Nathan Lane Leaves 'Em Laughing at Drama League Luncheon

Nathan Lane (pictured right), a two-time Tony winner and current star of The Addams Family musical on Broadway, stole the show yet again at the Drama League Luncheon Friday at the Marriott Marquis in New York City.

Tony-winning director Jerry Zaks presented him with the award for Distinguished Achievement in Musical Theater, and the star-studded dais, which included Hugh Jackman, Scarlett Johansson, Vanessa Williams and Michael Urie, and the rest of the room roared with laughter and cheers throughout his acceptance speech.

Though Lane's show, The Addams Family, is a box-office hit, it didn't receive the most rapturous reviews and was largely passed over by the Tony nominations - something Lane pointedly pointed out. Here's what he said:

Well, this is the best Drama League Luncheon I've ever been to. ... I want to say how grateful I am that you chose me for this honor before the reviews for The Addams Familyappeared. Otherwise, we'd be honoring Bernadette Peters this afternoon. But the good news is: People in America don't like to read. ... I've been an actor for 35 years and  The Addams Family is my 17th show on Broadway. Lucky No. 17. ...

This is the second elder statesman award I've received in a month, and I'm starting to feel like Betty White. As an elder statesman, I'd like to say: Try to be kind to one another and not take [this awards season] too seriously, unless, of course, you're winning. Good luck at the Tonys, or as they call it at my house, Passover.

I don't think there's anything more difficult to create in the theater than a new musical. When it works, it can be glorious, which is why people keep trying, and why the list of great musicals is so short. It doesn't mean we shouldn't keep trying and why we should not be afraid to fail honorably. The irony of receiving this award this year is not lost on me. It's no secret that The Addams Family was not well-received in certain circles, like the Earth.

Yet it has become a success with audiences. It's a fascinating phenomenon, best summed up by the words of my dear, departed mother who used to say to me as a child: ''F*ck 'em!'' May all your shows be hits, may you get lots of rest and stay hydrated, and remember what is most important: to do the best you can. Thank you!

Over 40 stars from Broadway and Off-Broadway were on the dais, and each offered a few words. Kelsey Grammer, star of the Tony-nominated revival of La Cage aux Folles, said, ''Our show isn't about gay marriage or straight marriage. It's about the devotion between two human souls who adore one another, and maybe we have the opportunity to shft a couple of perspectives a night. I appreciate the chance.''

Sean Hayes, who headlines Promises, Promises, joked, ''The chicken [dinner] was outstanding, and this is my ninth one today.'' Meanwhile, Eddie Redmayne, from out writer John Logan's play Red, recalled how ''Fred [Molina] and I were in the shower'' discussing the audience's enthusiastic reaction. When Urie took the mike, he quipped, ''I would like to devote my time to hearing a little more about Eddie and Alfred's shower. Who lathered who?''

Sean Hayes, Levi Kreis

(All photos courtesy Walter McBride/BroadwayWorld.com)

Not all of the conversation was comic. In the press room, one topic that came up was Ramin Setoodeh's Newsweek piece about whether openly gay actors can convincingly play straight roles.

Levi Kreis, the out singer-songwriter and Tony-nominated star of Million Dollar Quartet, said, ''I've never run into any roadblocks playing straight. I feel blessed to play Jerry Lee Lewis, who is the epitome of a good heterosexual Southern man. (Laughs.) And I enjoy creating that character. I've been a fan and follower of his music all my life.''

Bobby Steggert, the star of Yank!, the Broadway-bound musical about gay World War II soldiers in love, said the Newsweek piece was ''crap. If you're an actor, your skill is to interpret the lives of other people. It doesn't matter who you're playing. It's a ridiculous notion.''

To cap off the Drama League Luncheon, awards were given out to Sondheim on Sondheim for best musical, Red for best play, La Cage aux Folles for best musical revival and A View From the Bridge for best play revival. And among all the actors on the dais, Alfred Molina was singled out for his ''Distinguished Performance'' in Red.

(Wong edits entertainment for the New York Daily News and is a Drama-Logue Award-winning playwright.)