One high (flying) fashion star will be absent from the red carpet of the 83rd Golden Globe Awards, as Cynthia Erivo, star of “Wicked,” will be absent from the ceremony due to her upcoming production of “Dracula” in the West End.
Erivo, who has already won a Tony Award for The Color Purple, stars in the long-awaited one-woman stage adaptation of the gothic horror novel, playing 23 characters, including Dracula. The play, created by adapter and director Kip Williams, will go into previews on February 4th. The team is currently working hard on production in London, and producers are unable to have her attend the ceremony in Los Angeles.
In Wicked: For Good, Erivo earned her fifth Golden Globe nomination for her performance as a young green-skinned witch. She was previously recognized for her portrayal of Harriet Tubman and for “Harriet,” which earned her a double nomination for Best Original Song. She played Aretha Franklin in “Genius: Aretha.” And the first “Wicked” movie. With this nomination, Erivo also makes history as the first black woman to be nominated twice in the Lead Actress (Comedy or Musical) category.
“I hope more women come forward, not just me, but other Black women. I hope this is just the beginning,” Erivo told Variety the morning the nominations were announced in December. (She was calling from London, where she had begun rehearsing for “Dracula.”) “I hope that I can do that and be a part of changing history a little bit, and hopefully opening doors for other people.”
Rounding out her category are Rose Byrne (“If I Had Legs I’d Kick You”), Kate Hudson (“Song San Bleu”), Chase Infinity (“One Battle After Another”), Amanda Seyfried (“Ang Lee’s Testament”) and Emma Stone (“Bugonia”).
Wicked: For Good is up for five nominations at Sunday’s Golden Globe Awards, including Best Motion Picture and Box Office Performance (more than $500 million worldwide), Best Actress in a Musical or Comedy (Erivo), Best Supporting Actress (Ariana Grande), and two nominations in Best Original Song (Stephen Schwartz). Wicked’s awards race continues to advance as the new film follows in the footsteps of its predecessor, which earned 10 Oscar nominations at the 97th Academy Awards, with Grande and Erivo (not even close to the coveted EGOT) continuing to rack up nominations.
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