'Awake And Sing!, by Clifford Odets, opening on Broadway at the Belasco Theatre

Lincoln Center Theater will present Clifford Odets' classic drama Awake And Sing!, directed by Bartlett Sher, which will open at the Belasco Theatre on the 17 Apr 2006, following previews from the 23 Mar.

Awake And Sing! is the story of a Jewish family in the Bronx who have fallen on hard times during the Depression.

The Belasco is the theatre that Awake And Sing! had its world premiere in 1935. The production is to celebrate playwright Clifford Odets' Centenary.

Lincoln Center Theater's production of Awake And Sing! will reunite The Light in the Piazza director Barlett Sher with that musical's Tony Award winning design team - set designer Michael Yeargan, costume designer Catherine Zuber and lighting designer Christopher Akerlind.

Casting for Awake And Sing! is currently underway and will be announced at a later date.

Born 18 Jul 1906 in Philadelphia, Clifford Odets dropped out of high school at the age of 17 to become an actor. As one of the original members of the New York City-based left-wing ensemble, the Group Theatre, Odets found his true calling as a playwright who explored the pressing social issues of the day. He used a taxi drivers' strike as the inspiration for his (and the Group Theatre's) first breakout success, Waiting For Lefty. This first play was followed by Awake and Sing!, Till The Day I Die, Paradise Lost, Golden Boy, Rocket To The Moon, Night Music, Clash By Night, The Big Knife and The Country Girl. He also wrote many screenplays including the film adaptation of the novel Sweet Smell of Success. He died of cancer in 1963 at the age of 57.

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