New York, – “Hadestown”, an original that ascended from theaters of third row to Broadway, was this Sunday the great winner of the 73 edition of the Tony Awards, with eight awards, including the best musical.
The piece, which tells the reimagined story of the Greek myth of Orpheus and Euridice to the rhythm of folk and blues, came as the main favorite to the great night of American theater and did not disappoint.
In addition to better musical, “Hadestown” took the awards to the best original music, best director and best supporting actor, among others.
Unlike many other titles, based on movies or remakes of great hits and that arrive directly at the main theaters in New York, “Hadestown” was born as a small project that toured tiny theaters in the state of Vermont, before giving the I jump to more important squares.
Created by singer-songwriter Anaïs Mitchell, who had no connection with Broadway, the musical has captivated New York with its mix of mythology, love stories and current problems such as climate change.
Its director, Rachel Chavkin, the only woman nominated in its category, took advantage of her victory to denounce the lack of diversity in the awards.
“There are so many women ready, so many artists of color prepared, we have to see that racial and gender diversity reflected also by our critics,” Chavkin said.
Among the performers, Santino Fontana (“Tootsie”) was the best musical lead actor, while Stephanie J. Block was the best actress, for “The Cher Show”.
The biggest ovation, however, went to Ali Stroker (“Oklahoma!”) Who took the award for best supporting actress in a musical and became the first wheelchair performer to win a Tony.
Stroker, who suffers a paralysis resulting from an accident, dedicated the prize to all children with some type of problem or disability that have been waiting to be represented in this scenario.
Another of the most celebrated speeches was that of the Colombian Sergio Trujillo, winner of the best choreography for his work in “Is not Too Proud”, which asked immigrants for hope.
“I came to New York more than thirty years ago as an illegal immigrant, I am proof, for all those dreamers, that the American dream is still alive, because changes are coming,” he said in English.
Trujillo, very excited, finished his thanks in Spanish: “For all of you who are listening to this moment, I want you to know that if I, Sergio Trujillo, born in Cali, Colombia, can get to have this moment, you can do it too” .
In the theater section, the Tony for the best of the season was “The Ferryman”, while the best actor was Bryan Cranston (“Network”) and the best actress Elaine May (“The Waverly Gallery”).
The comedian James Corden was again this year the master of ceremonies and opened the gala with a long musical number in tribute to the theater, in which he encouraged viewers to get up from the sofa and approaching a nearby room.
Plagued with jokes about the success of the television series, the high prices of Broadway and the low salaries of the theater workers, the number made one laugh after another to those present.
Corden counted on the support of numerous stars, who met at the Radio City Music Hall to present the awards, among them Tina Fey, Jake Gyllenhaal, Samuel L. Jackson, Lucy Liu or Sara Bareilles.
Before the show, the red carpet was dominated by the colors of the rainbow, in a floral tribute to the World Pride, which this year is also held in New York to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Inn riots that kicked off Gay Pride . (EFE).
