TRIBECA FILM FEST 2014: AN INTERVIEW WITH "GARNET'S GOLD'S" GARNET FROST AND ED PERKINS

BY LIZ WHITTEMORE

Meet Garnet Frost, a 60 something, caricature of a man. He paints, he sings, he reads, and building things, he writes poetry, he does magic. He is an epic human being who thinks very little of himself. 20 years ago, Garnet went on a hike to Scotland’s Loch Arkaig and nearly died. Just before he was rescued he discovered a wooden staff sticking out of the water. He believes that the staff is a marker for hidden treasure, secretly buried 300 years ago. The experience has haunted him and he is determined to recreate his journey in hopes of striking it rich. Really, this is just the surface of this film. Garnet takes care of his 90 year old mother, still seeking approval for a life filled with extraordinary pursuits. She is an absolute love of a woman. She clearly adores her son, as does his best friend Ann. There is an unrequited side on Ann’s part, admitted so. Though Garnet doubts his value to anyone, everyone he comes in contact with is immediately enchanted.

We get to follow Garnet’s journey in retracing his steps. He tells us what he remembers about the terrain and the difficult journey it had been in his forties. Now, 20 years later, we struggle alongside him as he makes the trip by memory and on foot. We are compelled to cheer for his every step, hoping that he finds a massive reward in the end. In the end, it’s not really the gold that is important. We’ve already fallen in fascination with this man, this genuine human being. You long to hug him when he feels down. He captures the heart of every viewer.

The views are stunning. Scotland’s natural landscape takes your breath away. The amount of rain is alarming. We often find Garnet shoeless, simply because everything was soaked through. Director, Ed Perkins, has put together a beautiful narrative. The two have become fast friends and their mutual respect for one another is palpable. I was fortunate to be able to sit down with both Garnet and Ed last week. Here is a bit of what they had to say about the film.

Liz, The Artswire: Congratulations on this wonderful film. It was so well done, and I loved it.

Ed: It’s very strange for us to hear this. We’re so sure that people are just being nice to us!

Liz: No, no! It’s fantastic. How did you meet each other?

Garnet: Well, it was almost entirely by coincidence, it sort of came out of nowhere. It was in a pub in London talking about my experiences and this guy asked if he could relay my story to a guy in film… May I send a guy round your house? And there was Ed, at my house, in my kitchen.

Ed: In Britain, everything good starts in a pub.

Liz: That’s what I hear.

Ed: I met with Garnet and I was completely taken into his world, I mean very quickly. I just heard that there's amazing, eccentric, extraordinary man looking for lost treasure, in a London pub. It's exactly what you want to hear as a documentary filmmaker. It took four years to get the still made but in the beginning I had no idea what the film was actually going to be about. I knew that even if we didn't find literal gold there is definitely something interesting and maybe even more important from a storyteller's point of view than literal gold. I got addicted to the process. I got addicted to Garnett. I would turn up at his house and he was building contraptions and buying boats. I was taken aback by Garnet's house, all these books of poetry, all this art. That was a starting point of making something slightly more lyrical.

Liz: It seems like it was built around Garnett as a person, all of his stories, all of his hobbies, his amazing paintings.

Ed: Garnet is a bit of a dreamer and most of us are too busy to build our lives around these dreams. The idea of going on an adventure is something resigned maybe to your childhood and here's this man that wants to grab life by the scruff of his neck and while the same time thinks he's possibly wasted much of his life.

Garnet: I'm so grateful to Ed for coming and making this possible.

Ed: there wouldn't be a film unless Garnet was brave enough to allow me into his world. The documentary filmmaker it is such a responsibility and a privilege to get invited into someone’s world especially with these kind of films. and I are very, very close now we probably broke one of the rules this is my first film but I suspect often you try it advisable to stay detached from your subject. That way you can most objectively tell the story and I kind of put my hands up and said "Well I didn't." I did, for better or worse, become emotionally involved in the story. And in my own special way love Garnet. I did care about him and wanted him to succeed. And if it feels different from any other documentary maybe because emotional investment on both of our parts.

Garnet: And although it's my story and Ed is totally invisible to the camera, when I see the film, I see that Ed is there an every shot and he's brought as much to the party as I have. In an understated way it's his story as much as mine. It speaks to his courage as well to take on something like this.

Ed: Although Garnett is this extraordinary man, in a way he's really every man. Second guessing ourselves and wondering if we've made the most of our potential that's pretty key to the human psyche and Garnett was bold enough to go there and ask those questions on camera. I suspected that if there was a way to get that across, then audiences would find a way to emotionally relate to the story. That was the aim anyway.

(Ed also told me about the amazing collaboration on the music for the film.)

Ed: The original cut was 3 hours long and each character had their own narrative introduction and it was a horrible. I realized less is more and I was inspired by Josh, our composer, he did a stunning job with the score in trying to tell the story through music and sound design and allegorical imagery versus traditional dialogue and vérité scenes. He has written 3 amazing songs, the last performed by Liza Minnelli and Wynton Marsalis.

Garnet: Showbiz royalty writing songs for me?

Ed: We had a Q&A session last night and he got a standing ovation from 200 people.  I'm so proud that Garnet is getting the recognition for this beautiful mind and artistic values.  People come up to him and want to shake his hand and want to give him a hug. It's all he's ever wanted for so long and hasn't got. You can finally do that.

Liz: I hope at some point you get to take in all the validation and feel like "my life is amazing, extraordinary" and please know that everyone that's telling you that everything you've done is so incredible and different and wonderful, take that in and I hope it sticks with you because it's really very true. It's amazing. I loved it. It's a gorgeous film and I feel so honored to talk to you about this.

Ed:  That is so kind. Thank you so much.

VERDICT: MUST SEE

Directed by: Ed Perkins Starring: Garnet Frost Runtime: 76 minutes

BOTTOM LINE: This story isn’t really about finding gold. This story is about finding ourselves. It will make you rethink the way you perceive your own life’s accomplishments.

TRIBECA FILM FEST 2014: AN INTERVIEW WITH "GABRIEL'S" RORY CULKIN & LOU HOWE

BY LIZ WHITTEMORE

Many of us deal with anxiety on a daily basis. Some of us have sleep disorders. Others battle with being OCD. Mental illness tends to be a taboo subject. It's something we usually hear about when it comes to the increasing number of mass shootings in this country. Why do we avoid the issue until something goes wrong?

In Lou Howe’s writing and directorial debut, he brings us the story of Gabriel. Played flawlessly by Rory Culkin, Gabriel is a young man struggling with a form of mental illness. On his way back home from some sort of facility, he stops to check up on an old girlfriend in her dorm room, only to find that she has gone home for the holiday. All this happens while avoiding calls from his worried family members. The rise in his agitation both emotionally and physically is a real punch in the gut for audience members. I think we all had a sigh of relief when she wasn’t available. Finally meeting up with his family, Gabriel is not deterred in his path to find her. He disappears on a bus and makes his way into NYC to track her down. During his journey we are witness to the quiet moments in this young man’s life. These seem to be the most disturbing and painful for both Gabriel and viewer alike.

Howe has created a fully fleshed family dynamic without spelling out everything in the script. He treats each character with honest care. It is quite an impressive feat for this first time writer/director. There is actually pretty little dialogue, but what there is, is very astute. Rory’s performance is like watching a masterclass in character study. His focus and mannerisms are perfection. Not to mention that in person, his humility gives you pause. He is quiet in person but eloquent and clearly very bright.I was fortunate enough to attend a round table with Writer/Director Lou Howe and Rory. Here are some of their thoughts on the film.

______________________________________________________________________________

Liz, The Artswire: Normally in Hollywood when we deal with mental illness everything turns out alright in the end. For example, Silver Linings Playbook. This is the extreme opposite. So what was your motivation in telling this story?

Lou: I think I just wanted to be as truthful as possible. I like Silver Linings Playbook. I like positive movies but I don't find them to be as honest about life as I hope to make my movies. I wanted to stay true to Gabe and his experience and try to make it as authentic as possible.

Liz: And if the character based on anyone specific?

Lou: No, not really. The original idea to create a character came from the experience of seeing a close friend get diagnosed with mental illness. The character is purely fictional.

Liz: Rory, you are constantly on all the time, everything take. Were you and everybody onset thinking, "I just need a break for 5 seconds?"

Lou: I think were so in it we are just running the race, like Rory said, it took a minute after we wrapped to realize how intense the whole process had been. But at least for me, when you're in it, you try to focus on the next step.

 Liz: Can I ask about the body language in the film?

Rory: When we went and spoke with people and did those sort of things, there was one young man that really stuck out to me. He said he couldn't entirely trust his own hands so they always had to stay within his line of sight and so the point of the hands in my face was to make sure they're behaving.

Liz: Was there any specific research you did maybe speaking to doctors or speaking to patients affected with mental illness?

Lou: My own friend was sort of the start of it. There were two organizations here in New York that were very helpful with research; the Child Mind Institute read early draft of the script and helped me make sure that this felt accurate and true. And another place called fountain house which is a community center for people struggling with mental illness. I visited several times and took Rory there as well just to meet people struggling with mental illness and hear their stories directly.

Rory: For me it was almost entirely hearing about hearing firsthand accounts and their perspective. Learning from the outside, the medical aspects and all that, is great as a foundation, but as soon as we start shooting I just sort of throw that all that all the window because as Gabriel, your diagnosis is bullshit. he doesn't buy into any of that so I sort of had to not think from the outside.

Lou: I was sort of trying to maintain that, too. Rory would be out there with the rest of the cast thinking about it from their point of view. First person memoirs for Rory or talking to people with illnesses and for the actors playing the family members in the film, having them talk to people in their position.

Liz: Rory, was the character hard to shake off at the end of the day?

Rory: Yeah, I thought I left him behind once we got done. But when I got home I was like kind of fragile and really sensitive and I didn't realize it. But it took a while to shake it off. When I came home, my friends said that my face had aged years. It's weird, you know, at the screening last night, it brought me right back and I was afraid I was going to, as soon as it ended, get emotional. It's almost embarrassing, getting emotional watching myself. It's almost like I'm praising myself but really I'm back there. It's not easy.

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Gabriel will leave you thinking about this intense story. You will want to know what happens long after the screen blacks out. It is certainly a wonderful conversation starter, and that one that we need to address more often.

VERDICT: MUST SEE

Writer/Director: Lou Howe Starring: Rory Culkin, David Call, Deirdre O’Connell, Emily Meade, Louisa Krause, Lynn Cohen, Alexia Rasmussen Runtime: 88 min

BOTTOM LINE: Bring family members to see this film. It was give you a safe place to start talking to one another, no matter what ails you, inside or out.

IF WE RAN THE TONY AWARDS

BY MATEO MORENO AND RICKY JONES

IT'S TONY NOMINATION TIME!  So, before the Official Nominations are presented on Tuesday the 29th, Ricky and I decided to look through all the nominations and pick not who we necessarily think will be nominated, but who WE would nominate this season if we ran the Tony's.  This season has had a record number of shows open and Mr. Jones and I have seen just about every one of them (all will be seen within the next month).  So before we rattle off who should win, here's who we would pick on Tuesday morning if someone who friggin' just ask us...

BEST MUSICAL 

MATEO'S CHOICES

1) Soul Doctor ALL THE WAYYYYY!!!! (Just kidding... that joke made me throw up a little).

My actual choices:

1)  A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder

2)  After Midnight

3)  Beautiful

4)  If/Then

5)  The Bridges of Madison County

Mateo Says: Honestly, it wasn't my favorite season in the original musical category, and I haven't yet seen Aladdin or Bullets Over Broadway.  But hey, the nomination committees rarely see all the shows either, so I'm in good company.  I would definitely reward the excellence of Gentleman & Love with the originality of If/Then, the simple beauty of Bridges, & the surprise of Beautiful.

RICKY'S CHOICES

1)  A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder

2)  Bridges of Madison County

3)  Aladdin 

4)  Beautiful 

5)  If/Then...no Rocky....no If/Then...ok If/Then

Ricky Says: The musicals I really rooting for this season are Gentleman's Guide and Bridges.  Not only is Gentleman's Guide is shoo-in for a nomination but I would even call it a front runner to win come June.  I do hope "Bridges" gets the recognition in this category that it deserves.  It had many problems when I saw it during previews and I applaud them for the making the changes they needed to.  Now, it is a stunning and emotional musical!  Aladdin and Beautiful should get also nominations as well.  I'm torn for that final slot.  Rocky is a HUGE and impressive production but I have many issues with the show itself (sadly mainly the score).  If/Then also is problematic and but the score had a lot of great songs.  I have to give that final nomination to the only original musical and it will encourage more original work.

BEST PLAY 

MATEO'S CHOICES

1)  Casa Valentina 

2)  Act One

3)  The Realistic Joneses

4)  Outside Mullingar

5)  Mothers and Sons

Mateo Says: I'd like to nominate Velocity of Autumn because I enjoyed it more than I did Mothers and Sons but Terrance McNally's play is just a better written piece (unfortunately hampered by two terrible performances but saved by two very good ones).  Casa, for my money, has the most to say and was powerful without ever being preachy. Act One was a theatre history nerd’s dream (and how about that set!). Realistic Joneses is the kind of weird ass play that never makes it on Broadway and I LOVE that it did. Outside Mullinger was the most magical play on Broadway this season. Light, funny, whimsical... John Patrick Shanley magic.

RICKY'S CHOICES:

1)  Casa Valentina 

2)  Act One

3)  All The Way

4)  Outside Mullingar

5)  Mothers and Sons

Ricky Says: Casa Valentina is what Harvey Fierstein does best! I found his new play completing riveting and wonderfully acted.  Act One is a wonderful and moving play about the love of theatre and deserves spot on that list.  All The Way was a perfect vehicle to let Cranston shine.  Mullingar was a delightful romantic comedy!  And last but not least, I was really moved yet again by Terrence McNally in his new play Mothers and Sons.  I am very happy with this list of plays!

BEST MUSICAL REVIVAL 

MATEO'S CHOICES

1)  Hedwig and the Angry Inch

2)  Les Miserables

3)  Violet 

4)  Cabaret*

Mateo Says: This is the year of Hedwig.  It's the unstoppable best this year (sorry Violet). I would only nominate Cabaret because it is a brilliant production, but wouldn't dare vote for it winning due to it being a carbon copy of the same production that's already won.

RICKY'S CHOICES

1)  Les Miserables

2)  Hedwig and the Angry Inch 

3)  Violet 

4)  Cabaret 

BEST PLAY REVIVAL 

MATEO'S CHOICES

1)  Twelfth Night

2)  The Glass Menagerie

3)  The Cripple of Inishmaan

4)  Waiting for Godot

5)  Lady Day at Emerson's Bar & Grill

Mateo Says: One of the strongest catagories this year, there was a lot of great stuff that I couldn't nominate (sorry No Man's Land, Richard III, Of Mice and Men, A Raisin in the Sun, & Machinal!). For me, these are the five (though I do consider Lady Day to be more of a musical, but the Tony's do not). Twelfth Night was the best I've ever seen it, Glass Menagerie was pure wonder, Cripple I had never seen or read before and it knocked my socks off, and how can you not love a Godot with Sir Ian and Sir Patrick?

RICKY'S CHOICES

1)  Machinal 

2)  Raisin in the Sun

3)  The Glass Menagerie

4)  Twelfth Night

Ricky Says: Machinal was the biggest surprise of the season for me!  I was on the edge of my seat the entire show!  Hopefully, this revival gets numerous nominations.  Raisin in the Sun is masterpiece and its newest revival is pretty close to perfect.  I hate to say it but I do not care much for The Glass Menagerie play itself but I have to give credit to the production.  I'm still not a fan of the material but everyone involved with this revival was great!  And Twelfth Night was just wonderful Shakespeare done perfectly!

BEST ACTOR IN A MUSICAL 

MATEO'S CHOICES:

1) Neil Patrick Harris, Hedwig & the Angry Inch

2) Ramin Karimloo, Les Miserables

3) Bryce Pinkham, Gentleman's Guide to Love & Murder

4) Steven Pasquale, The Bridges of Madison County

5) Zachary Levi, First Date

Mateo Says: I know I'm going to get shit for this one. Hey, First Date may have been pure fluff, but I enjoyed it and Levi had one hell of an assured Broadway Debut. He was utterly charming, hilarious, and the pure reason to see it, so I would award that with a nom.

RICKY'S CHOICES:

1) Neil Patrick Harris!!, Hedwig

2) Jefferson Mays, Gentleman's Guide

3) Ramin Karimloo, Les Miserables

4) Steven Pasquale, Bridges of Madison County

5) Bryce Pinkham, Gentleman's Guide

Ricky Says: The brilliant NPH will surely get a nomination and I can't see any way he doesn't win it all.  Jefferson Mays' rave reviews will surely have him on this list as well.  After that, it's pretty unpredictable.  I am really rooting for Karimloo, Pasquale, and Pinkham.  Karimloo's voice is just simply incredible.  I have to say I prefer Pinkham's performance over Mays' in Gentleman's Guide and would love to see him up there.  But the actor that I want to see nominated most of all is Pasquale.  All the love seems to be for Kelli O'Hara's amazing performance but he is equally wonderful!  It would be a real shame if he was forgotten.

BEST ACTOR IN A PLAY 

MATEO'S CHOICES

1)  Bryan Cranston, All the Way

2)  Daniel Radcliffe, Cripple of Inishmaan

3)  Tony Shalhoub, Act One

4)  Ian McKellen, Waiting for Godot

5)  Brían F. O’Byrne, Outside Mullingar

Mateo Says: This was hard to leave out the amazing Santino Fontana for Act One. Denzel Washington and Chris O'Dowd were also very good, but Mullingar just kind of enchanted me, and O'Bryrne was wonderful in it.

RICKY'S CHOICES:

1)  Bryan Cranston 

2)  Ian McKellen 

3)  Denzel Washington

4)  Chris O'Dowd

5)  Santino Fontana 

Ricky Says: Cranston, Washington, and McKellen will be nominated for sure.  I do hope Fontana will be recognized as well for his passionate portray of Moss Hart but I have feeling Tony Shalhoub may steal it from him.

BEST ACTRESS IN A MUSICAL 

MATEO'S CHOICES:

1)  Kelli O'Hara, Bridges of Madision County

2)  Idina Menzel, If/Then

3)  Michelle Williams, Cabaret

4)  Mary Bridget Davies, A Night with Janis Joplin

5)  Jessie Mueller, Beautiful

Mateo Says: Amazing performances all around makes me leave out both of the Bullets leading ladies (and Sutton Foster). My surprise inclusion is Davies, who fully embodied and captured playing Janis Joplin without it feeling like a character.

RICKY'S CHOICES

1)  Kelli O'Hara, Bridges

2)  Jessie Mueller, Beautiful

3)  Sutton Foster, Violet

4)  Michelle Williams, Cabaret

5)  Idina Menzel, If/Then

Ricky Says: Again there are three actresses that will definitely be nominated; O'Hara, Mueller, and Foster.  I was not crazy about Idina's performance at all but the Tonys love her ergo she will be as well. Here's hoping Michelle Williams will be rewarded for giving us a different Sally Bowles than we were expecting.

BEST ACTRESS IN A PLAY 

MATEO'S CHOICES:

1)  Audra McDonald, Lady Day at Emerson's Bar & Grill

2)  Cherry Jones, The Glass Menagerie

3)  Estelle Parsons, Velocity of Autumn

4)  Tyne Daly, Mothers & Sons

5)  Toni Collette, The Realistic Joneses

Mateo Says: Great list of ladies, and this is Audra's category to lose.

RICKY'S CHOICES:

1)  Audra McDonald, Lady Day

2)  Rebecca Hall, Machinal

3)  Cherry Jones, The Glass Menagerie

4)  Tyne Daly, Mothers and Sons

5)  Estelle Parsons, Velocity of Autumn

Ricky Says: I think the only one in this list that I am worried about is Rebecca Hall. Machinal closed months ago and will the Tony remember her intense performance?  Let’s hope so.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A MUSICAL 

MATEO'S CHOICES:

1)  Danny Burstein, Cabaret

2)  James Monroe, Aladdin

3)  Ryan Andes, Big Fish

4)  Jefferson Mays, A Gentleman's Guide to Love & Murder

5)  Will Swenson, Les Miserables

Mateo Says: Yup, I'm nominated my friend Ryan but not just because he's my friend. He was DAMN good as Karl the Giant in Big Fish.  I'm also going against Tony's official ruilings and making Mays and Swenson "Best Supporting Actor" because, well... they are.

RICKY'S CHOICE:

1)  James Monroe, Aladdin

2)  Danny Burntein, Cabaret

3)  Joshua Henry, Voilet

4)  Hunter Foster, Bridges of Madison County

5)  Brooks Ashmanskas, Bullets Over Broadway

RICKY SAYS: The lovable Monroe is shoo in here.  Burnstein will likely be on the list as well.  Joshua Henry almost steals the show from Sutton Foster and will be awarded for his performance.  Though his role may be just a tad underwritten, Hunter Foster gives us a character we really care for.  Bullet's Over Broadway's Nick Cordeo will probably get the nomination though I would prefer the always hilarious Ashmaskas.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR IN A PLAY 

MATEO'S CHOICES:

1)  Nick Westrate, Casa Valentina

2)  Gabriel Ebert, Casa Valentina

3)  Reed Birney, Casa Valentina

4)  Brian J. Smith, The Glass Menagerie

5)  Mark Rylance, Twelfth Night

Mateo Says: With a ridiculous amount of people getting left off here since the enormously talented cast of Casa are all supporting, this one is a can't go wrong.  I'd nominate the above three from Harvey's wonderful play, narrowly leaving off Patrick Page since he's really more of a lead.  Briand J. Smith was wonderful in Menagerie and Rylance again murders every single scene he's in (this time as a woman!)

RICKY'S CHOICES:

1)  Reed Birney, Casa

2)  Tom McGowan, Casa

3)  Patrick Page, Casa

4)  Brian J. Smith, Glass Menagerie

5)  Brandon J. Dirden, All The Way

Ricky Says: If it were up to me, all these five nominees would be from Casa Valentina.  It was such a wonderful ensemble show and each of them shined!  Newcomer Brian J. Smith stole the show of Glass Menagerie from stars like Zachary Quinto.  And I really enjoyed Brandon J. Dirden's portrayal of Martin Luther King in All The Way.

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A MUSICAL 

MATEO'S CHOICES:

1)  Lena Hall, Hedwig

2)  Marin Mazzie, Bullets Over Broadway

3)  Caissie Levy, Les Miserables

4)  Anika Larsen, Beautiful

5)  Linda Emond, Cabaret

Mateo Says: Lots of great supporting ladies, lead in my opinion by Lena Hall, who after her small role in Kinky Boots now has lots of time to shine.  And shine she does.  My buddy Levy has shown time after time that she is the new diva in the wings, and Les Miz continues to show that.  Mazzie, Larsen, and Emond all show great range, both in comic timing and, in Emond's case, heartbreak.

RICKY'S CHOICES

1)  Linda Emond, Cabaret

2)  Marin Mazzie, Bullets Over Broadway

3)  Lisa O'Hare, Bullets

4)  Lauren Worsham, Gentleman's Guide

5)  Lena Hall, Hedwig

Ricky Says: It will be such a shame if Lena Hall isn't on this list!  She is perfecting cast in the role of Yitzak and worked off NPH wonderfully. I hope at least one of the beautiful Gentleman's Guide ladies will be nominated.  Both of their voices are just goreous!  It was be a big snub if Tony favorite Mazzie is snubbed.  And Linda Emond....with that wonderful role how can she not at least get nominated?

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS IN A PLAY 

MATEO'S CHOICES

1)  Celia Keenan-Bolger, The Glass Menagerie

2)  Sophie Okonedo, A Raisin in the Sun

3)  Anika Noni Rose, A Raisin in the Sun

4)  Sarah Greene, Cripple of Inishmaan

5)  Ingrid Craigie, Cripple of Inishmaan

Mateo Says: Finally I can nominate Raisin!  The cast are all fantastic in this beautiful production adn Anika and Sophie are at the top of it!  Ceilia was quietly powerful in Glass and in Cripple, Greene was deliciously mean and Craigie was tender and whacked out.  A great list of great actresses.

RICKY'S PICKS

1)  Anika Noni Rose, Raisin in the Sun

2)  Sophie Okonedo, Raisin

3)  Mare Winningham, Casa Valentina

4)  Marisa Tomei, Realistic Joneses

5)  Charlotte Parry, The Winslow Boy

Ricky Says: I'm not sure if Marisa Tomei is up for Leading Actress or Featured, but I would say that her role is more of a supporting role.  I know I am missing Celia Keenan Bolger but I'm gonna go with Parry. Winslow Boy will probably be forgotten at the Tonys and she would be perfect way to honor that show.

BEST BOOK OF A MUSICAL 

MATEO & RICKY'S CHOICES:

1)  Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder 

2)  Bridges of Madison County 

3)  Rocky

4)  If/Then

BEST SCORE

MATEO & RICKY'S CHOICES:

1)  Jason Robert Brown, Bridges of Madison County

2)  Robert L. Freedman and Steven Lutvak, Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder 

3)  Brian Yorkey, Tom Kitt, If/Then 

4)  Andrew Lippa, Big Fish

BEST DIRECTOR OF A MUSICAL

MATEO'S CHOICES:

1)  Alex Timbers, Rocky

2)  Michael Mayer, Hedwig

3)  Laurence Conner & James Powell, Les Miserables

4)  Michael Greif, If/Then

RICKY'S CHOICES:

1)  Alex Timbers, Rocky

2)  Michael Mayer, Hedwig

3)  Laurence Conner & James Powell, Les Miserables

4)  Darko Tresnjak, Gentleman's Guide

BEST DIRECTOR OF A PLAY

MATEO'S CHOICES:

1.)  Joe Mantello, Casa Valentina

2.)  Jame Lapine, Act One

3.)  Michael Grandage, Cripple of Inishmaan

4.)  Tim Carroll, Twelfth Night, Richard III

RICKY'S CHOICES:

1.)  Joe Mantello, Casa Valentina

2.)  Jame Lapine, Act One

3.)  Lyndsey Turner, Machinal

4.)  Tim Carroll, Twelfth Night, Richard III

BEST CHOREOGRAPHY

MATEO & RICKY'S CHOICES:

1)  Warren Carlyle, After Midnight

2)  Steven Hoggett and Kelly Devine, Rocky

3)  Susan Stroman, Bullets Over Broadway

4)  Casey Nicholaw, Aladdin

BEST SCENIC DESIGN OF A MUSICAL

MATEO'S CHOICES:

1)  Rocky

2)  Big Fish

3)  Hedwig and the Angry Inch

4)  Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder

RICKY'S CHOICES:

1)  Rocky

2)  Big Fish

3)  Beautiful 

4)  Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder 

BEST SCENIC DESIGN OF A PLAY

MATEO'S CHOICES:

1)  Machinal 

2)  Act One

3)  Cripple of Inishmaan

4)  Twelfth Night/Richard III

RICKY'S CHOICES:

1)  Machinal 

2)  Act One

3)  Snow Geese

4)  Twelfth Night/Richard III

BEST LIGHTING DESIGN OF A MUSICAL

MATEO'S CHOICES:

1)  Rocky

2)  If/Then

3)  Hedwig 

4)  Big Fish

RICKY'S CHOICES:

1.)  Rocky

2.)  Bridges of Madison County 

3.)  Hedwig 

4.)  Big Fish

BEST LIGHTING DESIGN OF A PLAY

MATEO'S CHOICES:

1)  The Cripple of Inishmaan

2)  The Glass Menagerie

3)  Act One

4)  Twelfth Night

RICKY'S CHOICES:

1)  Machinal 

2)  The Glass Menagerie

3)  Act One

4)  Macbeth

BEST COSTUME DESIGN OF A MUSICAL

MATEO'S CHOICES:

1)  Hedwig 

2)  Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder 

3)  Big Fish

4)  Aladdin 

RICKY'S CHOICES:

1)  Hedwig 

2)  Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder 

3)  After Midnight

4)  Aladdin

BEST COSTUME DESIGN OF A PLAY

MATEO'S CHOICES

1)  Casa Valentina 

2)  Waiting for Godot

3)  Twelfth Night

4)  Act One

RICKY'S CHOICES

1)  Casa Valentina 

2)  Machinal 

3)  Twelfth Night

4)  Act One

BEST ORCHESTRATIONS

MATEO'S CHOICES:

1)  Bridges of Madison County 

2)  After Midnight 

3)  Hedwig and the Angry Inch

4)  If/Then

RICKY'S CHOICES:

1)  Bridges of Madison County 

2)  After Midnight 

3)  Beautiful

4)  If/Then

BEST SOUND DESIGN OF A MUSICAL

MATEO & RICKY'S CHOICES:

1)  Hedwig 

2)  Rocky

3)  Beautiful 

4)  If/Then 

BEST SOUND DESIGN OF A PLAY

MATEO'S PICKS

1)  The Cripple of Inishmaan

2)  Lady Day 

3)  Act One 

4)  The Glass Menagerie

RICKY'S PICKS

1)  Machinal 

2)  Lady Day 

3)  Act One 

4)  The Glass Menagerie