Top Five Performances: 2025 Tony Awards

This post is coming to you later than I expected. Recently, my not-exactly-dormant-but-more-backburner obsession with Our Flag Means Death walked in, smacked me across the face, and said, “The Gentleman Pirate, I presume?” As such, I don’t have a lot of interest in engaging with stuff other than Our Flag Means Death right now, and I wrote this very gradually, in bite-sized chunks. So while I’m rewatching the show, I probably won’t be posting much beyond previously-written stuff that I already had locked and loaded, mostly Other Doctors Lives and Y tu Luna también. I know I’ll be getting back to Doctor Who and other stuff eventually—not to mention more Our Flag Means Death-related posts—but for now, I’m taking a breather and letting the hyperfixation guide me.

But even though my all-consuming interest is currently in a short-lived pirate romcom that was unjustly canceled a year-and-a-half ago, it was quite an interesting Tonys this year. We got a good, eclectic mix of shows, and it took some doing to pick out a Top Five from the many performances on display.

 

Floyd Collins

I’ve always liked this show, and I hadn’t realized there was a revival of it starring Jeremy Jordan! After the ensemble opened with “Ballad of Floyd Collins,” Jordan came on to perform “The Call.” I love how the lighting, combined with Jordan’s movements and the echo effects, effectively created the impression that he actually was moving through a cave. And no surprise, Jordan sounded terrific.

Hamilton

Look, tell me it’s “cringe” if you want. I know the politics are incredibly 2015. I still love it, and this 10-year reunion performance made me vibrate with excitement. I loooooove that it was a montage that gave almost every character a moment in the spotlight (if I recall correctly, Anthony Ramos is the only major cast member who wasn’t featured.) I mean, “Non-Stop”? “My Shot”? “The Schuyler Sisters”? “Guns and Ships”? “The Battle of Yorktown”? “The Room Where It Happens”? “History Has Its Eyes on You”? I wasn’t even thinking about the fact that Jonathan Groff would be there too, coming in with a bit of “You’ll Be Back.” Just hit after hit after hit. Not one person missed, everyone looked cool in their black formal wear (with bonus red jacket for Groff!), and each new segue brought me fresh waves of excitement!

 

Maybe Happy Ending

I loved this sweet, charming performance of “Chasing Fireflies / Never Fly Away.” Darren Criss and Helen J. Shen were both adorable as a pair of helper robots searching for fireflies, which they considered “little forest robots.” And having a firefly on the end of the conductor’s baton was just a beautiful touch!

 

Operation Mincemeat

I didn’t know anything about Operation Mincemeat, but this performance definitely got me interested in the show. Their number, “Born to Lead,” savaged the Eton-type MI5 upper brass with sly, clever lyrics. Unlike the RAF or naval soldiers, these men don’t know much about flying or sailing, but that doesn’t stop them from being in charge—their repeated refrain is, “For some were born to follow, / But we were born to lead.” Another line I loved is, “For fortune favors bravery, / And a fortune’s what I’ve got!” Great performance!

 

Pirates!

My prevailing thought while watching this performance was, “I bet this show is so much fun.” The cast performed two numbers, “Sail the Ocean Blue” and “Washboards,” and they were charming, entertaining, and energetic. I don’t know much about The Pirates of Penzance, and I don’t know what series of events leads the whole cast to dance while playing washboards together, but it was a delight. Just fun!

Relationship Spotlight: Floyd & Homer Collins (Floyd Collins)

 

I recently picked up the cast recording for this Adam Guettel musical, based on the true story of an amateur caver trapped in a Kentucky cave in 1925.  With his foot caught in a hole and wedged by a fallen rock, what initially seems like an easy rescue turns into a futile seventeen-day ordeal and an all-out media circus.  As I’ve been playing the lovely Americana/folk score over and over, I’ve noticed that all my favorite numbers have one thing in common:  Floyd’s relationship with his younger brother Homer.

 

(Note:  I haven’t seen Floyd Collins onstage or read the script, and while the cast recording and the synopsis give a good idea of the story, it isn’t comprehensive.  So, this post will mostly be focused on several songs from the musical.  Also, it might feel like it’s just about Homer, but that’s because he’s the one most in a position to demonstrate his love for his brother in this story.  Floyd loves Homer, of course, but he’s understandably concerned foremost with his dilemma.)

 

Naturally, Homer is at the head of the early rescue attempts.  He makes numerous treks into the cave to try and free Floyd.  And more than that – throughout the show, he does everything he can to keep Floyd’s spirits up.  In “Daybreak,” he spends the night in the cave with Floyd, keeping his brother company and recalling the first time Floyd brought him into a cave.  “From nightfall to daybreak, / From sundown to dawn, / I’m stayin’ here,” he promises, assuring Floyd that it will all be over soon.  You get the sense that Floyd, as the older brother, is usually the one looking out for Homer, but when the situation is bleak, Homer steps up to be the strong one.

 

Reminiscences are so important to Floyd and Homer.  It’s clear that they’re used to doing everything alongside one another, that they’ve been bold and adventurous together.  Act I ends with “The Riddle Song,” in which the two pass the time trading riddles while Homer digs.  Homer, though, ignores Floyd’s generic offering of “What’s pink an’ green an’ flies all over?” – he prefers riddles about childhood landmarks, places where they made memories on brilliant summer days.

 

The game is hugely beneficial.  It gives Floyd something other than his predicament to concentrate on, and remembered instances of sunshine and freedom offer hope for the same.  And when Floyd gets overwhelmed and starts to panic, Homer soothes him with a final riddle about their shared indomitable qualities:  “What’s strong as a bull an’ smart as a fox, / Quick as a hare an’ stubborn as a mule? / Kin make like a snake through the tiniest hole, / Get hung up fer days an’ turn out fine?”  Once again, he’s giving Floyd a lifetime to hope and reminding him, “It don’t matter none if it’s me or if it’s you; / There ain’t no hole that we can’t pull through!”   Soon, they’re both joking and upbeat, sure that they won’t be bested by this cave.

 

This is why it’s such a blow when Homer clashes with authorities over rescue methods and is pushed out of the operation.  Every time we’ve seen him up till now, he’s been an embodiment of hope and confidence, but in his Act II solo “Git Comfortable,” he’s broken and rudderless.  He doesn’t know what to do with himself if he’s not helping Floyd, and he can’t bear to put his brother’s life in the hands of someone else.  Seeing this self-assured man reduced to such anger and despair really hits home how grave the problem is, and you start to realize that Floyd might not make it out.