`LION KING' GETS LION'S SHARE OF TONYS.Byline: Michael Kuchwara Associated Press Associated Press: see news agency. Associated Press (AP) Cooperative news agency, the oldest and largest in the U.S. and long the largest in the world. ``The Lion King'' edged out ``Ragtime'' Sunday, winning the 1998 Tony Award for best musical, while ``Art'' upset ``The Beauty Queen of Leenane'' for best play of the Broadway season. It was the closest - and most surprising - Tony race in years, with ``Art,'' Yasmina Reza's three-character comedy about the pleasures and perils of friendship, not taking a single prize until its big win. Despite ``Beauty Queen's'' loss, the bleak Irish drama's director, Garry Hynes Garry Hynes (b. June 10, 1953) is an award-winning Irish theatre director. Background She was born in Ballaghadereen, Co. Roscommon and educated at St Louis Convent, Monaghan, the Dominican Convent, Galway and University College Galway. , became the first woman to win the prize for best direction. Julie Taymor did the same in the musical category, winning for her work on the Disney musical ``The Lion King.'' The final tally had ``The Lion King'' with six Tonys, while ``Ragtime ragtime: see jazz. ragtime U.S. popular music of the late 19th and early 20th centuries distinguished by its heavily syncopated rhythm. Ragtime found its characteristic expression in formally structured piano compositions, the accented left-hand ,'' ``Cabaret'' and ``The Beauty Queen'' followed with four each. ``This is just spectacular, spectacular,'' Taymor said as she received a standing ovation early in the evening. ``The Lion King'' took four other awards - for choreography, lighting, sets and the costumes, which were also done by Taymor. ``Beauty Queen,'' the story of a despairing daughter trapped in a fierce struggle with a controlling mother, dominated the acting prizes. Marie Mullen Marie Mullen is an Irish actress, married to Irish actor Sean McGinley and they have two children. She was one of the founding members of the Druid Theatre Company and her husband has been associated with the company many times in the past. , who plays the daughter, and Anna Manahan, the tyrannical mother, both won. So did Tom Murphy, who portrays a dim-witted adj. 1. mentally retarded; relatively slow in mental function. Adj. 1. dim-witted - lacking mental capacity and subtlety simple-minded, simple neighbor in the play. Anthony LaPaglia Anthony LaPaglia (born 31 January, 1959) (pronounced IPA: /ləˈpɑːljə/) is an Australian actor, best known for his role as FBI agent Jack Malone on the American TV series Without a Trace was named best actor for his portrayal of a tormented Brooklyn longshoreman in ``A View From The Bridge A View from the Bridge is a play by Arthur Miller originally produced as a one-act verse drama on Broadway in 1955. It was based upon an unproduced screenplay that Miller developed with Elia Kazan in the early 1950s, entitled The Hook, dealing with corruption on the Brooklyn ,'' which also was chosen best revival of a play. ``Cabaret'' carried off the prize for best musical revival as well as several musical performance awards. Natasha Richardson won the best-actress musical prize for her work as the decidedly lost Sally Bowles. Alan Cumming, who plays the lascivious las·civ·i·ous adj. 1. Given to or expressing lust; lecherous. 2. Exciting sexual desires; salacious. [Middle English, from Late Latin lasc master of ceremonies in ``Cabaret,'' walked off with the top actor-musical award. Ron Rifkin Ron Rifkin, born to a Jewish[1] family October 31, 1939, is a prolific American actor and director who is featured in numerous television shows. In 2001, his association with Touchstone Television began when he played ex-director, Arvin Sloane, in Alias , who portrays a Jewish shopkeeper in the show, won the featured actor-musical prize. ``Ragtime,'' the main competition for ``The Lion King,'' picked up a trio of musical prizes - book, score and orchestrations - as well as a featured acting prize for Audra McDonald Audra Ann McDonald (born July 3, 1970) is a four-time Tony Award-winning American actress and singer. Biography Born in Berlin, Germany and raised in Fresno, California, the elder of two daughters, she began to study acting at a young age to counteract her diagnosis as , her third Tony. Terrence McNally, who won for his adaptation of the novel ``Ragtime'' for the stage, praised the ``the theater community who came together when I was in trouble.'' ``The Lion King,'' based on Disney's amazingly successful animated film, and ``Ragtime,'' adapted from E.L. Doctorow's novel of turn-of-the-century America, also were among the season's biggest box-office draws. Disney became a big-time player on the Broadway scene in 1994 with its stage version of ``Beauty and the Beast Beauty and the Beast is a traditional fairy tale (type 425C -- search for a lost husband -- in the Aarne-Thompson classification). The first published version of the fairy tale was a meandering rendition by Madame Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve, published in ,'' another film in its stockpile of animated classics. Last year, the company strengthened its ties to Broadway with a $34 million renovation and reopening of the New Amsterdam Theater. TONY WINNERS The 1998 Tony Award winners announced Sunday: Play: ``Art'' by Yasmina Reza. Musical: ``The Lion King.'' Book of a musical: Terrence McNally, ``Ragtime.'' Original score: Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens, ``Ragtime.'' Revival-play: ``A View From the Bridge.'' Revival-musical: ``Cabaret.'' Actor-play: Anthony LaPaglia, ``A View From the Bridge.'' Actress-play: Marie Mullen, ``The Beauty Queen of Leenane.'' Actor-musical: Alan Cumming, ``Cabaret.'' Actress-musical: Natasha Richardson, ``Cabaret.'' Featured actor-play: Tom Murphy, ``The Beauty Queen of Leenane.'' Featured actress-play: Anna Manahan, ``The Beauty Queen of Leenane.'' Featured actor-musical: Ron Rifkin, ``Cabaret.'' Featured actress-musical: Audra McDonald, ``Ragtime.'' Director-play: Garry Hynes, ``The Beauty Queen of Leenane.'' Director-musical: Julie Taymor, ``The Lion King.'' Scenic design: Richard Hudson, ``The Lion King.'' Costume design: Julie Taymor, ``The Lion King.'' Lighting design: Donald Holder, ``The Lion King.'' Choreography: Garth Fagan, ``The Lion King.'' Orchestrations: William David Brohn William David Brohn is an award-winning arranger and orchestrator, best known for his theatre scores of musicals such as Miss Saigon, Ragtime and Wicked. , ``Ragtime.'' CAPTION(S): Photo, Box Photo: Julie Taymor, director of the Broadway hit musical ``The Lion King,'' displays astonishment Sunday at winning her second Tony Award. Kathy Willens/Associated Press Box: TONY WINNERS (See Text) |
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