Past Shows - 1950 - 1999
CHRONOLOGY of THE NATIONAL THEATRE
1950 - 1999
This record is a work in progress.
1835
- 1864
1865 - 1899
1900 -1924
1925
- 1949
2000
- the present
Click
here for the Memory Page: Audience Members Reminisce
Abbreviations
SN refers to Stage for a Nation, Lee, Meersman,
Murphy, 1985, the official history of The National.
HNNT refers to History of the New National Theatre
by Alexander Hunter and J. H. Polkinhorn, November, 1954
ON refers to a series of orange notebooks containing
information taken from the files of the Washington Historical Society
on productions at the National beginning in 1835. Information culled
from The Intelligencer newspaper files of the Martin Luther King
Library. There are no program files for these entries.
Rapley Files - William W. Rapley was an owner and manager of the
theatre in the 1860's and the 1870's. He was later succeeded by
his son, Harry W. Rapley.
LINKS - For shows presented since 1997, when this
website was inaugurated, promotional pages exist. These pages
may include photos, some cast names, and other information about
the shows. Click
here for a list of links to these pages.
1950
1951
Building was owned by The Munsey Realty Co., a subsidiary of The
Munsey Trust Co., which was the Munsey estate, represented by Christopher
H. Pope.
March 30, 1951
Howard S. Cullman of New York tried unsuccessfully to buy the National
and convert it back to an integrated playhouse.
November 8, 1951
NEW LEASE - Richard Aldrich and Richard Meyers (Myers?), with Robert
Dowling's City Investment Company and money from Julius Fleischmann
took a ten-year lease, effective May 4, 1952. They pledge to open
as an integrated theatre, operated by Louis Lotito.
1952
Edward Plohn continued as theatre manager.
Scott Kirkpatrick became assistant manager.
May 5 through May 31, 1952 – SEGREGATION ENDED
CALL ME MADAM – The National Theatre re-opened as an unsegregated
legitimate theatre with Ethel Merman in Irving Berlin's Call Me
Madam. With Richard Eastham, Alan Hewitt, Russell Nype, Alan Hewitt,
Pat Harrington, Galina Talva, Jay Velie, Robert Chambers, E. A.
Krumschmidt. Directed by George Abbott. Musical numbers staged by
Jerome Robbins. Elaine Stritch played the lead in a matinee on May
30. "Conchita del Riviero" in the company became the star,
Chita Rivera. Rivera was a native Washingtonian.
June 2 through June 21, 1952
GENTLEMEN PREFER BLONDES - musical comedy based on the book by Joseph
Fields and Anita Loos, music by Jule Styne; lyrics by Leo Robin;
dances and music ensemble by Agnes de Mille. Starring Carol Channing,
Jack McCauley, Shirl Conway, Eric Brotherson, Kazimer Kokic, Mary
Finney, Robert Chisholm, Reta Shaw, Honi Coles, Cholly Atkins, Dorothy
Etheridge, Morley Meredith, Jerry Jarrett, Frank Milton, Doug Rogers,
Irving Mitchell. Production staged by John C. Wilson.
June 23 through July 19, 1952 – DARK
July 21 through August 2, 1952
GOOD NITE LADIES – Comedy adapted by Cyrus Wood from the stage
hit “Ladies Night in a Turkish Bath” by Avery Hopwood.
Starring Dolores Cross, Joyce Savage, Patricia Stedman, Bob Ball,
Ervil Kay Hart, Elsie Kerben, Neal Thorpe, Jack Mathiesen, Josephine
Raciti, Denise Milan, Monie May, Nalima Esined and Tom Carlin. Directed
by Harry Minturn.
August 4 through August 30, 1952
PORGY AND BESS -- music by George Gershwin, lyrics by DuBose Heyward
and Ira Gershwin. Starring William Warfield, Leontyne Price, Cab
Calloway, Urylee Leonardos and LeVern Hutcherson. Cast includes
Georgia Burke, Helen Colbert, Joseph James, William Veasey, Leslie
Scott, Helen Dowdy, John McCurry, Howard Roberts, Moses LaMarr,
Kenneth Hibbert, Helen Thigpen, Catherine Ayers, Jerry Laws, Joseph
Crawford, Ray Yeates and Joseph Attles. Directed by Robert Breen.
October 6 through October 11, 1952
BERNARDINE – comedy by Mary Chase. Cast includes Johnny Stewart,
Alney Alba, Beverly Lawrence, John Kerr and Michael Wager. Staged
by Guthrie McClintic.
October 13 through October 25, 1952
THE CLIMATE OF EDEN – new comedy by Moss Hart, based on Edgar
Mittelholzer’s novel “Shadows Move Among Them.”
Starring John Cromwell, Isobel Elsom, Penelope Munday, Lee Montague,
Rosemary Harris. Directed by Moss Hart.
October 27 through November 1, 1952
THE DEEP BLUE SEA – by Terence Rattigan. Starring Margaret
Sullavan, with Alan Webb, Herbert Berghof, James Hanley, Betty Sinclair,
John Merivale, Stella Andrew, and Felix Deebank. Directed by Frith
Banbury.
November 3 through November 15, 1952
TOP BANANA – musical comedy with words and music by Johnny
Mercer, book by Hy Kraft. STarring Phil Silvers, with Kaye Ballard,
Jack Albertson, Judy Lynn, Johnny Coy, Joey Faye, Walter Dare Wahl,
Herbie Faye, Bradford Hatton, Dick Dana, Johnny Trama, Gloria Smith,
George Marci, “Flach” Hogan, Danny Scholl. Directed
by Jack Donohue.
November 17 through November 30, 1952
THE SHRIKE -- Pulitzer prize winning drama by Joseph Kramm. Starring
Van Heflin, Doris Dalton, and Kendall Clark. Direction by Jose Ferrer
December 1 through December 13, 1952
POINT OF NO RETURN – new play by Paul Osborn, based on a novel
by John Marquand. Starring Henry Fonda with Leora Dana, Frank Conroy,
Paul Huber, Colin Keith-Johnston, Robert Ross, Patricia Smith, Phil
Arthur, William Le Massena, and James MacDonald. Directed by H.C.
Potter. Presented by Leland Hayward.
December 29, 1952 through January 4, 1953
BALLET THEATRE – starring Alicia Alonso, Igor Youskevitch,
Mary Ellen Moylan and John Kriza. Music conducted by Joseph Levine.
Repertoire includes: Les Sylphides, The Harvest According, Pas de
Deux, Graduation Ball, Design with Strings, Fall River Legend, Fancy
Free, La Fille Mal Gardee, Princess Aurora, Giselle, Interplay,
Swan Lake and Les Patineurs.
1953
January 12 through January 24, 1953
THE FOURPOSTER -- Comedy by Jan de Hartog. Starring Hume Cronyn
and Jessica Tandy in the Jose Ferrer Production. Staged by Jose
Ferrer for The Playwrights' Company.
January 27 through February 14, 1953
GIGI -- a new comedy by Anita Loos, based on the novel by Collette.
Starring Audrey Hepburn. With Margaret Bannerman, Michael Evans,
Josephine Brown, Bertha Belmore, Doris Patston and Ronald Telfer.
Directed by Raymond Rouleau.
February 16 through February 28, 1953
BELL, BOOK AND CANDLE -- comedy by John Van Druten. Starring Joan
Bennett and Zachary Scott, with Dorothy Sands, James O’Rear
and William Windom. Staged by Shepard Traube.
March 2 through March 21, 1953
MRS. McTHING -- a comic fantasy by Mary Chase. Starring Helen Hayes
with Jules Munshin, Enid Markey, Iggie Wolfington, Paula Trueman,
Lydia Reed, Robert Mariotti, Bethel Leslie, Guy Raymond. Directed
by Joseph Buloff.
March 23 through April 18, 1953
OKLAHOMA! -- music by Richard Rodgers. Book and Lyrics by Oscar
Hammerstein, II, based on Green Grow the Lilacs by Lynn Riggs. Starring
Florence Henderson, Mary Marlo and Ralph Lowe, with Jacquelin Daniels,
Victor Griffin, Alfred Cibelli, Jr., Charles Hart, Charles Scott,
John Addis, Jerry Mann, Judy Rawlings, Margery Reilley, Davie Gladstone,
Jean Bledsoe, Marquita Living, Anita Berman, Owen Martin, Victor
Reilley, Bob Lord. Directed by Rouben Mamoulian. Dances by Agnes
DeMille.
March 31, 1953 marked the 10th Anniversary of Oklahoma! A gala
backstage party was planned by The Theatre Guild for that night,
and "in addition to Washington dignitaries," the program
announced, attendees would include "the Messrs. Rodgers and
Hammerstein, Rouben Mamoulian and Agnes DeMille" as well as
Alfred Drake, Celete Holm and others of the original cast.
April 19 through April 26, 1953
TUMULTIME -- musical revue with "that Yiddish flavor."
With the Barton Brothers, Lou Saxon, Marty Drake, Rickie Layne,
Kathryn Chang, Jennifer Marshall, Florence Shore, The Rivieras,
Hy Sands. Vocal and Choral Direction by Marty Drake. Production
supervised by Paul Barton.
April 27 through May 9, 1953
AN EVENING WITH WILL SHAKESPEARE -- Starring Eva LeGallienne, Faye
Emerson, John Lund, Betty Field, Basil Rathbone, Viveca Lindfors,
and Margaret Webster. Narrated and directed by Margaret Webster.
Produced by Mary Hunter for the American Shakespeare Festival Foundation.
May 11 through May 23, 1953
STALAG 17 -- comedy by Donald Bevan and Edmund Trzcinski. Cast includes
George Tobias, Douglas Watson, Laurence Hugo, Lothar Rewalt, Edward
Platt, Jerry Jarrett, Robert Lansing, Vincent Donahue and Jason
Robards. Directed by Jose Ferrer.
May 25 through May 30, 1953
THE FOURPOSTER -- comedy by Jan de Hartog. Starring Jessica Tandy
and Hume Cronyn. Directed by Jose Ferrer.
June 29 through August 22, 1953
GUYS AND DOLLS -- Musical based on a story and characters by Damon
Runyan. Music and Lyrics by Frank Loesser; book by Jo Swerling and
Abe Burrows; staged by George S. Kaufman. Starring Iva Withers,
Julie Oshins, Norwood Smith and Pat Rooney, with Susan Hight, B.S.
Pully, Jack Prince, Dell Markee, Al Nesor, Tom Ahearne and Netta
Packer. Dances and musical numbers staged by Michael Kidd. Vocal
Arrangements and Direction by Herbert Greene. Among the dancers:
Peter Gennnaro (who also played “A Drunk”), Oona White
and Gretchen Wyler.
September 21 though September 26, 1953
TEA AND SYMPATHY - drama by Robert Anderson. Starring Deborah Kerr,
with John Kerr and Leif Erickson, Florida Friebus, Richard Midgley,
Alan Sues, Richard York, Arthur Steuer, Richard Franchot, John McGovern
and Yale Wexler. Directed by Elia Kazan.
September 28 through October 3, 1953
THE DUBLIN PLAYERS -- present Shadow and Substance (by Paul Vincent
Carroll), Playboy of the Western World by (John Millington Synge),
and three one-act plays, In the Shadow of the Glen (by John Millington
Synge), The Workhouse Ward (by Lady Augusta Gregory), Riders to
the Sea (by John Millington Synge). Cast includes Phyllis Ryan,
James Neylin, Aileen Harte, Harry Webster, Charles Blair, Ronald
Ibbs, Maureen Halligan, James Kenny, Brian Vincent, Gervaise Mathews,
Ken Huxham, Ann Elgsden and David Clark.
October 5 through October 17, 1953
THE SOLID GOLD CADILLAC -- a comedy by Howard Teichmann and George
S. Kaufman. Starring Josephine Hull and Loring Smith, with Geoffrey
Lumb, Wendell K. Phillips, Reynolds Evans, Henry Jones, Mary Welch,
Jack Ruth, David F. Perkins, Charlotte Van Lein, Vera Fuller Mellish,
Carl Judd, Al McGranary, Howard Adelman, Georgiana Spelvin, Henry
Norell, Mark Allen and Lorraine MacMartin. Staged by George S. Kaufman.
October 19 through October 31, 1953
KIND SIR -- by Norman Krasna. Starring Mary Martin and Charles Boyer,
with Dorothy Stickney, Margalo Gillmore, Frank Conroy, Curtis Thalman
and Robert Ross. Presented and directed by Joshua Logan.
November 2 through November 14, 1953
THE LOVE OF FOUR COLONELS -- new comedy by Peter Ustinov. Starring
Rex Harrison and Lilli Palmer, with George Voskovec, Robert Coote,
Stephen Schnabel, Edward Andrews, Maureen Hurley, and Reginald Mason.
Directed by Rex Harrison.
November 16 through November 21, 1953
SLAVENSKA-FRANKLIN BALLET -- principal dancers Mia Slavenska and
Frederic Franklin. Repertoire includes Concerto Romantica, A Streetcar
Named Desire, I Laughed at Spring, The Nutcracker Suite, Symphonic
Variations, Don Quijote Pas de Deux, Swan Lake, Portrait of a Ballerina,
Black Swan Pas de Deux.
November 23 through November 28, 1953
AMERICAN SAVOYARDS GILBERT AND SULLIVAN REPERTOIRE -- presented
by Patrick Hayes and Charles E. Green, produced and directed by
Dorothy Raedler. Productions include The Mikado, Pirates of Penzance
and Patience.
November 30 through December 12, 1953
THE PRESCOTT PROPOSALS – by Howard Lindsay and Russell Crouse.
Starring Katherine Cornell, with Felix Aylmer, Lorne Greene, Ben
Astar, Roger Dann, Bartlett Robinson, Minoo Daver and Robert B.
Culp. Directed by Howard Lindsay. Presented by Leland Hayward.
December 21, 1953 through January 16, 1954
PORGY AND BESS – Opera: music by George Gershwin; libretto
by DuBose Heyward; lyrics by DuBose Heyward and Ira Gershwin. Based
on the play, “Porgy,” by Dorothy and DuBose Heyward.
Starring LeVern Hutcherson or Leslie Scott or Irving Barnes as Porgy.
Bess played by Leontyne Price or Urylee Leonardos or Elizabeth Foster.
With Cab Calloway as Sporting Life, John Curry as Crown, Helen Thigpen
as Serena, Helen Colbert as Clara, Jerry Laws as Mingo, Joseph James
as Jake. Directed by Robert Breen.
1954
Theatre "remodeled" - Wash Star 2-3-1963
Edward Plohn retired as theatre manager.
Scott Kirkpatrick became manager.
January 18 through January 23, 1954
OKLAHOMA! – musical: music by Richard Rodgers; lyrics by Oscar
Hammerstein, II, based on the play “Green Grow the Lilacs”
by Lynn Riggs. Starring Florence Henderson, Ridge Bond, Mary Marlo,
Barbara Cook, David LeGrant, Alfred Cibelli, Jr., Harris Hawkins,
Owen Martin, Judy Rawlins, Charles Hart, George Lawrence, and Maggi
Nelson. Choreography by Agnes de Mille. Directed by Rouben Mamoulian.
January 25 through February 6, 1954
THE CONFIDENTIAL CLERK – a comedy by T.S. Eliot. Starring
Ina Claire, Claude Rains, and Joan Greenwood, with Aline MacMahon,
Newton Blick, Douglas Watson and Richard Newton. Directed by E.
Martin Browne. Presented by Henry Sherek and the Producers’
Theatre, Roger L. Stevens, Robert Whitehead, Robert W. Dowling.
February 8 through February 13, 1954
THE ROYAL WINNIPEG BALLET OF CANADA – Guest Artist: Alicia
Markova. With Arnold Spohr, Eva von Gensey, Jean Stoneham, Carlu
Carter and Bill McGrath. Musical director, Eric Wild. Artistic Director
Gweneth Lloyd. Ballet Mistress, Betty Farally and R. Jasinski Sponsored
by the English-Speakig Union. Repertoire includes: Ballet Premiere,
Shadow on the Prairie, Intermede, The Shooting of Dan McGrew, Visages,
Don Quixote pas de deux, Rondel, Concerto, Finishing School, Les
Sylphides, The Dying Swan, Black Swan pas de deux, Bolero.
February 15 through February 27, 1954
THE BURNING GLASS – drama by Charles Morgan. Starring Sir
Cedric Hardwicke; with Walter Matthau, Isabelle Elsom, Scott Forbes,
Maria Riva, William Roerick, Ralph Clanton, Basil Howes, Roderick
Walker. Directed by Luther Kennett.
April 12 through April 17, 1954
AZUMA KABUKI DANCERS AND MUSICIANS – presented by Sol Hurok
with the cooperation of HIH Prince Takmatsu and the Japanese Ministry
of Foreign Affairs.
April 19 through May 1, 1954
PICNIC – the Pulitzer Prize Drama by William Inge. Starring
Ralph Meeker, with Sandra Church, Louise Larabee, Elizabeth Wilson,
John C. Becher, Ruth McDevitt, Fred Eisley and Daryl Grimes. Directed
by Joshua Logan. Presented by The Theatre Guild and Joshua Logan.
May 2 through May 5, 1954
BALLET THEATRE – Starring Alicia Alonzo, Igor Youskevitch,
John Kriza, Melissa Hayden, Ruth Ann Koesun, Eric Braun. Co-directors
Lucia Chase and Oliver Smith. Repertoire includes: Les Sylphides,
The Capital of the World, Black Swan pas de deux, Gala Performance,
Interplay, Swan Lake, The Combat, Graduation Ball, Constantia, Aleko,
Fancy Free, Theme and Variations, Fall River Legend.
May 17 through August 31, 1954
SOUTH PACIFIC – musical by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein,
II. Starring Webb Tilton and Jeanne Bal. Cast includes Stanley Grover,
Mari Young, Benny Baker, Dorothy Franklin, Alan Baxter, Russ Brown.
Directed by Joshua Logan.
September 6 through September 18, 1954
ALL SUMMER LONG – a new play by Robert Anderson, adapted from
a novel by Donald Wetzel. Starring John Kerr, Ed Begley and June
Walker, with Clay Hall, Carroll Baker, John Randolph and Daniela
Boni. Directed by Alan Schneider.
September 20 through October 2, 1954
SAINT JOAN – by G. Bernard Shaw. Starring Jean Arthur with
Sam Jaffe and George Macready. Cast includes Frank Silvera, Paul
Richards, Larry Ward, George Lloyd, Robert Goodier and Wyndham Goldie.
Staged by Harold Clurman.
October 4 through October 9, 1954
BALLET RUSSE DE MONTE CARLO – Starring Maria Tallchief and
Frederic Franklin, Nina Novak, Leon Danielian, Gertrude Tyven, Yvonne
Chouteau, Irina Borowska, Alan Howard, Victor Moreno. Productions
include Swan Lake, Cirque de Deux, The Mikado, Gaite Parisienne,
The Nutcracker, Le Beau Danube, Scheherazade, Les Sylphides, Coppelia
October 18 through October 24, 1954
BALLETS ESPAGNOLS – Starring Carmen Aracena, Amparo Bauset,
Gloris Goma, Mercedes Molina and Maria Roman.
November 1 through November 13, 1954
WEDDING BREAKFAST – written by Theodore Reeves. Starring Lee
Grant, Harvey Lembeck, Anthony Franciosa and Virginia Vincent. Directed
by Herman Shumlin.
November 15 through November 21, 1954
TEA AND SYMPATHY -- drama by Robert Anderson. Starring Deborah Kerr;
with Alan Baxter and Don Dubbins. Directed by Elia Kazan.
November 23 through December 4, 1954
PORTRAIT OF A LADY - a new play by William Archibald, based on the
novel by Henry James. Starring Jennifer Jones. With Robert Flemyng,
Cathleen Nesbitt, Douglas Watson and Barbara O’Neil. Also
Halliwell Hobbes, Eva Leonard-Boyne, Jan Farrand. Directed by Jose
Quintero. Presented by Lyn Austin and Thomas Noyes and The Producers
Theatre.
December 13, 1954 through January 2, 1955
WONDERFUL TOWN - a musical comedy: book by Joseph Fields and Jerome
Chodorov; music by Leonard Bernstein; lyrics by Betty Comden and
Adolph Green. Starring Carol Channing. With George Gaynes, Betty
Gillett, Dort Clark, Paul Lipson, Don Barton, Isabella Hoopes, Ted
Beniades, Carole Cole and Jordan Bentley. Directed by George Abbott.
1955
January 24 through February 5, 1955
THE DARK IS LIGHT ENOUGH – by Christopher Fry. Starring Katherine
Cornell, Tyrone Power. Cast includes Arnold Moss, John Williams,
Marian Winters, Eva Condon, Christopher Plummer, Paul Roebling,
Sydney Pollack, Jerome Gardino, William Podmore, Donald Harron Ted
Sunther, Charles Macaulay and Dario Barri.. Directed by Guthrie
McClintic.
February 7 through February 12, 1955
TONIGHT IN SAMARKAND -- romantic drama by Jacques Deval and Lorenzo
Semple Jr. Starring Louis Jourdan, with Jan Farrand, Michael Gorrin,
Joyce Lear, Halliwell Hobbes, Alexander Scourby, Theodore Bikel,
Sylvia Daneel. Directed by Alan Schneider.
February 14 through February 19, 1955
DEAR CHARLES -- a comedy by Marc-Gilbert Sauvajon and Frederick
Jackson; adapted by Alan Melville. Starring Tallulah Bankhead. With
Robert Coote and Patsy Kelly, Theodore Newton, Werner Klemperer,
William Roerick, Norah Howard, Larry Robinson, Tom Raynor, Grace
Raynor and Peter Pell. Directed by Edmund Baylies. Presented by
Richard Aldrich and Richard Myers.
March 14 through March 19, 1955
VINCENTE ESCUDERO AND CARMITA GARCIA – with Maria Marquez
and "The Bailete," with Rosario Escudero, Maria Amaya,
Mario Escudero. Singer: Pepe La Matrona; Pianist: Pablo Miquel.
Presented by Maruice Attias.
March 29 through April 23, 1955
THE SEVEN YEAR ITCH – romantic comedy by George Axelrod. Starring
Tom Ewell, with Louise King, Rita Morley, Robert Emhardt, William
Woodson. Directed by John Gerstad. Presented by Courtney Burr and
Elliott Nugent.
June 20 through June 26, 1955
INHERIT THE WIND – a new play by Jerome Lawrence and Robert
E. Lee. Starring Paul Muni. With Ed Begley, and Tony Randall. Cast
includes Murial Kirkland, Bethel Leslie, Staats Cotsworth, Louis
Hector, Karl Light. Directed by Herman Shumlin. Presented by Herman
Shumlin in association with Margo Jones.
June 28 through July 10, 1955
CAN-CAN – musical by Cole Porter; choreography by Michael
Kidd. Book and direction by Abe Burrows. Starring Rita Dimitry,
John Tyers, George S. Irving, Ronnie Cunningham and Ferdinand Hilt.
July 18 through July 30, 1955
THE SKIN OF OUR TEETH – by Thornton Wilder. Starring Helen
Hayes, Mary Martin, George Abbott and Florence Reed. Cast includes
Frances Sternhagen and Alice Fay. Directed by Alan Schneider.
August 1 through September 3, 1955
THE KING AND I – a new musical by Richard Rodgers and Oscar
Hammerstein II. Based on the book, “Anna and the King of Siam,”
by Margaret Landon. Starring Patricia Morison and Leonard Graves.
With Fairfax Burgher, Jeff Hall, Bob Held, Alfred Cibelli, Jr.,
Hubert Bland, Ken Remo, Suzanne Lake, Norma Larkin, Patrick Adiarte,
and Dorethea De Arco. Directed by John van Druten. Choreography
by Jerome Robbins.
September 19 through October 1, 1955
THE HEAVENLY TWINS – a comedy by Louis Kronenberger. Starring
Jean Pierre Aumont and Faye Emerson, with Gaby Rodgers, Marcel Hillaire,
Drew Thompson, Earl Montgomery, Lucille Patton. Directed by Cyril
Ritchard.
October 3 through October 15, 1955
ANASTASIA – a new romantic drama by Marcelle Maurette, adapted
from the French by John Bolton. Starring Dolly Haas, Eugenie Leontovich,
John Emery, Robert Duke. Directed by Alan Schneider.
October 18 through November 5, 1955
THE VAMP – musical based on a book by John Latouche and Sam
Locke. Starring Carol Channing. With David Atkinson and Bibi Osterwald.
November 7 through November 19, 1955
JANUS -- romantic comedy by Carolyn Green. Starring Margaret Sullavan,
Robert Preston, Claude Dauphin, with Robert Emhardt and Mary Finney.
Directed by Reginald Denham.
November 21 through December 3, 1955
THE GREAT SEBASTIANS – a melodrama by Howard Lindsay and Russell
Crouse. Starring Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne, with Ben Astar and
Simon Oakland. Directed by Bretaigne Windust.
December 5 through December 12, 1955
VALOUR WILL WEEP -- a new play by Henry Denker and Ralph Berkey.
Starring Arthur Kennedy, co-starring Richard Kiley. With Harvey
Stephens, Allyn McLerie, Thomas Carlin, Frank Aletter, Arthur Storch
and Patricia Benoit. Staged by Windsor Lewis.
December 26 through December 31, 1955
A QUIET PLACE – a new play by Julian Claman. Starring Tyrone
Power and Leora Dana. Cast includes Halliwell Hobbes, Susan Kohner,
Ernestine Perrie and Dino Terranova. Directed by Delbert Mann. Occasional
music by Leonard Bernstein.
1956
January 9 through January 21, 1956
THE D'OYLY CARTE OPERA COMPANY – presenting Trial by Jury,
H.M.S. Pinafore, Pirates of Penzance, Iolanthe, The Mikado. Ensemble
cast is headed by Peter Pratt, Ann Drummond-Grant, Fisher Morgan,
Donald Adams, and Muriel Harding.
January 31 through February 4, 1956
THE AZUMA KABUKI DANCERS AND MUSICIANS
February 6 through March 31, 1956
DAMN YANKEES – musical based on the novel by Douglas Wallop:
book by George Abbott and Douglass Wallop; music and lyrics by Richard
Adler and Jerry Ross; dances and musical numbers staged by Bob Fosse.
Starring Bobby Clark and Sherry O’Neil, with Allen Case, Rosemary
Kuhlman, Sid Stone, Jo Hurt, Harry P. Stanton, Lucy Greeno and Al
Checco. Directed by George Abbott.
April 9 through April 28, 1956
PLAIN AND FANCY – a musical about the Amish: book by Joseph
Stein and Will Glickman; lyrics by Arnold B. Horwitt; music by Albert
Hague. Starring Dran Sietz, David Daniels, Stephan Schnabel, Daniel
Nagrin, James Nichols, Faye Winfield, Harry Fleer, Sammy Smith,
Will B. Able, Evelyn Page and Nancy Andrews. Directed by Morton
DaCosta.
May 6 through May 19, 1956
CAN-CAN – musical by Cole Porter; choreography by Michael
Kidd; directed by Abe Burrows. With Rita Dimitry, John Tyers, George
S. Irving, Ronnie Cunningham, Ferdinand Hilt, Richard Purdy, Jon
Silo, Clarence Hoffman, Robert Eckles.
May 21 through July 7, 1956
TEAHOUSE OF THE AUGUST MOON – comedy by John Patrick based
on the novel by Vern Sneider. Starring Eli Wallach with Gene Blakely,
Howard St. John and James Arenton, Mariko Niki. Directed by Robert
Lewis. Presented by Maurice Evans in association with George Schaefer.
July 16 through August 25, 1956
THE PAJAMA GAME – musical comedy: book by George Abbott and
Richard Bissell; music and lyrics by Richard Adler and Jerry Ross;
choreography by Bob Fosse. Starring Larry Douglas, Betty O’Neil,
Buster West, with Barbara Bostock. Directed by George Abbott and
Jerome Robbins.
According to the theatre playbill for The Pajama Game, the house
was to be “refurbished and modernized” for the next
attraction, Li’l Abner. Yellow/white decor: walls yellow,
trim white. Eagle and stars installed over the proscenium; a mosaic
panel above proscenium was removed and fell into pieces.
September 17 through September 29, 1956
LI'L ABNER – musical: book by Norman Panama and Melvin Frank,
based on comic strip characters created by Al Capp; lyrics by Johnny
Mercer and music by Gene de Paul (the team which collaborated on
the film Seven Brides for Seven Brothers). Starring Peter Palmer
in his stage debut, Edith Adams, Howard St. John, Stubby Kaye, and
Charlotte Rae. Direction and choreography by Michael Kidd. With
Tina Louise. Presented by Norman Panama, Melvin Frank and Michael
Kidd. Mr. Palmer had just one the All-Army Talent Contest.
October 1 through October 6, 1956
DOUBLE IN HEARTS – a comedy written by Paul Nathan. Starring
Julia Meade, William Redfield, Laurence Hugo, Neva Patterson. Directed
by John Gerstad.
October 16 through October 28, 1956
AUNTIE MAME – a new comedy by Jerome Lawrence and Robert E.
Lee based on the novel by Patrick Dennis. Premiere starring Rosalind
Russell, with Polly Rowles, Marian Winters, Dorothy Blackburn, Walter
Klavan, Robert Smith, James Monks, John O;Hare, Peggy Cass, Joyce
Lear, Jan Handzlik, Robert Allen, Adelaide Klein, Particia Jenkins,
Robert Higgins, Yuki Shimoda, Grant Sullivan and Beulah Garrick.
Directed by Morton DaCosta.
October 29 through November 10, 1956
CHILD OF FORTUNE – by Guy Bolton, adapted from “Wings
of the Dove” by Henry James. Starring Edmund Purdom, Mildred
Dunnock, with Bert Bertram, Pippa Scott, Nancy Wickwire, Peter Pagan,
Norah Howard, Dennis Houy and Stafford Dickens. Directed by Jed
Harris.
November 12 through November 17, 1956
EVERYBODY LOVES ME – a comedy by Mannie Manheim and Arthur
Marx. Starring Jack Carson, Pat Harrington, Temple Texas, Conrad
Janis, Robert Pastene, Marion Randall, Matt Crowley, Truman Smith,
Ralph Purdum, Harry Worth and Emory Richardson. Staged by Robert
B. Sinclair.
November 19 through December 8, 1956
CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF – drama by Tennessee Williams. Starring
Thomas Gomez, Marjorie Steele and Alex Nicol. Production by Elia
Kazan.
December 10 through December 22, 1956
THE LARK – by Jean Anouilh, adapted by Lillian Hellman. Starring
Julie Harris, Sam Jaffe, Leo Ciceri, George Macready, Bruce Gordon,
James O’Rear, and Edward Binns. Directed by Joseph Anthony.
Occasional music composed by Leonard Bernstein.
December 24, 1956 through January 12, 1957
INHERIT THE WIND – drama by Jerome Lawrence and Robert E.
Lee. Starring Melvyn Douglas, James Westerfield, William Woodson,
with Perry Fiske, John Randolph, Viola Frayne, Susan Brown and Arthur
Peterson. Produced and Directed by Herman Shumlin.
1957
January 14 through January 26, 1957
THE CHALK GARDEN – by Enid Bagnold. Starring Judith Anderson
and Cathleen Nesbitt. Cast includes Fredric Worlock, Deirdre Owens,
Rosemary Murphy, and Stanley Bell. Staged by Albert Marre.
January 28 through February 9, 1957
OLD VIC COMPANY IN PLAYS BY SHAKESPEARE – principals include:
Paul Rogers, Claire Bloom, John Neville, Coral Rogers, Jeremy Brett,
Rosemary Harris in Macbeth; Romeo and Juliet; Troilus and Cressida;
Richard II. Directors include Michael Benthall; Robert Helpmann;
Tyrone Guthrie.
February 11 through February 23, 1957
ZIEGFELD FOLLIES – Starring Beatrice Lillie, Billy de Wolfe,
Harold Lang and Jane Morgan. Cast includes Helen Wood, Micki Marlo,
John Philip, Carol Lawrence, Bab and Larry Leslie, Jay Marshall,
Tony Franco. Directed by John Kennedy.
February 25 through March 9, 1957
THE APPLE CART – comedy by George Bernard Shaw. Starring Maurice
Evans and Signe Hasso, with Charles Carson, Mercer McLeod, Hazel
Jones, Margot Stevenson and Pat Nye. Presented by Charles Adams
and Joseph Neebe. Directed by George Schaefer.
March 16 through April 6, 1957
HOTEL PARADISO – a farce by Georges Feydeau and Maurice Desvallieres;
adapted and directed by Peter Glenville. Starring Bert Lahr, Angela
Lansbury, Arthur Treacher, Vera Pearce and Douglas Byng, with Carleton
Carpenter, Sondra Lee and Leopold Badia. Cast includes James Coco.
April 8 through May 4, 1957
FANNY – musical play by S.N. Behrman and Joshua Logan; music
and lyrics by Harold Rome. Starring Italo Tajo, Billy Gilbert; with
June Roselle, Jack Washburn, and Nejla Ates. Cast includes Alan
Carney, Ted Beniades, Edna Preston, Don McHenry. Directed by Joshua
Logan.
May 6 through May 25, 1957
THE MATCHMAKER – by Thornton Wilder. Starring Ruth Gordon,
Loring Smith, Pat Cutts. Cast includes Arthur Hill, Ethel Griffies,
Peter Bayliss, Patrick McAlinney, Mari Lynn, Diana Rivers, Robert
Morse, Taylor Graves. Directed by Tyrone Guthrie.
July 24 through August 3, 1957
MORAL REARMAMENT – Philosophical/Religious Movement Meetings
August 19 through September 7, 1957
WEST SIDE STORY – world premier of the musical conceived,
choreographed and directed by Jerome Robbins; book by Arthur Laurents;
music by Leonard Bernstein; lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and Leonard
Bernstein. Produced by Robert E. Griffith and Harold S. Prince,
by arrangement with Roger L. Stevens. Starring Larry Kert, Carol
Lawrence, Chita Rivera, Art Smith. Cast includes Mickey Calin, Ken
Le Roy, Lee Becker, David Winters, Tony Mordente, Eddie Roll. [Chita
Rivera is a Washingtonian.]
September 16 through September 28, 1957
NATURE'S WAY -- comedy by Herman Wouk. Starring Orson Bean, Betsy
Von Furstenberg, Audry Christie, Scott McKay, Robert Emhardt, and
Edmon Ryan. Cast includes Bea Arthur, Godfrey Cambridge. Directed
by Alfred de Liagre, Jr.
September 30 through October 5, 1957
THE EGGHEAD – comedy by Molly Kazan. Starring Karl Malden
and Phyllis Love, with Eduard Franz, Biff McGuire, Lloyd Richards,
Nicholas Pryor, Helen Shields, Marion Sweet, Richard Robbins and
Graham Jarvis. Directed by Hume Cronyn. Presented by Hope Abelson.
Pre-Broadway engagement.
October 8 through October 19, 1957
TIME REMEMBERED – romantic comedy by Jean Anouilh. Starring
Helen Hayes, Richard Burton and Susan Strasberg. Cast includes Glenn
Anders and Sig Arno. Directed and produced by Albert Marre.
October 21 through November 9, 1957
SEPARATE TABLES – two plays by Terrence Rattigan. Starring
Eric Portman and Geraldine Page, with Ann Shoemaker, Laura Pierpont
and Beryl Measor. Directed by Peter Glenville.
November 11 through November 23, 1957
THE COUNTRY WIFE – comedy by William Wycherley. Starring Julie
Harris, Laurence Harvey and Pamela Brown. Cast includes Ernest Thesiger,
John Moffatt, Maureen Quinney, Richard Easton, Paul Witsun-Jones,
Ludi Claire and Peter Donal. Directed by George Devine.
November 25 through December 7, 1957
A SHADOW OF MY ENEMY – by Sol Stein. Starring Ed Begley and
Gene Raymond. Cast includes William Harrigan and Leon Janney, with
Mason Adams, Howard Wierum, William Zuckert, John McGovern, Anne
Hegira, Alma Hubbard, Ulla Kazanova and Tom Gorman. Directed by
Daniel Petrie. (“Messrs. Wierum and Zuckert are former residents
of Washington who began their acting careers a the Roadside Theatre,
a semi-professional in the Maryland suburbs of the capital.”)
December 9 through December 21, 1957
MISS ISOBEL -- a new play by Michael Plant and Denis Webb. Starring
Shirley Booth; with Nancy Marchand, Robert Duke, Edith King, Peter
Lazer, John Randolph and Kathleen Maguire. Directed by Cedric Hardwick.
December 30, 1957 through January 18, 1958
MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT – a love story by Paddy Chayefsky. Starring
Edward G. Robinson; with Mona Freeman. Cast includes Nellie Burt,
Martin Landau, June Walker, Nancy Pollock, Doris Belack, Ethel Britton,
Peg Shirley, Phyllis Wynn, Ruth Masters, Sylvia Davis and Norman
Feld. Directed by Joshua Logan.
1958
The Munsey Building (to the west of the theatre) and the National
is bought by a syndicate headed by Frank J. Luchs (Wash Star 2-3-63)
Senator John F. Kennedy holds four Theatre Guild Subscription orchestra
seats in Row G.
Date unknown
Warren Beatty worked as National Theatre stage doorman.
January 20 through February 1, 1958
INTERLOCK – written by Ira Levin. Starring Celeste Holm, Rosemary
Harris and Maximillian Schell, with Georgia Burke and John Marriott.
Directed by Philip Burton.
February 10 through February 22, 1958
THE WALTZ OF THE TOREADORS – comedy by Jean Anouilh. Starring
Melvyn Douglas, Betty Field, and Lili Darvas. Cast includes George
Macready, John Stewart, Robert Geiringer, Miriam Phillips, Patricia
Falkenhain, Martha Orrick, Mary Grace Canfield, Patricia Fay. Directed
by Harold Clurman.
February 24 through March 8, 1958
AUNTIE MAME – a new comedy by Jerome Lawrence and Robert E.
Lee based on the novel by Patrick Dennis. Starring Constance Bennett,
with Mark O’Daniels, Kendall Clark, Jane Van Duser, Douglas
Watson, Blaine Cordner and Robert Lindner. Directed by Morton da
Costa.
March 10 through March 15, 1958
AMERICAN BALLET THEATRE -- performing Billy the Kid, Les Patineurs,
Giselle, Les Sylphides, Rodeo, Fall River Legend; Offenbach in the
Underworld. Featured dancers include Nora Kaye, John Kriza, Erik
Bruhn.
March 17 through March 22, 1958
LONG DAY'S JOURNEY INTO NIGHT – by Eugene O'Neill. Starring
Fay Bainter and Anew McMaster; with Roy Poole, Chet Leaming and
Liz Thackston. Directed by Jose Quintero.
March 24 through May 3, 1958
NO TIME FOR SERGEANTS – comedy by Ira Levin, adapted from
the novel by Mac Hyman. Starring Myron McCormick, James Holden,
Cliff Hall, Louis Beachner, Anthony Marcus, Harry Holcombe, Roy
Fant. Directed by Morton Da Costa.
May 19 through June 14, 1958
THE DIARY OF ANNE FRANK – drama by Albert and Frances Hackett,
based on the World War II diary. Starring Francis Lederer; Maria
Palmer, Gilbert Green, Nan McFarland, Lou Gilbert, Otto Hulett and
Abigail Kellogg. Directed by Garson Kanin.
THE CROWNING EXPERIENCE – religious performance, perhaps
presented by the Moral Rearmament movement
August 11 through August 23, 1958
AUNTIE MAME – a new comedy by Jerome Lawrence and Robert E.
Lee based on the novel by Patrick Dennis. Starring Constance Bennett
with Kendall Clark, Jane Van Duser, Douglas Watson, Tom Tyrrell,
Fred Miller and Arthur Barnett, Otis Bigelow, Fayne Blackburn, Charles
Carlson, Dulcie Cooper, Dorrit Kelton, Robert Lindner, Yoji Matsuoka,
Bernice McLaughlin, Helen Seamon, Dorothy Sefton, Ann Sullivan,
Michael Thomas. Entire Production Directed by Morton DaCosta.
September 1 through September 13, 1958
HANDFUL OF FIRE – world premiere of a love story by N. Richard
Nash. Starring Roddy McDowell, Piper Laurie, James Daly, with Kay
Medford and Joan Copeland. Directed by Robert Lewis.
September 15 through September 27, 1958
THE GIRLS IN 509 – comedy by Howard Teichmann. Starring Peggy
Wood and Imogene Coca, with King Donovan, Robert Emhardt and James
Millhollin. Directed by Bretaigne Windust.
September 29 through October 11, 1958
THE MAN IN THE DOG SUIT – a comedy by Albert Beich and William
H. Wright. Starring Hume Cronyn and Jessica Tandy, with Cathleen
Nesbitt, Carmen Mathews, Roland Winters. Cast includes Clinton Sundberg,
John McGovern, John Griggs, Tom Carlin, Arthur Hughes and Nancy
Cushman. Directed by Ralph Nelson.
October 13 through October 25, 1958
ROMANOFF AND JULIET - written and starring Peter Ustinov; with Henry
Lascoe. Cast includes Marianne Deeming, Edward Atienza, Humphrey
Davis, Louise Collins, Suzanne Cloutier, Alexander Davion, Carl
Don, William Greene, Wood Romoff, Sy Travers and Bess Winburn. Staged
by George S. Kaufman.
November 3 through November 15, 1958
THE WARM PENINSULA – comedy/drama by Joe Masteroff. Starring
Julie Harris; with Josephine Brown, Steve Holland, Carol Brooks
and Peter Baldwin. Directed by Warren Enters.
November 24 through December 6, 1958
J.B. – drama by Archibald MacLeish. Starring Pat Hingle, Christopher
Plummer, Raymond Massey; with Nan Martin. Production by Elia Kazan.
December 15 through December 28, 1958
LOOK BACK IN ANGER – written by John Osborne. Starring Kenneth
Haigh; with Diana Hyland, Jack Livesey, Elizabeth Hubbard, Al Muscari.
Directed by Tony Richardson.
December 30, 1958 through January 10, 1959
REDHEAD – a new musical: book by Herbert and Dorothy Fields,
Sidney Sheldon and David Shaw; music by Albert Hague; lyrics by
Dorothy Fields. Starring Gwen Verdon and Richard Kiley. Cast includes
Leonard Stone, Doris Rich, Cynthia Latham, William Le Messena, Ralph
Sumpter, Patrick Horgan, Buzz Miller, Pat Ferrier, Joy Nicols. Directed
and choreographed by Bob Fosse.
1959
National Theatre Building and The Munsey building bought by J.H.
Tenney Company of New York for $4,250,000.
January 17 through January 31, 1959
JUNO – musical version of Sean O’Casey’s Juno
and the Paycock: book by Joseph Stein; music and lyrics by Marc
Blitzstein; dances and musical numbers staged by Agnes DeMille.
Starring Shirley Booth and Melvin Douglas, with Jack MacGowran.
Cast includes Jean Stapleton, Sada Thompson. Directed by Vincent
J. Donehue.
February 2 through February 14, 1959
THE OLD VIC COMPANY – performing Hamlet, Twelfth Night and
Henry V. Cast includes Laurence Harvey, John Neville, Barbara Jefford,
John Humphry and Judi Dench, Joss Ackland.
Major and Mrs. John Eisenhower attended a performance. A photo appears
in the March 1959 issue of The Diplomat Magazine. -–Scott
Kirkpatrick, Manager of the National Theatre, from the theatre playbill
of the week of 23 March 1959.
February 17 through February 21, 1959
GOD AND KATE MURPHY – by Kieran Tunney and John Synge. Starring
Fay Compton, with Mike Kellin, John McGiver, Larry Hagman, Maureen
Delany, Lois Nettleton. Directed by Burgess Meredith.
March 10 through April 11, 1959
BELLS ARE RINGING – a new musical: book and lyrics by Betty
Comden and Adolph Green; music by Jule Styne. Entire production
directed by Jerome Robbins. Starring Judy Holliday, Hal Linden and
Alice Pearce; with Eddie Lawrence, Dort Clark, Bernie West, Paul
Lipson, Ralph Roberts, Frank Aletter, Frank Derbas, Barbara Newman,
Steve Roland, Donna Sanders, Vincent Beck, Sally Brown, and Michelle
Reiner. Dances and musical numbers staged by Jerome Robbins and
Bob Fosse. Presented by The Theatre Guild.
May 18 through May 24, 1959
LES BALLETS AFRICAINS DE KEITA FODEBA
June 1 through July 11, 1959
SUNRISE AT CAMPOBELLO – written by Dore Schary. Starring Ralph
Bellamy, with Mary Fickett, Russell Collins, Ann Shoemaker, Micheale
Myers, Lanna Saunders and Alan Bunce. Directed by Vincent J. Donehue.
Cast includes James Earl Jones.
August 31 through September 12, 1959
HEARTBREAK HOUSE – by G. Bernard Shaw. Starring Maurice Evans,
Pamela Brown, Sam Levene, Diana Wynyard, Alan Webb, Diane Cilento
and Dennis Price. Directed by Harold Clurman. Produced by Maurice
Evans and Robert L. Joseph.
September 21 through October 3, 1959
CHERI – based on the novel of Collette, adapted by Anita Loos.
Starring Kim Stanley and Horst Buchholz, with Lili Darvas, Edith
King, Joan Gray,John Granger, Frieda Altman and Lucy Landau. Directed
by Robert Lewis. Presented by Playwrights’ Company & Robert
Lewis.
October 5 through October 27, 1959
FLOWERING CHERRY – drama by Robert Bolt. Starring Eric Portman
and Wendy Hiller, with Andrew Ray, Phyllis Love, and Roy Poole.
Directed by Frith Banbury.
October 29 through November 14, 1959
A LOSS OF ROSES – by William Inge. Starring Shirley Booth,
with Warren Beattu, Robert Webber, Michael J. Pollard, James O’Rear
and Carol Haney. Directed by Daniel Mann.
November 16 through November 28, 1959
FIVE FINGER EXERCISE – new play by Peter Shaffer. Starring
Jessica Tandy and Roland Culver. Cast includes Michael Bryant, Juliet
Mills, and Brian Bedford. Directed by John Gielgud.
December 7 through December 19, 1959
THE PLEASURE OF HIS COMPANY – comedy by Samuel Taylor. Starring
Cyril Ritchard and Cornelia Otis Skinner, with Leo G. Carroll and
Conrad Nagel. Directed by Mr. Ritchard. Presented by Frederick Brisson
and the Playwrights’ Company.
December 28, 1959 through January 2, 1960
DEAR LIAR – comedy by Jerome Kilty, based on letters of Mrs.
Patrick Campbell and G. Bernard Shaw. Starring Katharine Cornell
and Brian Aherne. Directed by Jerome Kilty. Presented by Guthrie
McClintic and Sol Hurok.
1960
The National Theatre Building was "roughly as it was in 1917,
except for certain remodelings" (Wash Star August 26, 1960)
January 4 through January 16, 1960
THE WORLD OF SUZY WONG – new play by Paul Osbourne, based
on the novel by Richard Mason. Starring Ron Randell, Jeri Miyazaki
and James Olson. Also John Mamo, Alan Young, Bernard Wu, Parke Perine,
Linda Ho, Dolores Dicen, Flavia Hsu Kingman, Nancy Kwan, Mary Mon
Toy, Irene Tsu, Wayne Wilson, Chase Crosley, George Latchford, Andrea
Loa and Douglas Gordon. Directed by Joshua Logan. Presented by David
Merrick, Seven Arts Productions, Inc., and Mansfield Productions.
January 18 through January 30, 1960
MARY STUART – drama by Friedrich Schiller. Starring Eva LeGallienne
and Signe Hasso. Cast includes Staats Cotsworth, Patrick Waddington,
Bruno Gerussi, Paul Ballantyne and Robert Goodier. Directed by Tyrone
Guthrie. Produced by Sol Hurok.
February 1 through February 13, 1960
THE VISIT – drama by Friedrich Durrenmatt. Starring Alfred
Lunt and Lynne Fontanne. Cast includes Thomas Gomez, Glenn Anders,
John Wyse, William Hansen, Miles Eason, David Clarke, Michael Lewis,
William Callan. Directed by Peter Brook.
February 15 through February 27, 1960
THE GOOD SOUP – by Felicien Marceau. Starring Ruth Gordon,
Sam Levene, Ernest Truex, Diane Cilento, Mildred Natwick and Jules
Munshin. With Morgan Sterne, George S. Irving, John Myhers, Sasha
von Scherler, Michael Lord and Lou Antonio. Also Bill Becker, Dorothy
Whitnet and Barbara Lou Mattes, Hilda Brawner and Pat Harrington.
Adapted and directed by Garson Kanin from the Original Paris Production
by Andre Barsacq. Produced by David Merrick.
February 29 through March 12, 1960
ONE MORE RIVER – by Beverly Cross. Starring Lloyd Nolan and
Alfred Ryder, with Harry Guardino. Also John McLiam, Al Lewis, John
Barracuda, David Winters and Robert Drivas, Louis Guss, Stephen
Bolster, Don Gantry, Buck Kartalian and Alfred Ryder. Directed by
Windsor Lewis. Produced by Mary K. Frank by arrangement with Laurence
Olivier.
March 14 through March 26, 1960
LOOK HOMEWARD ANGEL – based on the novel by Thomas Wolfe;
dramatized by Ketti Frings. The play won the Pulitzer Prize. Starring
Miriam Hopkins, with Gilbert Green and Michael Ebert, Florence Sundstrom,
Barbara Stanton and Lee Richardson. Directed by David Pressman.
Presented by Theatrical Plan, Inc., Ted Ritter Executive Producer
March 28 through April 9, 1960
A VIEW FROM THE BRIDGE – by Arthur Miller. Starring Luther
Adler, with Alan Mixon, Kathleen Widdoes, Louis Zorich, Paul Haney
and Pearl Pearson. Staged by Mr. Adler. Presented by I.L. Kamens
and Paul Stoudt.
April 11 through April 23, 1960
THE DARK AT THE TOP OF THE STAIRS – drama by William Inge,
from the original production by Elia Kazan. Starring Joan Blondell,
with Mark Miller, Peggy Richards. Cast includes Reid Hammond, Jada
Rowland, Henry Garrard, Carol Olsen, James Cahill and Phillip Fox.
Directed by Burry Fredrik. Produced by C. Edwin Knill and Martin
Tahse.
April 25 through May 7, 1960
MARY STUART – by Friedrich Schiller. Starring Eva LeGallienne
and Signe Hasso. With Staats Cotsworth, Patrick Waddington, Bruno
Gerussi, Paul Ballantyne, Robert Goodier. Directed by Tyrone Guthrie.
May 9 through May 21, 1960
SWEET BIRD OF YOUTH – new play by Tennessee Williams. Starring
Geraldine Page, Sidney Blackmer and Rip Torn. With John Karlen,
Logan Ramsey, Martine Bartlett, Elizabeth Farley, Kip McArdle and
Duke Farley. Also Milton J. Williams, Anne Ramsey, Earl Sydnor,
Glenn Stensel, Don Weagle, Patricia Sales, Francesca Trantum, Hack
Rightor, Norman Burton, Ron Harper, Kenneth Blake and Robin Narke.
Directed by Elia Kazan. Produced by Cheryl Crawford.
May 31 through June 11, 1960
HOFFNUNG – written and acted by Miners from the German Ruhr
(with simultaneous English translation). Presented by Moral Rearmament.
June 20 through September 3, 1960
MY FAIR LADY– musical adapted from George Bernard Shaw’s
“Pygmalion.” Starring Michael Evans and Diane Todd.
Also starring Charles Victor and Hugh Dempster, with Margaret Bannerman,
Katherine Hynes, Reid Shelton, John Cunningham, Eric Brotherson,
Charles Penman, Marie Paxton and Velma Royton. Production staged
by Moss Hart. Choreography and musical numbers by Hanya Holm. Production
designed by by Oliver Smith. Musical Arrangements by Robert Russell
Bennett & Phil Lang. [The program incorrectly credits Mr. Smith
with “Musical Arrangements” and Bennett & Lang with
the design] Costumes by Cecil Beaton. Lighting by Feder. Musical
Director Anton Coppola. Presented by Herman Levin
September 8 through September 24, 1960
IRMA LA DOUCE – a new musical comedy: music by Marguerite
Monnot; original book and lyrics by Alexandre Breffort; English
book and lyrics by Julian More, David Heneker and Monty Norman.
Starring Elizabeth Seal, Keith Michell and Clive Revill. Cast includes
George S. Irving, Stuart Damon, Zack Matalon, Aric Lavie, Fred Gwynne,
Osborne Smith. Directed by Peter Brook. Scenery and Costumes by
Rolf Gerard. Choreography by Oona White. Produced by David Merrick.
October 3 through October 15, 1960
DUEL OF ANGELS – by Jean Giraudoux. Starring Vivien Leigh,
with Peter Wyngarde, John Merivale, Alan MacNaughtan and Sally Home.
Directed by Robert Helpmann.
October 17 through October 29, 1960
ADVISE AND CONSENT – drama by Loring Mandel, based on the
book by Allen Drury. Starring Ed Begley, Richard Kiley, Chester
Morris, Henry Jones and Otto Kruger. Cast includes Staats Cotsworth
and Richard Carlyle. Directed by Franklin Schaffner. Produced by
Robert Fryer and Lawrence Carr.
October 31 through November 12, 1960
UNDER THE YUM-YUM TREE – comedy by Lawrence Roman. Starring
Gig Young, Sandra Church, Nan Martin and Dean Jones. Directed by
Joseph Anthony. Produced by Frederick Brisson and Roger L. Stevens.
November 14 through November 26, 1960
LITTLE MOON OF ALBAN – by James Costigan. Starring Julie Harris,
John Justin, with Robert Redford and Barbara O’Neil. Directed
by Herman Shumlin.
November 29 through December 10, 1960
THE CONQUERING HERO – a new musical: book by Larry Gelbart;
music by Moose Charlap; lyrics Norman Gimbel. Starring Tom Poston,
with Lionel Stander, Cherry Davis, Jane Mason, Fred Stewart, Elizabeth
Kerr, John McMartin, William Guske. Produced by Robert Whitehead
and Roger L. Stevens. Choreographed by Bob Fosse.
December 26, 1960 through January 7, 1961
THE ANDERSONVILLE TRIAL – drama by Saul Levitt. Starring Brian
Donlevy and Martin Brooks, with Sam Gray and Owen Pavitt. Cast includes
Charles Durning. Directed by Jedediah Horner. Produced by Lee Gruber
- Frank Ford - Shelly Gross.
1961
January 10 through January 21, 1961
MIDGIE PURVIS – a new comedy by Mary Chase. Starring Talullah
Bankhead with Audrey Christie, Willliam Redfield, Alice Pearce,
Clinton Sundberg, Nydia Westman, John Cecil Holm and Kip McArdle.
Directed by Burgess Meredith. Cast includes Pia Zadora. Produced
by Robert Whitehead and Roger L. Stevens.
January 23 through January 28, 1961
BALLETS AFRICAINS, DE LA REPUBLIQUE DE GUINEE - Produced by Luben
Vichey
January 30 through February 11, 1961
ONCE THERE WAS A RUSSIAN – a new comedy by Sam Spewak. Starring
Walter Matthau, Francoise Rosay, Albert Salmi and Julie Newmar,
with Sig Ruman, Eric Christmas, Marvin Silbersher, Carol Grace and
Michael Lewis. Directed by Douglas Seale. Produced by Lenoard Key,
Morton Segal, Kenneth Schwartz and Mel Howard.
February 13 through February 25, 1961
A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM – by William Shakespeare. Starring
Bert Lahr, with Mitchell Agruss, Clayton Corzatte, Will Geer, John
Harkins, Mariette Hartley, William Hickey, Patrick Hines, Margaret
Phillips, Richard Waring and Douglas Watson. Presented by the American
Shakespeare Festival Acting Company. Directed by Jack Landau.
February 28 through March 4, 1961
THE THEATRE GUILD AMERICAN REPERTORY COMPANY presents The Skin of
Our Teeth (Thornton Wilder), The Glass Menagerie (Tennessee Williams)
and The Miracle Worker (William Gibson). Starring Helen Hayes, Leif
Erickson, June Havoc and Helen Menken. The company included Nancy
Coleman, James Broderick, Barbara Barrie, Dorothy Sands, Romney
Brent and Rona Gale. Each play produced under the personal supervision
of the author. The productions subsequently toured to Europe, Central
America and South America until October 1961.
March 9 through March 25, 1961
CARNIVAL! – new musical: music and lyrics by Bob Merrill;
book by Michael Stewart. Starring Anna Maria Alberghetti (based
on the Film “Lili”), with Kaye Ballard, James Mitchell,
Pierre Olaf, Jerry Orbach, and Henry Lascoe. Directed and choreographed
by Gower Champion.
March 27 through April 18, 1961
A MAJORITY OF ONE – comedy by Leonard Spigelgass. Starring
Gertrude Berg and Sir Cedric Hardwicke, with Berta Gersten, Maurice
Ottinger, Joyce Flynn. Directed by Dore Schary. Produced by The
Theatre Guild and Dore Schary
April 10 through April 15, 1961
BECKET – drama by Jean Anouilh. Starring Laurence Olivier
and Arthur Kennedy, with Marie Powers. Produced by David Merrick.
Directed by Peter Glenville.
May 2 through May 13, 1961
DONNYBROOK! – new musical: book by Robert E. McEnroe; music
and lyrics by Johnny Burke. Starring Eddie Foy, Art Lund, with Susan
Johnson, Philip Bosco, and Joan Fagan. Directed and choreographed
by Jack Cole. Produced by Fred Ebert and David Kapp.
May 17 through May 27, 1961
ONCE UPON A MATTRESS – new musical comedy: book by Jay Thompson,
Marshall Barer and Dean Fuller; music by Mary Rodgers; lyrics by
Marshall Barer. Starring Imogene Coca and Buster Keaton, with King
Donovan, Paul Cambeilh, Pat Foley, David Starkey, Joe Young, Bill
Yule and Ann Mitchell. Staged by Jack Sydow. Produced by Michael
Dewell and Frances Ann Hersey.
May 29 through June 10, 1961
A RAISIN IN THE SUN – drama by Lorraine Hansberry. Starring
Claudia McNeil, with Douglas Turner, Diana Sands, Frances Foster,
Nathan Caldwell Jr., Edward Hall, Bobby D. Hooks, Howland Chamberlain,
Tyrone Cooper, Walter Mason and Robert Jackson. Directed by Lloyd
Richards.
June 12 through September 9, 1961
THE MUSIC MAN – new musical with book, music and lyrics by
Meredith Wilson. Starring Forrest Tucker with Joan Weldon, Cliff
Hall, Lucie Lancaster, The Frisco Four, Jane Lillig, Hal Norman,
Art Wallace, Earl George, Howie Robinson, Patrick Cummings, Jean
Lyons, Joan Lombardo, Capri Hermany and Kay Cole. Staged by Morton
Da Costa. Produced by Kermit Bloomgarden with Herbert Greene.
September 11 through September 23, 1961
A TASTE OF HONEY – a new play by Shelagh Delaney. Starring
Hermione Baddeley, Frances Cuka, with Frederick Combs, Roy Shuman
and Billy Dee Williams. Directed by Tony Richardson and George Devine.
Produced by David Merrick.
September 26 through October 7, 1961
THE TENTH MAN – drama by Paddy Chayevsky. Starring Jacob Ben-Ami,
Risa Schwartz, Michael Lipton, Anatole Winogradoff, Truman Gaige,
Maurice Shrog, Gene Gross and David Vardi. Directed by Tyrone Guthrie.
Produced by Saint Subber and Arthur Cantor.
October 9 through October 21, 1961
TOYS IN THE ATTIC – drama by Lillian Hellman. Starring Constance
Bennett, Anne Revere, Scott McKay and Patricia Jessel, with Elwood
Smith. Staged by Adrian Hall. Produced by Kermit Bloomgarden.
October 23 through November 4, 1961
ELIZABETH THE QUEEN (by Maxwell Anderson) and MARY STUART (by Friedrich
Schiller) -- Starring Eva LeGallienne, Faye Emerson, with Scott
Forbes and Frederick Worlock. Cast includes Paul Ballantyne, Dalton
Dearborn, Claude Horton, Geddeth Smith, Dorothy Dee Victor and Sydney
Walker. Directed by Jack Sydow. Produced by The American Repertory
Theatre.
November 6 through November 18, 1961
SUNDAY IN NEW YORK – a new comedy by Norman Krasna. Starring
Robert Redford, Conrad Janis, Pat Stanley, with Pat Harrington Sr.,
Sondra Lee and Ron Nicholas. Directed by Garson Kanin. Produced
by Norman Krasna.
November 20 through December 2, 1961
A THURBER CARNIVAL -- a revue based on the writing of James Thurber.
Starring Imogene Coca, Arthur Treacher and King Donovan, with Walter
Klavun, Elaine Swann and Vince Harding. Directed by Peter Turgeon.
Produced by Lee Gruber, Frank Ford and Shelly Gross.
December 4, 1961 through January 6, 1962
FIORELLO! – musical by Jerome Weidman and George Abbott. Starring
Bob Carrol, Paul Lipson, Arthur Bartow, Rudy Bond, Charlotte Fairchild,
Jayme Mylroie, Jen Nelson, Alan North and Rosemary O’Reilly.
Directed by George Abbott. Produced by Ed. Edwin Knill and Martin
Tahse.
1962
January 8 through January 20, 1962
THE BEST MAN – a new play by Gore Vidal. Starring Frank Lovejoy,
Kent Smith and James Westerfield, with Edith Atwater, Kathleen Maguire,
Laura Peirpont, Carl Low, Philip Robinson and Gordon B. Clarke.
Directed by Joseph Anthony. Produced by Roger L. Stevens.
January 23 through February 3, 1962
THE OLD VIC COMPANY – performing Macbeth ; Shaw’s Saint
Joan ; Romeo and Juliet. Starring John Clements, Barbara Jefford,
William Sylvester, John Stride and Joanna Dunham. Directors include
Michael Benthall; Douglas Seale; Franco Zeffirelli.
February 5 through March 3, 1962
BYE BYE BIRDIE – a musical based on the book by Michael Stewart;
lyrics by Lee Adams; music by Charles Strouse. Starring Gretchen
Wyler, Dick Patterson, Kay Medford, with Dick Gautier. Directed
and choreographed by Gower Champion.
March 5 through March 17, 1962
THE MIRACLE WORKER – drama by William Gibson. Starring Eileen
Brennan, with C.M. Gampel, Laurinda Barrett, Thomas Connolly and
Donna Zimmerman. Directed by Arthur Penn.
March 19 through April 7, 1962
LA PLUME DE MA TANTE – musical revue: written and devised
by Robert Dhery; music by Gerard Calvi. Starring Robert Clary and
Liliane Montevecchi, with Maurice Baquet, Jacques Legras, Frederic
O’Brady, Pierre Tornade and Roger Saget. Musical direction
by Carmen Coppola. Presented by David Merrick and Joseph Kipness.
April 10 through April 28, 1962
A FUNNY THING HAPPENED ON THE WAY TO THE FORUM – pre-Broadway
try-out of the musical: book by Bert Shavelove and Larry Gelbart;
music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim; choreography by Jack Cole.
Starring Zero Mostel, Raymond Walburn, and John Carradine, with
Jack Guilford, David Burns and Ruth Kobart. Directed by George Abbott.
The opening number “Comedy Tonight” was written and
added to the show in response to Washington Post critic Richard
L. Coe’s complaint that the musical needed a more vital opening.
May 1 through June 2, 1962
MY FAIR LADY – musical by Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Lowe,
based on Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw. Starring Ronald Drake
and Caroline Dixon with Charles Victor, Margaret Bannerman and Hugh
Dempster.
June 4 through June 16, 1962
IRMA LA DOUCE – musical: music by Marguerite Monnot; book
and lyrics by Alexandre Breffort; English book and lyrics by Julian
More, David Heneker and Monty Norman. Starring Taina Elg and Denis
Quilley, with Joseph Bova. Directed by Peter Brook.
July 16 through August 11, 1962
COME BLOW YOUR HORN – comedy by Neil Simon. Starring Keefe
Brasselle, Fred Clark, Benay Venuta, with Dran Seitz, Anthony Roberts,
Janis Hansen and Charlotte Jones. Directed by Stanley Prager. Gene
Rayburn took over from Keefe Brasselle for the final two weeks of
the show.
August 14 through September 1, 1962
CARNIVAL! – musical: music and lyrics by Bob Merrill; book
by Michael Stewart; based on material by Helen Heutsch. Starring
Carla Alberghetti and Ed Ames. Cast includes Jonathan Lucas, JoAnne
Worley, Johnny Haymer. Directed and choreographed by Gower Champion.
September 6 through September 22, 1962
BEYOND THE FRINGE – British comedy revue with Peter Cook,
Dudley Moore, Alan Bennett and Jonathan Miller.
September 25 through October 13, 1962
MR. PRESIDENT – world premier of a musical comedy: music and
lyrics by Irving Berlin; book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse.
Starring Robert Ryan and Nanette Fabray, with Anita Gillette, Jack
Haskell and David Brooks. Directed by Joshua Logan.
President and Mrs. John F. Kennedy attended the opening night,
a benefit for the Joseph P. Kennedy Jr. Foundation, followed by
a gala party at the British Embassy.
October 15 through October 27, 1962
D'OYLY CARTE OPERA COMPANY -- performing the Mikado, Gondoliers,
Iolanthe, and Pirates of Penzance. Ensemble cast is headed by John
Reed, with Donald Adams, Mary Sansom, and Kenneth Sandford.
November 5 through November 24, 1962
HAROLD – a comedy by Herman Raucher. Starring Anthony Perkins,
with Don Adams, Nathaniel Frey, John Fiedler, Rochelle Oliver, Sudie
Bond, Joe E. Marks, Sidney Armus, Stephen Cheng and Joey Heatherton.
Directed by Larry Blyden.
December 10 through December 22, 1962
A SHOT IN THE DARK -- a new suspense comedy. Starring Elizabeth
Seal and Zack Matalon. Cast includes Rene Paul, Valerie French,
Bram Nossen, James Coco and Edith Lebok. Directed by Harold Clurman.
December 24, 1962 through January 5, 1962
A FAR COUNTRY – drama by Henry Denker, based on the life of
Sigmund Freud. Starring Viveca Lindfors, Mark Lenard and Jacob Ben-Ami,
with Berta Gersten. Directed by Alfred Ryder.
1963
The National Theatre was bought for more than $5 million by a three-person
partnership headed by Jerry Wollman, Silver Spring developer, and
builders Stanley Reines and Sidney Teplin.
January 8 through January 12, 1963
THE HOLLOW CROWN – selections from Shakespeare presented by
the Royal Shakespeare Company. Cast includes Dorothy Tutin, Max
Adrian, Paul Hardwick and John Barton. Production devised by John
Barton.
January 16 through January 26, 1963 [xerox only]
NATURAL AFFECTION – pre-Broadway run of a new play by William
Inge. Starring Kim Stanley, Harry Guardino and Tom Bosley. Directed
by Tony Richardson.
February 5 through February 23, 1963
HOT SPOT – pre-Broadway run of a new musical comedy by Joseph
Campanella; book by Jack Weinstock and Willie Gilbert; music by
Mary Rodgers; lyrics by Martin Charnin. Starring Judy Holliday,
(in her last role), with Joseph Bova, Howard Freeman, Arny Freeman.
Production staged by Morton Da Costa.
February 25 through March 30, 1963
MARY, MARY – a new comedy by Jean Kerr. Starring Martha Wright,
Biff McGuire and Michael Evans. With Alan Bunce and Elizabeth St.
Clair. Directed by Joseph Anthony. Production designed by Oliver
Smith.
April 1 through April 13, 1963
THE SCHOOL FOR SCANDAL – by Richard Brinsley Sheridan. Starring
Ralph Richardson, John Gielgud, Geraldine McEwan, Gwen Ffrangcon-Davies,
Merial Forbes, Laurence Naismith, Malcolm Keen, Rechard Easton.
Directed by John Gielgud. Presented by Alexander H. Cohen. Direct
from the Royal Haymarket, London
April 22 through May 11, 1963
MILK AND HONEY – musical: music and lyrics by Jerry Herman;
book by Don Appell. Starring Molly Picon and Robert Weede, with
Terry Saunders and Tommy Rall. Cast includes Marc Hertsens, Monte
Amundsen, Diane Goldberg, Frances Spanier and Reuben Singer. Choreography
by Donald Saddler. Staged by Albert Marre.
May 28 through June 15,1963
TAKE HER, SHE'S MINE – comedy by Phoebe and Henry Ephron.
Starring Tom Ewell and Audra Lindley, with Joanna Pettet and Fred
Burrell. Directed by George Abbott.
June 17 through August 24, 1963
THE SOUND OF MUSIC – musical by Rodgers and Hammerstein; book
by Howard Lindsay and Russell Crouse. Starring Barbara Meister and
John Myherswith Katherine Hilgenberg, Jack Collins and Marthe Errolle.
Directed by Vincent J. Donehue.
August 27 through September 14, 1963
HERE'S LOVE – musical: music, book and lyrics by Meredith
Wilson. Starring Janis Paige, Craig Stevens, and Laurence Naismith.
Cast includes Fred Gwynne, Paul Reed, Cliff Hall and David Doyle.
Directed by Stuart Ostrow. Musical staging by Michael Kidd.
September 16 through September 28, 1963
A THOUSAND CLOWNS – comedy by Herb Gardener. Starring Dane
Clark and Margaret O’Brien, with Barry Gordon, Paul E. Richards,
Marc London and Conrad Fowkes. Directed by Fred Coe.
September 30 through October 19, 1963
BAREFOOT IN THE PARK – comedy by Neil Simon. Starring Elizabeth
Ashley, Robert Redford, Mildred Natwick, Kurt Kaszner and Herb Edelman.
Directed by Mike Nichols.
October 21 through November 9, 1963
STOP THE WORLD, I WANT TO GET OFF! – musical: book, music
and lyrics by Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley. Starring Kenneth
Nelson and Lesley Stewart, with Janet Allman and Jennifer Allman.
Directed by Anthony Newley.
November 11 through November 23, 1963
SEIDMAN AND SON – by Elick Moll. Starring Sam Levene, with
Elizabeth Fleming, Chet London, Janet Ward. Directed by Sam Levene.
November 26 through December 14, 1963
NATIONAL REPERTORY THEATRE present The Seagull (Anton Chekov), Ring
Around the Moon (Jean Anouilh), The Crucible (Arthur Miller). Company
is headed by Eva LeGallienne, Farley Granger, Denholm Elliott and
Anne Meacham.
December 19, 1963 through January 11, 1964
HELLO, DOLLY! – musical by Jerry Herman; book by Michael Stewart.
Starring Carol Channing, David Burns, Charles Nelson Reilly, Eileen
Brennan, and Sondra Lee. Directed and choreographed by Gower Champion.
A David Merrick production.
1964
January 13 through January 25, 1964 [no program file]
CONVERSATIONS IN THE DARK – pre-Broadway run of a drama by
William Hanley. Starring Jack Warden, Sandra Church, Jon Cypher
and Barbara Barrie. Sets designed by Ming Cho Lee; costumes by Michael
Travis.
February 3 through February 8, 1964
STOP THE WORLD, I WANT TO GET OFF! – British musical: book,
music and lyrics by Anthony Newley. Starring Kenneth Nelson and
Joan Eastmam. Directed by Anthony Newley.
February 10 through February 22, 1964
NEVER TOO LATE – comedy by Sumner Arthur Long. Starring William
Bendix, Nancy Carroll and Will Hutchins. Cast includes Janis Young,
Larry Fletcher, Kate Wilkinson, Royal Beal, Robert Carraway and
Robert Fitzsimmons. Directed by George Abbott. Incidental Music
by John Kander.
February 24 through March 14, 1964
A MAN FOR ALL SEASONS – new play by Robert Bolt. Starring
William Roderick and Bruce Gordon. Cast includes Albert Dekker,
Richard A. Dysart, Sarah Burton, Frederic Warriner, Michael Lewis
and Edgar Daniels. Directed by Noel Willman.
March 16 through March 21, 1964
JOSEPHINE BAKER AND HER COMPANY – Black musical revue. Starring
Josephine Baker, with Geoffrey Holder and Aviv Dancers.
March 30 through April 11, 1964
LUTHER – by John Osborne. Starring John Heffernan, with George
Mathews, Hugh Franklin, Lionel Stander, Alan Bergmann and Frank
Shelley. Directed by Tony Richardson.
April 14 through April 25, 1964
ROYAL SHAKESPEARE COMPANY present King Lear (directed by Peter Brook)
with Paul Scofield and The Comedy of Errors (directed by Clifford
Williams). Actors John Neville and Paul Rogers were given keys to
the city.
April 27 through May 16, 1964
WHO'S AFRAID OF VIRGINIA WOOLF – by Edward Albee. Starring
Nancy Kelly and Shepperd Strudwick, with Ken Kercheval and Barbara
Dana. Directed by Alan Schneider. For the Matinees, the leads were
played by Michaele Myers and Kende\all Clark.
May 19 through August 1, 1964
CAMELOT – musical by Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Lowe. Anne
Jeffreys as Guinevere, George Wallace as Arthur, Robert Peterson
as Lancelot and Arthur Treacher as Pellinore. Production staged
by Moss Hart.
August 26 through September 12, 1964
FIDDLER ON THE ROOF – pre-Broadway run of the new musical:
book by Joseph Stein; music by Jerry Bock, lyrics by Sheldon Harnick.
Starring Zero Mostel, Maria Karnilova, Bea Arthur. Cast includes
Joanna Merlin, Austin Pendleton, Berty Convy, Julia Magenes, Michael
Joseph Sullivan, Tanya Everett, and Robert Berdeen. Directed and
choreographed by Jerome Robbins.
September 21 through October 3, 1964
THE PHYSICISTS – comedy/drama by Friedrich Durrenmatt. Starring
Hume Cronyn and Jessica Tandy, with Robert Shaw, George Voskovec
and Martyn Green. Directed by Peter Brook.
October 5 through October 17, 1964
ZIZI –French revue conceived and staged by Roland Petit. Starring
Jeanmarie. Choreography by Roland Petit. Costumes by Yves St. Laurent.
October 19 through October 31, 1964
I WAS DANCING – a new comedy by Edwin O’Connor. Starring
Burgess Meredith, Orson Bean, Eli Mintz and Pert Kelton. Directed
by Garson Kanin.
November 2 through November 7, 1964
D'OYLY CARTE OPERA COMPANY present Iolanthe, Pirates of Penzance,
Trial by Jury, H.M.S. Pinafore, The Mikado. Ensemble cast is headed
by John Reed
November 16 through November 28, 1964
AFTER THE FALL – drama by Arthur Miller. Starring Charles
Aidman and Judi West, with Rudy Bond, Sylvia Gassell, Linda Geiser,
Robert Gerriger, and Patricia Falkenhain. Directed by Edward Parone.
November 30 through December 12, 1964
ALFIE – pre-Broadway run of the new comedy by Bill Naughton.
Starring Terence Stamp (in his American debut), with Juliet Mills.
Cast includes George S. Irving and Margaret Courtenay. Directed
by Gilchrist Calder.
December 14, 1964 through January 2, 1965
110 IN THE SHADE – a new musical based on the play The Rainmaker:
music by Harvey Schmidt; lyrics by Tom Jones. Starring Jeannie Carson,
Biff McGuire, and John Carter. Cast includes Will Geer, Leslie Warren,
Scooter Teague, Charles Scott, and George Church. Directed by Joseph
Anthony.
1965
January 4 through January 23, 1965
ANY WEDNESDAY – comedy by Muriel Resnik. Starring Larry Parks,
Monica Moran, Patricia Cutts, Richard Roat. Directed by Henry Kaplan.
January 25 through February 6, 1965
DIAMOND ORCHID – pre-Broadway production, written by Jerome
Lawrence and Robert E. Lee. Starring Jennifer West, Bruce Gordon,
Finlay Currie, Mario Alcalde, Helen Craig, and Margery Maude. Directed
by Jose Quintero.
February 8 through February 20, 1965
THE ROAR OF THE GREASEPAINT AND THE SMELL OF THE CROWD – musical:
book, music and lyrics by Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley. Starring
Anthony Newley and Cyril Ritchard, with Sally Smith. Directed by
Anthony Newley.
February 22 through March 6, 1965
THE ODD COUPLE -- comedy by Neil Simon. Starring Art Carney and
Walter Matthau with Nathaniel Frey, Paul Dooley, Carole Shelley,
Monica Evans, Sidney Armus and John Fiedler. Directed by Mike Nichols.
March 8 through March 13, 1965
BEYOND THE FRINGE – British musical revue, with Robert Cessna,
Donald Outlaw, Joel Fabiani and James Valentine.
March 16 through March 27, 1965
A SIGN OF AFFECTION -- new comedy by Carolyn Green. Starring John
Payne and Nan Martin, with Lesley Ann Warren. Directed by Ron Winston.
March 29 through April 17, 1965
DEAR ME, THE SKY IS FALLING – comedy by Leonard Spigelglass.
Starring Gertrude Berg and Roger Koven. Directed by Herman Shumlin.
April 19 through June 5, 1965
HOW TO SUCCEED IN BUSINESS WITHOUT REALLY TRYING – musical
by Frank Loesser and Abe Burrows. Starring Ronnie Welsh and Jeff
de Benning, with Maureen Arthur, Suzanne Menke and William Major.
Musical staging by Bob Fosse. Directed by Abe Burrows.
June 7 through July 31, 1965
OLIVER! – musical: based on Charles Dickens' Oliver Twistl
music and lyrics by Lionel Bart Starring Robin Ramsay, Maura K.
Wedge, Alan Crofoot, Danny Sewell, George Piolo and Ronnie Kroll
as Oliver. Directed by Peter Coe.
September 7 through September 25, 1965
PICKWICK – British musical based on Charles Dickens' "Pickwick
Papers." Starring Harry Secombe, Roy Castle, A. Rodgers, Peter
Bull. Directed by Peter Coe.
September 27 through October 9, 1965
KISMET – musical: book by Charles Lederer and Luther Davis;
music and lyrics by Robert Wright and George Forrest. Starring Anne
Jeffreys and Alfred Drake, with Henry Calvin, Richard Banke, Patricia
Welting, Don Beddoe, Truman Gaige and Beatrice Kraft. Directed by
Edward Greenberg.
October 18 through October 30, 1965
THE PORCELAIN YEAR – by Reginald Rose. Starring Barbara Bel
Geddes, Arthur Hill, and Martin Balsam, with Kim Darby and John
Megna. Directed by Alex Segal.
November 4 through November 20, 1965
CACTUS FLOWER – comedy, written and directed by Abe Burrows.
Starring Lauren Bacall and Joseph Campanella. Directed by Abe Burrows.
November 23 through November 28, 1965
ANTONIO AND THE BALLETS DE MADRID
November 29 through December 11, 1965
THE NATIONAL REPERTORY THEATRE present The Madwoman of Chaillot
(Jean Giraudoux), The Rivals (Richard Brinsley Sheridan), and The
Trojan Women (Euripides). Company includes Eva LeGalliennne, Sylvia
Sidney, Leora Dana, James B. Douglas, John Eames, herbert Foster,
Diana Frothingham, Alan Oppenheimer and G. Wood..
December 13 through December 25, 1965
CAROUSEL – musical by Rodgers and Hammerstein. Starring Eileen
Christy, Dran Seitx, Katherine Hilgenberg, Jerry Orbach, Reid Shelton,
Benay Venuta, and Edward Everett Horton. Choreography by Agnes de
Mille. Directed by Edward Greenberg.
December 27, 1965 through January 8, 1966
THE WAYWARD STORK -- comedy by Harry Tugend. Starring Robert Cummings
and Lois Nettleton, with Art Lund, Arlene Golonka, Bernie West,
Gary Pillar. Directed by Dan Levin.
1966
January 10 through January 29, 1966
LUV – comedy by Murray Schisgal. Starring Tom Bosley, Dorothy
Loudon and Herbert Edelman. National company staged by Jack Sydow.
January 31 through February 12, 1966
HOSTILE WITNESS -- drama by Jack Roffey. Starring Ray Milland, with
Michael Allinson, Anthony Cooper, Geoffrey Lumsden. Directed by
Reginald Denham.
February 14 through February 26, 1966
BASCOM BARLOW – comedy by Jerome Chodorov, based on a play
by Claude Magnier. Starring Paul Ford, Nancy Marchand, Joe Ponazecki
and April Shawhan. Directed by Gower Champion.
February 28 through March 19, 1966
THE OWL AND THE PUSSYCAT -- comedy by Bill Manhoff. Starring Eartha
Kitt and Russell Nype. Directed by Leonard Auerbach.
March 21 through April 9, 1966
THE SUBJECT WAS ROSES – new play by Frank D. Gilroy. Starring
Jack Albertson, Martha Scott (later Bella Jarrett) and Martin Sheen.
Directed by Ulu Grosbard.
April 11 through April 23, 1966
IVANOV -- by Anton Chekhov. Starring John Gielgud and Vivien Leigh,
with John Merrivale., Roland Culver, Jennifer Hilary, Ronald Radd,
Dillon Evans. Directed by John Gielgud.
April 24 through April 30, 1966
PINOCCHIO, designed and created by Bobby Clark.
May 2 through May 7, 1966
METROPOLITAN OPERA NATIONAL COMPANY performing Madame Butterfly,
Susannah, Carmen, and Cinderella.
May 16 through May 21, 1966
THE OWL AND THE PUSSYCAT – comedy by Bill Manhoff. Starring
Eartha Kitt and Russell Nype. Directed by Leonard Auerbach. [See
Playbill for February, 1966 run]
May 23 through July 30, 1966
BAREFOOT IN THE PARK -- comedy by Neil Simon. Starring Myrna Loy
with Sandor Szabo, Beverly Penberthy and Phillip Clark. Directed
by Mike Nichols.
August 10 through August 27, 1966
ANNIE GET YOUR GUN – musical by Irving Berlin. Starring Ethel
Merman, with Bruce Yarnell, Harry Bellaver, Benay Venuta and Jerry
Orbach. Directed by Jack Sydow.
September 12 through September 24, 1966
HELP STAMP OUT MARRIAGE – comedy by Keith Waterhouse and Willis
Hall. Starring Roddy Maude-Roxby, Ann Bell, Francis Mathews. Directed
by George Abbott.
September 28 through October 15, 1966
WE HAVE ALWAYS LIVED IN THE CASTLE – by Hugh Wheeler, based
on the novel by Shirley Jackson. Starring Shirley Knight and Alan
Webb, with Heather Menzies, Phillip Clark, Doris Rich, Murial Williams,
William Sims. Directed by Garson Kanin.
October 18 through November 5, 1966
I DO! I DO! – musical based on The Fourposter by Jan de Hartog:
book and lyrics by Tom Jones; music by Harvey Schmidt. Starring
Mary Martin and Robert Preston. Directed by Gower Champion.
November 7 through November 12, 1966
D'OYLY CARTE OPERA COMPANY – performing Pirates of Penzance,
Mikado, Ruddigore, HMS Pinafore.
November 14 through November 26, 1966
AT THE DROP OF ANOTHER HAT – an evening of songs and stories
with Michael Flanders and Donald Swann.
November 28 through December 17, 1966
PHILADELPHIA, HERE I COME – by Brian Friel. Starring Donal
Donnelly and Patrick Bedford, with Eamon Kelly, Mairin D. O’
Sullivan, Violet Dunn. Directed by Hilton Edwards.
December 22, 1966 through January 7, 1967
THE ASTRAKHAN COAT – pre-Broadway production drama by Pauline
McCaulay. Starring Roddy McDowell, Brian Bedford, with James Coco,
Job Stewart and Carole Shelly. Directed by Donald McWhinnie. Presented
by David Merrick.
1967
January 9 through January 28, 1967
GENERATION – comedy by William Goodhart. Starring Don Porter
and Jerome Cowan, with John Luce, Charlotte Glenn, Paul Collins,
and John Stewart. Directed by Fred Hebert.
January 30 through February 11, 1967
BRISTOL OLD VIC COMPANY – Starring Richard Pasco, Madge Ryan,
Barbara Leigh-Hunt and Jane Asher, John Franklyn Robbins, Dawn Grainger,
Frank Middlemass, Frank Barrie, Christopher Burgess and Arthur Blake
in Measure for Measure, Hamlet, and Romeo and Juliet
February 13 through February 18, 1967
THE METROPOLITAN OPERA NATIONAL COMPANY performing La Boheme, La
Traviata, The Marriage of Figaro
February 21 through March 18, 1967
MAN OF LA MANCHA – musical: play by Dale Wasserman; music
by Mitch Leigh; lyrics by Joe Darion. Starring Jose Ferrer with
Harvey Lembeck, David Atkinson, and Maura Wedge.
March 20 through April 1, 1967
THE ODD COUPLE – comedy by Neil Simon. Starring George Gobel
and Phil Foster. Cast includes Mark Dawson, Carmine Caridi, Gloria
Bleezarde, Laura May Lewis, Thomas Ruisinger and Walt Wanderman.
Directed by Harvey Medlinsky.
April 3 through April 15, 1967
THE NATIONAL REPERTORY THEATRE presents The Imaginary Invalid by
Moliere, A Touch of the Poet by Eugene O'Neill, Tonight at 8:30:
Still Life, and Fumed Oak by Noel Coward
April 17 through April 22, 1967
A DELICATE BALANCE – by Edward Albee. Starring Jessica Tandy,
Hume Cronyn and Rosemary Murphy, with Philip Bourneuf, Dortha Duckworth,
and Kathleen Magure. Directed by Alan Schneider.
April 24 through June 3, 1967
HALF A SIXPENCE - British musical based on Kipps by H.G. Wells:
book by Beverley Cross; music and lyrics by David Heneker. Starring
Dick Kallman, with William le Massena, Ann Shoemaker and Anne Wakefield.
Directed by Gene Saks.
June12 through June 17, 1967
BUDDY HACKETT AND EDDIE FISHER in person.
June 19 through June 24, 1967
THE OWL AND THE PUSSYCAT – comedy by Bill Manhoff. Starring
Pat Suzuki and Richard Vath. Directed by Philip Rose.
June 26 through July 8, 1967
ON A CLEAR DAY YOU CAN SEE FOREVER – musical: book and lyrics
by Alan Jay Lerner; music by Burton Lane. Starring Howard Keel and
Barbara Lang, with Lester James, Cy Young, Carl Esser, Francine
Beers, Rowan Tudor, Leon Benedict, William J. Coppola and Jodi Perselle.
Directed by Milton Katselas.
July 10 through July 29, 1967
LES BALLETS AFRICAINS
July 31 through August 26, 1967
WAIT A MININ – musical devised and directed by Leon Gluckman;
musical arrangements by Andrew Tracey. Starring Andrew Tracey, Paul
Tracey, Kendrew Lascelleo, Michel Martel, Nigel Pegram, April Olrich,
Lelene Ireland and Barbara Quaney..
September 5 through September 16, 1967
CACTUS FLOWER – comedy by Abe Burrows, based on the play by
Barillet and Gredy. Starring Hugh O’Brian and Elizabeth Allen,
with Ethelyne Dunfee and Gene Lindsey. Directed by Abe Burrows.
September 20 through October 7, 1967
ROSENCRANTZ AND GUILDENSTERN ARE DEAD -- by Tom Stoppard. Starring
Robert Eddison, Brian Murray and John Wood. Directed by Derek Goldby.
October 11 through November 8, 1967
HELLO, DOLLY! – musical based on the play by Thornton Wilder:
book by Michael Stewart; music and lyrics by Jerry Herman. Starring
Pearl Bailey and Cab Calloway, with Emily Yancy, Jack Crowder, Chris
Calloway, Winston deWitt Hemsley, Sherri Peaches Brewer, Mabel King,
Richard Kie-Wye Khan and Roger Lawson. Staged by Lucia Victor.
President and Mrs. Johnson sat in folding chairs in the aisle
to see Cab Calloway and native Washingtonian Pearl Bailey in Hello
Dolly!
November 17 through December 9, 1967
MATA HARI -- musical: book by Jerome Coopersmith; lyrics by Martin
Charnin; music by Edward Thomas. Starring Pernell Roberts and Marisa
Mell. Directed by Vincente Minnelli. Produced by David Merrick.
The opening night, a grand benefit performance, was a great disaster,
as scenery failed to operate properly, and Mata Hari, having been
gunned down by a firing squad, rose to exit before the lights were
down.
1968
January 2 through January 13, 1968
THE KILLING OF SISTER GEORGE – comedy by Frank Marcus. Starring
Claire Trevor, Natalie Schafer, with Patricia Sinnott and Polly
Rowles. Directed by Warren Crane.
January 15 through February 3, 1968
WHITE LIES AND BLACK COMEDY - two one-act comedies by Peter Schaffer.
Starring Jeremy Clyde, Angela Wood, Jennifer Tilston, Byron Webster,
Barry Boys, Monica Evans, Charles Mayer. Directed by Randall Brooks.
February 5 through February 17, 1968
THE IMPOSSIBLE YEARS – comedy by Bob Fisher and Arthur Marx.
Starring Sam Levene, Elizabeth Fleming. Cast includes David Selby,
Judith Tillman, Alexander Cort, Abe Vigoda, Donald Moore, Kipp Osborne,
Trudy Van, Phillip Bonnell, Horton Willis and Madeleine Fisher.
Directed by Sam Levene.
February 19 through March 2, 1968
WEEKEND – comedy by Gore Vidal. Starring John Forsythe, Rosemary
Murphy and Kim Hunter. Cast includes Marco St.John, Staats Cotsworth,
Eleanor Wilson, Graham Brown, Zaida Coles, John Marriott, Gene Blakely,
and Carol Cole. Directed by Joseph Anthony.
March 4 through March 16, 1968
THE HOMECOMING – by Harold Pinter. Starring Carolyn Jones
and William Roerick. Cast includes John Church, Denis Holmes, Jerry
Mickey and Danny Sewell. Directed by Rosemary Beattie.
March 18 through April 13, 1968
CABARET – musical based on the Christopher Isherwood novella;
music by John Kander; lyrics by Fred Ebb. Starring Signe Hasso,
Leo Fuchs and Melissa Hart. Cast includes Robert Salvio, Catherine
Gaffigan, David Rounds and Gene Rupert. Directed by Harold Prince.
April 16 through April 28, 1968
|
