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Cast
- Production - Pictures
- Notes - Reviews - Links -
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Cast (in alphabetical order) |
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Lauren Ambrose ..... Hennie
Berger, Myron and Bessie's daughter Ned Eisenberg ..... Uncle Morty, Bessie's brother Ben Gazzara ..... Jacob, Bessie's father Jonathan Hadary ..... Myron Berger Peter Kybart ..... Schlosser, the caretaker Mark Ruffalo ..... Moe Axelrod, the Bergers' lodger Pablo Schreiber ..... Ralph Berger, Myron and Bessie's son Richard Topol ..... Sam Feinschreiber, an immigrant Zoë Wanamaker ..... Bessie Berger, Myron's wife |
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| Production | ||||
| Perhaps Odets's most enduring work, Awake and Sing! charts the struggles of several generations of a Jewish family during the Great Depression. Forced to share a claustrophobic apartment in the Bronx, the Bergers are ruled over by matriarch Bessie. Having discovered her daughter Hennie's secret, Bessie forces the girl to marry a newly-arrived immigrant in order to protect the family's reputation. Hennie's head is turned, however, by the Bergers' lodger, as her mother battles to control her daughter's future. Meanwhile, in love with a poor young woman called Blanche, and encouraged by his grandfather's wistful recollections, Bessie's son Ralph dreams of a better life. As the set of this 2006 production gradually withdraws, the Bergers must confront the tensions that threaten their household, in a play that is both bleak and uplifting by turns. | ||||
| Pictures | ||||
| Awake and Sing! photo gallery from Playbill.com | ||||
| Awake and Sing! photo gallery from BroadwayWorld.com | ||||
| Awake and Sing! production photo from NYTimes.com | ||||
| 'Awake and Sing! makes a Starry Return to Broadway' - after-show party photo gallery from Broadway.com | ||||
| Notes | ||||
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Sher's production of Awake
and Sing! was staged at the same theatre at which the play was
first performed by the acclaimed Group Theatre during the 1930s,
and celebrated the playwright's centenary. A commentary on the modern production by its director accompanies a slideshow of production photos for the New York Times's review (see the article's 'Multimedia' section). Zoë received a Tony award nomination for Best Featured Actress in a Play for her performance in Odets's disturbing work. Awake and Sing! received eight Tony nominations in total. At the awards ceremony, Zoë (photographed at an earlier event for the Telegraph - see picture nine of the slideshow of Tony nominees) spoke briefly about her career in the US; the interview can be viewed at the Tony Awards website (scroll down to 'Red Carpet: Zoe Wanamaker'). The cast were named Outstanding Ensemble at the Drama Desk Awards in 2006 (Zoe was photographed at the nominees' reception), while the production won the award for Distinguished Revival of a Play at the Drama League Awards in the same year. During the production's run, in April 2006, Zoe took part in a 'Working in the Theatre' seminar organised by the American Theatre Wing. The discussion, entitled 'Actors on Performing', can be viewed or downloaded (very large file) at the ATW's website. Richard Griffiths and Jonathan Pryce were among the other guests on the panel. Zoë also gave an interview about her career for the ATW's Downstage Center, which can be listened to or downloaded at the organisation's website. Alongside co-star Mark Ruffalo, Zoe then discussed Awake and Sing! on the Leonard Lopate Show, broadcast on WNYC: New York Public Radio. The interview can be listened to online or downloaded from the radio station's website. |
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| Reviews | ||||
| Awake and Sing! review - AisleSay.com | ||||
| 'Awake and Sing! is Singing Once More' - All About Jewish Theatre | ||||
| 'Awake and Sing! by Clifford Odets on Broadway' - Blog Critics Magazine | ||||
| 'Awake and Sing!: Heaven in Three Acts' - BroadwayWorld.com | ||||
| 'Magic in the Air - on Broadway' - Cleveland Jewish News | ||||
| 'Awake and Sing! - Alive and Kicking, 1935-2006' - DowntownExpress.com | ||||
| 'From Great Depression comes a Great Revival' - NewYorkBlade.com | ||||
| 'Defying Poverty's Everyday Despair in Odets's Awake and Sing!' - NewYorkTimes.com | ||||
| 'Postcard from Broadway: Awake and Sing!' - Orlando Sentinel | ||||
| 'Awake and Sing!: Odets's Best gets a Solid Revival' - SignOnSanDiego.com | ||||
| Awake and Sing! review - Variety.com | ||||
| Links | ||||
| 'Gazzara and Wanamaker to Headline Awake and Sing! Revival at Belasco' - Broadway.com | ||||
| 'Ambrose, Gazzara, Hadary, Wanamaker and More to Awake and Sing! on Broadway' - BroadwayWorld.com | ||||
| 'Lauren Ambrose, Ben Gazzara, Zoe Wanamaker to star in Lincoln Center's Awake and Sing!' - Playbill.com | ||||
| 'Awake and Sing! Revival extends through June 25' - BroadwayWorld.com | ||||
| Awake and Sing! production information from Lincoln Center Theater | ||||
| Awake and Sing! educational guide [.pdf file] from Lincoln Center Theater (includes an interview with Zoë) | ||||
| Awake and Sing! guide from NewYorkCityTheatre.com | ||||
| News articles about and photos of Zoe from BroadwayWorld.com | ||||
| Awake and Sing! at the Drama Desk Awards - NY 1 | ||||
| 'British Talent grabs Limelight in Tony Nominations' - the Guardian | ||||
| 'Brits look set for a Clean Sweep at Tony Theatre Awards' - the Independent | ||||
| 'Why do Brits rule on Broadway?' - the Observer | ||||
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