#97: Amadeus

Performances: 1,181.
Open / Close: December 17, 1980 – October 16, 1983
Theater: The Broadhurst Theatre.
Tony Awards: The two leads were pitted against each other for Best Leading Actor which often leads to neither one of them winning. In this case, Ian McKellen won for his depiction of Salieri, beating out Tim Curry who played Mozart. The play also landed Peter Hall his second Tony, his first being for “The Homecoming” in 1965. “Amadeus” earned Best Scenic Design and Lighting Design awards but it lost Best Costumes to “Sophisticated Ladies.”
Fun Facts: As discussed in the podcast, Mark Hamill was a late-stage replacement in the Mozart role on Broadway and was also in consideration to take on the role in the movie. Tom Hulce would win in perhaps the pinnacle of his acting career. Hulce has, however, gone on to be a formidable producer, bringing “Spring Awakening” and “American Idiot” to Broadway.

Podcast

Why

A young Ian McKellen is super charismatic. Man, it would have been great to see him as “Salieri.”

This and the following 3 clips are some great examples of how good the movie is.

Some pretty compelling analysis of the power of the movie.

It’s very disappointing that I couldn’t find any footage of Tim Curry playing Mozart. But that sent me down a pretty deep Tim Curry rabbit hole and here is a fascinating scene of him playing another compelling historical character, our boy Bill.