why the hell did they just have him on stage, singing "Being Alive"?

Because they are showing him off for the Best Actor award he was expected to win.

It actually is staged almost exactly like that in the show. The only difference being that the other cast members are playing the music on stage, but they're not really lit and you certainly aren't looking at them. The finale is all Raul Esparza, if not in practice than in feeling. This way made much more sense for a one-off performance.

I really loved this production of Company, and thought that Raul's performance was spectacular. I couldn't take my eyes off of him for the entire show. It was a truly perfect performance of a role that is considered among the most difficult musical theater roles out there - Bobby is a very conflicted character, and bringing it together into one believable person is not easily done. Raul manages it, somehow.

All this is to say that I nearly cried out of sadness and anger when David Hyde Pierce won. I haven't seen Curtains, despite several attempts to catch standing room, but nobody I know who has seen both it and Company thought he had a chance. Esparza was the pick of every single pre-Tony review i've read. The general consensus of Broadway forums, after-the-fact, is that some people voted for Pierce because it's the last Kander and Ebb, and Curtains would've been shut out otherwise, others voted for him because they don't like Sondheim or Doyle's productions of Sondheim, and of the rest, some voted for Jonathan Groff as part of the Spring Awakening near-sweep, taking away votes from Esparza.

Overall, still happy. Spring Awakening won 8 awards! At least two of those were pretty big surprises, so that was really nice.

I had a dream that I kissed Eddie Izzard in full makeup. I didn't used to think of that as sexy, but he's better at it than I. Make-up, I don't know about kissing.

Izzard is made of hot.

There was much squeeing over him last night at the slumber party.

Funny people are usually hot, but "The Riches" made me see him in a new way.

I switched over to the Tonys and someone is singing with passion and pathos. This guy's voice is excellent, and yet, annoying me.

As mentioned, Raul Esparza. He was off for me tonight because he was really nasal, which is unusual for him. I wondered if he might be suffereing some throat strain. Pushing nasal can help with that if that was the issue.

Gris, I couldn't agree with you more about DHP. The whole group I was watching all yelled, "I can't fucking believe that!" when he won. I love him as an actor and he seems like a wonderful human, but I don't think he deserved that award.

Eddie Izzard is freaking hott.

Good things about today so far:

• I got a decent night's sleep.
• I slept through a call from work, which they were eventually able to figure out on their own.
• When my alarm went off this morning, "The Name Game" was playing.
• It's Apple keynote day!

I slept through a call from work, which they were eventually able to figure out on their own.

I love it when procrastination (or heavy sleep) solves the problem!

Incidentally, when I went to LibraryThing this morning, there's a notice that they're down -- they WERE having troubles on Sunday night, but they're getting it fixed. (They say they haven't lost any data, FWIW.)

Gnnngh. Went to gigantic concert last night. Sneaked down from grand stand seating to the general admission floor, slipped through the mass of sweaty humanity, and actually made it close enough to the stage to see. Discovered that I have not forgotten how to throw elbows at drunken frat boys moshing by themselves. My time in metal mosh pits served me well.

So totally awesome, even though I'm hobbling around like an old lady today.

I overslept like CRAZY this morning, which is kind of awesome, because now I feel well-rested. Of course, it kind of sucks, because I was super late to work, but whatever.

I am so jealous of your sleep, Jesse. If I worked in your office, I would be following you around saying, "I want your sleep. Give it to me."