| Awake and Sing! | |
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Playbill title page, Belasco Theatre, 1935 |
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| Written by | Clifford Odets |
| Date premiered | February 19, 1935 |
| Place premiered | Belasco Theatre New York City |
| Original language | English |
| Subject | A family struggles for survival amongst harsh conditions |
| Genre | Drama |
| Setting | The Bronx, 1933 |
| IBDB profile | |
Awake and Sing! is a drama written by American playwright Clifford Odets. The play was initially produced by The Group Theatre in 1935.
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The play is set in The Bronx in 1933; it concerns the impoverished Berger family and their conflicts as the parents scheme to manipulate their children's relationships to their own ends, while their children strive for their own dreams.
The play premiered on Broadway at the Belasco Theatre on February 19, 1935, running for 184 performances before closing on July 27, 1935; it returned two months later on September 9 for an additional 24 performances through September 28, 1935. Directed by Harold Clurman, the cast starred Luther Adler (Moe Axelrod), Stella Adler (Bessie Berger), Morris Carnovsky (Jacob), John Garfield (Ralph Berger) and Sanford Meisner (Sam Feinschreiber).
It was revived off-Broadway in 1970, 1979, 1993, and 1995.[1] It was revived on Broadway in 1938, 1939, 1984, and 2006.
A television adaptation was made in 1972 starring Walter Matthau.[2]
It was last revived in a Lincoln Center Theater production on Broadway at the Belasco Theatre, opening on April 17, 2006 and closing on June 25, 2006 after 80 performances and 27 previews. Directed by Bartlett Sher, the cast featured Ben Gazzara (Jacob), Zoë Wanamaker (Bessie), and Lauren Ambrose (Hennie).[3]
Following its American success, the play was staged in London at the Off West End Almeida Theatre, from August 31, 2007 through October 20, 2007. Directed by Michael Attenborough, the cast featured Stockard Channing as Bessie.[4]
The play opened in Toronto June 6, 2009 for a 2 month run at Soulpepper.
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