New Milford's Rob McClure Nominated for Tony Award

His wife gasped, his friend, New Milford's Jonathan Silver, came bounding down the stairs in a "unique" dance, while all he could muster was Holy ****, a thought verbally expressed just as his mother sent him a text that read, "Holy ****." 

Still reeling from his Carnegie Hall debut the night before, that's how New Milford's Rob McClure reacted to the news early Tuesday morning that he had been nominated for a Tony Award as best actor in a musical for his performance as Charlie Chaplin in Chaplin The Musical.

Upon the announcement, his castmates from Chaplin had donuts delivered to his house, he received countless phone calls and well wishes from family and friends, but what turned him into a "weep puddle" was the text he received from the students at New Milford High School with whom he had just worked as lighting designer on The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee this spring.  

"The kids texted that the school was watching the nominations and when my name was announced, a huge shout went throughout the school," McClure said.

"That's when it hit me how many people are responsible for me getting to where I am today."

McClure stressed that as an actor, "You always hope that one day you will be nominated, but you never really expect it."

Nominated with McClure are:

• Bertie Carvel, Matilda the Musical
• Santino Fontana, Rodgers + Hammerstein’s Cinderella
• Billy Porter, Kinky Boots
• Stark Sands, Kinky Boots

"The amount of talent of the other nominees is unbelievabe," McClure said. "I remember blasting a CD of Billy Porter singing Beauty School Drop Out in the revival of Grease while building the set for Where's Charlie at New Milford High School in 2000--the idea that I'm nominated for a Tony along with him is unbelievabe."

Because Chaplin has closed, McClure considers his nomination a testament to the outstanding work of everyone involved with the show.

"What's starting to set in is the fact that this isn't about me," McClure said. "I'm honored to be representing the show and all those people involved with Chaplin and all of their hard work."

However, what McClure is most greatful for is the fact that he has stayed so close to New Milford.

"I hope they know how much I know that they're responsible for what brought me to this nomination," he said.

McClure credits the early encouragement of teachers such as Jim Africano, Jane Schwartz, Rose DePoto and all the others who acknowledged his creative spark and nurtured it.  

"It's the nurturers like them, along with my family, who set me on this course," McClure said.

McClure is gearing up for the lead role in the Papermill Playhouse's musical production of Honeymoon in Vegas this fall. The musical is based on the film starring Nicholas Cage and James Caan. McClure is playing Jack Singer, the Cage role, opposite Tony Danza who is playing Tommy Korman, the Caan role. The musical is scheduled to transfer to Broadway.  

"All the people sending me love from New Milford who are saying that they can't believe this has happened to me, are probably the ones who had a key role in making it happen," McClure said.  

The Tony Awards air June 9 at 8 p.m. on CBS.

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