about a year ago: "There's a sunbeam that comes in my window in the morning. It is very warm. It makes me feel like a cat. The end." Isn't that sweet?

I think I'm in love.


"Anything Goes," by Cole Porter, P.G. Wodehouse, Guy Bolton, Howard Lindsay, Russel Crouse, Timothy Crouse and John Weidman, directed by Kathleen Marshall, Stephen Sondheim Theater, 124 West 43rd Street, (212) 239-6200, telecharge.com. Opening night: April 7, 2011.

WANT MORE THEATERGOSSIP? Scroll on to read about Josh Gad and the irreverent musical he's starring in, "The Book of Mormon." Then search to read about stage stars like Christitan Borle (Sutton Foster's ex), Frances McDormand, Mark Rylance, Douglas Hodge, Cherry Jones and, yes, Scarlett Johansson.