Neil Patrick Harris Steals the Spotlight at the Tony Awards
By Ed Martin TV / Video Download Archives
In this woeful era of media self-destruction, when any self-aggrandizing jackass can become rich and famous for doing absolutely nothing, purposefully pumped along to the detriment of all by an ever-growing number of tabloid magazines and television infotainment shows, it is more thrilling than ever to watch a genuine star coming into his or her own after years of hard work. Such was the great pleasure that came from watching Neil Patrick Harris host CBS’ presentation of the 63rd Annual Tony Awards Sunday night on CBS.
In a first-time triumph, NPH (as he is affectionately known among fans of the Harold & Kumar movies and the CBS sitcom How I Met Your Mother) proved to be the best award show host to come along since Hugh Jackman took on the Tonys back in 2003 (for what would be the first of three consecutive Tony-hosting stints). Given the overall outsize success of the American entertainment industry, it is truly surprising to see how few multi-talented entertainers it actually produces. Maybe the dearth of true talent has something to do with so much attention being lavished by the media on those who have no talent at all (check out NBC’s summer abomination, I’m a Celebrity … Get Me Out of Here), or maybe it’s something smaller than that, though not entirely unrelated. Maybe those performers who start out on the stage and return to it as often as possible really are the best of the lot. For whatever reason, the list of stars that can host award-show extravaganzas and keep them moving along in grand good fashion is ridiculously short. But it grew by one Sunday night.
All energy, charisma and good-humor, the multi-talented Harris filled the stage at Radio City Music Hall and held his own in the company of such intimidating legends as Liza Minnelli, Elton John, Dolly Parton, Angela Lansbury and Jane Fonda, not to mention the high-octane casts of Billy Elliott, Hair, West Side Story and Rock of Ages. Further, Harris actually stole the show at the very end – literally after the three-hour mark – with a clever closing number (to the tune of Tonight from West Side Story) that made cheerfully rude fun of the night’s winners and performers, as well as the Tonys themselves and the theater community overall.
Of Shrek star Christopher Sieber’s performance, the frisky Harris sang:
“Chris Sieber, please!
“Performing on your knees?
“Dude, that only works to win Golden Globes!”
He followed that with:
“I hope, tonight,
“When they’re high as a kite,
“To be there, when the Hair, cast disrobes!”
Harris continued:
“This show could not be any gayer,
“If Liza was named Mayor,
“And Elton John took flight …
“The curtain falls,
“I’m off to hit some big Tony balls!
“Good-night!”
He literally sang over the closing credits, pausing mid-song to declare, “Credits? That’s not gonna stop me!”
The fact that Harris stole the show is all the more impressive given that, from the vantage point of home viewers, most of whom have not seen any of nominated dramas or musicals that the Tonys celebrate each year, this may have been the best Tony telecast ever. It may not have served the needs or the egos of certain members of the theater community (there was much grumbling about the removal of several awards from the three-hour televised portion of the four-hour ceremony), but as a promotional platform for Broadway and as a night of entertainment on a pleasant June evening it could not have been better. I’ll credit the above-average roster of stars on hand as nominees and presenters and the inclusion of so many high-energy numbers from new (Billy Elliott, 9 to 5, Rock of Ages) and not so new (West Side Story, Hair), plus production numbers from populist smashes Mamma Mia and Jersey Boys that included talent from touring companies for both shows.
I would argue that Harris’ performance at the end topped even the awesomely ambitious (if technically flawed) extravaganza that kicked-off the three-hour telecast: Brief bits from every new musical that opened on Broadway last season (including all those powerhouse revivals) culminating in the stars from all of them joining the cast of Hair for a rousing rendition of Let the Sunshine In.
As awards shows go, this is turning out to be a strong year for CBS, which has seen across the board ratings growth with its presentations of the Grammys, the Academy of Country Music Awards and now the Tonys, which delivered significant year-to-year growth in households and among adults 18-49 and 25-54. In all three cases, I believe CBS’ success came about by designing the shows to appeal to the massive home audience first and miniscule industry audiences second. (It’s the model perfected in recent years by CMTwith its annual CMT Music Awards.)
Can CBS work its new awards show mojo once again with its telecast of the frequently dreadful Emmy Awards, which in recent years has not appealed to home viewers or members of the television industry? We’ll find out onSeptember 13. Maybe NPH should host that one, too!
Ed Martin
Ed Martin is the chief television and content critic for MediaVillage. He has written about television and internet programming for several Myers publications since 2000, including The Myers Report, The Myers Programming Report, MediaBizBloggers a…
