The year was 1996, and Broadway was glittering with some of the biggest smash hits to take to its theatres. The Phantom of the Opera was in its tenth year, Sunset Boulevard its second and Rent was the show on everyone’s lips. On the 2nd of June, all the glitterati of the US theatre capital all dressed up in their finery and made their way over to the Majestic Theatre for the 50th annual Tony Awards, all eager to see who will win that ultimate seal of performance approval. All the glitterati, that is, except the lead in the third-biggest grossing musical of that year, Julie Andrews.
When the nominations had been announced a month before, Andrews made headlines by taking a minute out of a matinee performance to address her audience and politely decline her nomination in the Best Performance by a Lead Actress in a Musical category. She’d received the nomination for her turn as Victoria Grant in Victor/Victoria, a penniless English soprano who masquerades as a drag queen in order to make a name for herself. With the help of gay bestie Toddy, Andres character rises to the top as the foremost female impersonator in Paris.
The musical was based on a 1982 film that Andrews had also starred in of the same name, which was brought to the Broadway stage thirteen years later. Inspired by 1933 German comedy film 1933, the show is a camp and queer romp where gender-play is central to the plot, and a gay love story makes for an adorable sub-plot. The music was written by Henry Mancini who passed away before he could finish the score, making it his very last work for the ‘Moon River’ composer to his the stage.
The Broadway was a smash-hit production, grossing over $33 million that year. Despite its popularity, it only received one Tony nomination going to Julie Andrews for her performance. In her one-minute speech declining the nomination, she said: “I have searched my conscience and my heart and find that I cannot accept this nomination, and prefer instead to stand with the egregiously overlooked –“. Andrews was not happy her fellow cast members, production team members and the show’s creators didn’t receive a nomination. The show was expected to grab a nomination in the Best Musical category, though it was beat out by Swinging on a Star and Chronicle of a Death Foretold, two shows that had already closed months before.
That year’s Tony Award was widely held to be virtually hers, so her withdrawal from the running was sure to be a heavy blow. Producers for the show were counting on Andrews performing a number form the show as a prime draw for the broadcast, and since she performances can only be from nominated shows, they were left scrambling to fill the performance slot.
Victor/Victoria has since become a cult classics for musical theatre lovers, with the book being one of the cannon pieces in the queer musical theatre canon. The show’s hit song ‘Le Jazz Hot!’ was even featured on TV show Glee, performed by Kurt Hummel (played by Chris Colfer) dressed in an androgynous look.
The award for Best Performance by a Lead Actress in a Musical was presented by Bernadette Peters and Liza Minelli. When the category was announced, a knowing chuckle smattered through the audience. Donna Murphy ultimately grabbed the award for her performance in a The King and I revival.
