Before we get into the big news that broke yesterday regarding NSA leaker/whistleblower Edward Snowden, can I take a moment to talk about a segment of the Tony Awards?
Let's face it, the audience for Broadway's biggest night is obviously smaller than that for the Oscars, Grammy's or Emmy's, mainly because unlike those award programs that showcase the best in U.S. film, music and television respectively, the Tony's are more of a regional show, with almost all of it focused on plays that opened up in New York City over the past year – and no where else in this big country.
But I was lucky enough to celebrate my birthday earlier this year in Manhattan and had the chance to take in a couple of shows, including the 50th year anniversary revival of Edward Albee's Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf, so I was really happy to see that show win several awards last night. Especially for Tracy Letts taking Best Actor.
Letts is not a household name, but is considered a big deal in the American theater, though mostly for his playwrighting and not his acting. Letts won the Pulitzer for Drama for his play August: Osage County in 2008 (that play has been made into a motion picture that will be released later this year).
Letts gives one of the greatest performances I've ever seen on a stage in the revival of Virginia Woolf. It was absolutely mesmerizing, and I think it's great that he's been recognized for that work, playing the role made famous in the film version starring Richard Burton. But Letts was better.
Okay, on to the big news – Edward Snowden. That name is probably the most noted in the world today after he came forward last night to admit that he leaked information about the National Security Agency's surveillance programs. Yes, some people say we've always known about this, but if so, was everybody still good with it? Does it matter that it's happening at an even more accelerated rate under Barack Obama than Dick Cheney? And should you care? Snowden says you should as an American.
Yesterday the Sunday shows were all about this issue, before Snowden came forward. Rand Paul says he wants to sue the government, and is calling on all Americans aggrieved by the recent revelations to join him.
And if you didn't get a chance to see it when we posted it Friday afternoon, we attended the Tiger Bay lunch on Friday where Tampa Bay Times CEO Paul Tash talked about the state of journalism and at the Times.
This article appears in Jun 6-12, 2013.
