Alright By Me in America

I've been in transition for the past few weeks. Steve and I have gotten very serious and I have been spending all my time with him. I TiVod the Tony Awards and have only gotten around to watching them today.

I'll spare you the play by play, especially since the program was broadcast two weeks ago. I can tell you that thought overall the show was not very good. It had a great cast, great moments, great ideas but it just didn't do it for me, kind of like Sweet Charity with Christina Applegate.

I do have to mention that the most surreal moment of the night, that I want to view over and over, is the duet between Hugh Jackman and Aretha Franklin. First, there is Aretha's wig and costume that I knew would not disappoint. They were as terrible as everything she has ever worn. A true diva, with a voice that still makes my jaw drop , she takes her time getting onstage and eases through her verse. She sings "Somewhere" as more uptown jazz hero than Broadway'sWest Side Story.

Then there is Hugh. An Aussie with so much talent that he has to play superhero and Broadway legend simultaneously. Jackman's voice is not my type. He is a little too milky and straight for me but he is a good performer. He tried to make this duet between the tall thin middle aged white guy and the plus sized black senior citizen from Detroit work. At one point he reached for her hand during the lyrics, "hold my hand and I'll take you there..." But he forgot the big rule about performing a duet with a diva. You don't control anything. She does what she wants, when she wants to. He grabbed his hand but when she was ready. I noticed that she coughed during a break in the singing but Hugh went forward and she came back when she could.

Finally, I loved at the end of the number when Jackman does some vocal dynamics after Aretha had just laid out a series of smooth riffs. Not to be outdone, Aretha kept on bopping. This is when the diva in Jackman popped out, he held the note longer than the Queen of Soul. Well, smell her.