1981 Playbill

Children of a Lesser God is a play written by Mark Medoff. It opened on Broadway on March 30, 1980 and played, at the Longacre Theatre, for 887 performances. Broadway theatre[1] is often considered the highest professional form of theatre in the United States. ... The Longacre Theatre is a Broadway theatre. ...

Directed by Gordon Davidson, the play was a transfer from the Mark Taper Forum in Los Angeles. It was nominated for four Tony Awards and five Drama Desk Awards and won three Tonys and two Drama Desk Awards. Children of a Lesser God became the longest running non-musical production at the Longacre. The Mark Taper Forum is a small (<1000 seats) theater-in-the-round (thrust stage) at the Los Angeles Music Center. ... What is popularly called the Tony Award (formally, the Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre) is an annual award celebrating achievements in live American theater, including musical theater, primarily honoring productions on Broadway in New York. ... The Drama Desk Awards are awards given by the organization Drama Desk to honor New York City theater performers, both in Broadway shows but also off-Broadway as well. ...

The play follows the conflicted relationship between Sarah Norman, a hearing- and speech- impaired student (played on Broadway by Phyllis Frelich), and her teacher James Leeds (played originally by John Rubinstein and later by David Ackroyd). In 1986 the play was adapted into a film of the same name, which starred Marlee Matlin and William Hurt. Please wikify (format) this article or section as suggested in the Guide to layout and the Manual of Style. ... Tony Award winner Phyllis Frelich with Linda Bove on deafness. ... John Rubinstein (born 8 December 1946) is an American film and television actor. ... David Ackroyd is an American actor, who first came to prominence in soap operas such as The Secret Storm and Another World. ... Children of a Lesser God is a 1986 film that tells the story of a speech teacher at a school for the deaf who falls in love with a sign language-using deaf woman. ... Marlee Matlin as Amanda in What the Bleep Do We Know Marlee Beth Matlin (born August 24, 1965) is an American actress who is almost completely deaf. ... William Hurt in Lost in Space. ...

Phyllis Frelich and John Rubinstein in a scene from Children of a Lesser God

Tony Award winner Phyllis Frelich with Linda Bove on deafness. ... John Rubinstein (born 8 December 1946) is an American film and television actor. ...

Opening Night Cast

• Phyllis Frelich as Sarah Norman
• John Rubinstein as James Leeds
• Lewis Merkin as Orin Dennis
• William Frankfather as Mr. Franklin
• Scotty Bloch as Mrs. Norman
• Julianne Gold as Lydia
• Lucy Martin as Edna Klein

Tony Award winner Phyllis Frelich with Linda Bove on deafness. ... John Rubinstein (born 8 December 1946) is an American film and television actor. ... William Frankfather was born on August 4th 1944, in Kermit, Texas. ... Scotty Bloch is a New Rochelle, New York-born mostly theater (Broadway and Off-Broadway) actress (since the 1940s). ...

Nominations and awards

• Winner: 1980 Tony Award for Best Play
• Winner: 1980 Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical: John Rubinstein
• Winner: 1980 Tony Award for Best Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play: Phyllis Frelich
• Nominee: 1980 Tony Award for Best Direction of a Play: Gordon Davidson
• Winner: 1980 Drama Desk Award Outstanding New Play
• Winner: 1980 Drama Desk Award Outstanding Actor in a Play: John Rubinstein
• Nominee: 1980 Drama Desk Award Outstanding Actress in a Play: Phyllis Frelich
• Nominee: 1980 Drama Desk Award Outstanding Director of a Play: Gordon Davidson
• Nominee: 1980 Drama Desk Award Outstanding Lighting Design: Tharon Musser

A Tony Award for Best Play has been awarded since 1947. ... // 1940s 1948 Paul Hartman of Angel in the Wings 1949 Ray Bolger of Wheres Charley? 1950s 1950 Ezio Pinza of South Pacific 1951 Robert Alda of Guys and Dolls 1952 Phil Silvers of Top Banana 1953 Thomas Mitchell of Hazel Flagg 1954 Alfred Drake of Kismet 1955 Walter Slezak... The Tony Award for Best Actress in a Play is awarded to the actress who was voted as the best actress in a play, whether a new production or a revival. ... The Tony Award for Best Direction has been given since 1947. ... Tharon Musser (born 1925) in city, state is a Tony Award winning lighting designer having worked on over 40 Broadway shows. ...

External link

• Children of a Lesser God at The Internet Broadway Database

The Internet Broadway Database (IBDB) is an online database of Broadway theatre productions and their personnel. ...

References

• Botto, Louis. Playbill: At This Theatre (Applause Books, 2002) (ISBN 1-55783-566-7)