Musical Actress Category Reduced; Plus Featured Actor Predix

 
Since there are only six eligible candidates for the Best Actress in a Musical category at the Tonys, the Administration Committee has ruled there will only be four nominees in that slot rather than five.  That means I have to reduce my Tony predictions in that category by one. The eligible candidates are

Sutton Foster, "Anything Goes"

Janet Dacal, "Wonderland"

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"

I originally had predicted everyone but Dacal making the Tony short-list. I will drop Scott since her show is no longer running, leaving Foster, Leavel, Miller, and Murphy. The Outer Critics have deemed Victoria Clark, Mother Superior of "Sister Act," as a lead and nominated her against co-star Miller, while the Drama Desks have included Scott in their list of five. Speaking of lead and featured roles, here are my predictions for the featured Tony nominees which will be announced tomorrow along with the entire Tony slate:

Featured Actor in a Play:

MacKenzie Crook, "Jerusalem"

Arian Moayed, "Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo"

Jim Parsons, "The Normal Heart"

Tom Riley, "Arcadia"

Yul Vazquez, "The Mother f**ker with the Hat"

Featured Actress in a Play:

Ellen Barkin, "The Normal Heart"

Edie Falco, "The House of Blue Leaves"

Judith Light, "Lombardi"

Estelle Parsons, "Good People"

Elizabeth Rodriguez, "The Motherf**ker with the Hat"

Featured Actor in a Musical:

Joel Grey, "Anything Goes"

Adam Godley, "Anything Goes"

John Larroquette, "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying"

Rory O'Malley, "The Book of Mormon"

Tom Wopat, "Catch Me If You Can"

Featured Actress in a Musical:

Laura Benanti, "Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown"

Victoria Clark, "Sister Act"

Nikki M. James, "The Book of Mormon"

Patti LuPone, "Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown"

Laura Osnes, "Anything Goes" 

(Photo of Victoria Clark and Patina Miller in "Sister Act": Joan Marcus)

--David Sheward