A Man for All Seasons
Broadway Drama Previews
September 12 2008
Opened October 7 2008
Limited run to November 23 2008
Run 29 previews & 73 performances Producer
Roundabout Theatre Company
Creative
Robert Bolt author
Doug Hughes director
Catherine Zuber costume design
Brian MacDevitt lighting design
Santo Loquasto scenic design
David Van Tieghem sound design
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Opening Night Cast |
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Frank Langella |
Sir Thomas More |
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Hannah Cabell |
Margaret More |
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Michael Esper |
William Roper |
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Michel Gill |
Duke of Norfolk |
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Zach Grenier |
Thomas Cromwell |
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Dakin Matthews |
Cardinal Wolsey |
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George Morfogen |
Thomas Cranmer |
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Patrick Page |
King Henry VIII |
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Maryann Plunkett |
Alice More |
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Jeremy Strong |
Richard Rich |
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Charles Borland |
Jailor |
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Peter Bradbury |
Steward |
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Patricia Hodges |
Woman |
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Triney Sandoval |
Thomas Chapuys |
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Emily Dorsch |
Barmaid |
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Synopsis
Because Catharine of Aragon had been
unable to produce any surviving male heirs for the King of England,
Henry the VIII sought to have his marriage to her annulled so he
could wed the then apple of his eye, Anne Boleyn. The failure of
many entreaties to the Pope and his representatives led Henry to
break with Rome and establish the Church of England
Sir Thomas More, the Man for All
Seasons, was the new Lord Chancellor, expected to support the
King. However, as a staunch anti-Reformationist, he refused to
support Henry's pleas to the Pope, refused to acknowledge Henry as
head of the new church and, though acknowledging her as Queen,
refused to attend Anne's coronation. His further refusal to take an
oath swearing his allegiance to the Act of Succession landed him in
the Tower of London, on trial for high treason
Somewhat mistakenly, Sir Thomas
believed that if he did not voice his objections in court he could
not be convicted
Broadway Show History
It has taken forty-five years for
A Man for All Seasons to again hit the boards of a Broadway
theater. The original production opened Wednesday evening, November
22, 1961, at the
ANTA
Playhouse, running for 637 performances before closing on June
1, 1963
Noel Willman directed the
production. Paul Scofield starred as Sir Thomas More, as he did in
the original London production. George Ross appeared as The Common
Man. They were supported by Olga Bellin (Margaret More), Peter
Brandon (William Roper), Leo McKern (Thomas Cromwell), and others
The show took home
1962 Tonys® for best
play, best producers, best direction and best actor (Mr Scofield)
In the Movies
The 1966 movie version was directed
by Fred Zinneman. Paul Scofield reprised his role as Sir Thomas
More, as did Leo McKern as Cromwell (McKern had also played The
Common Man in the original London staging). The movie won six
Oscars, including best picture
On Television
Charlton Heston directed a 1988
made-for-television movie in which he played Sir Thomas More. John
Gielgud was Cardinal Wolsey and Vanessa Redgrave portrayed Alice
More
The Common Man
The reviews for this production were
tepid at most. A theme that ran through many of them was Mr Hughes'
elimination of The Common Man character. A device used to help the
audience understand the background and circumstances of the period,
The Common Man appears in different guises through the play as
originally written: Steward, Boatman, Jailor, Executioner. This
production dispensed with The Common Man and broke the role into the
separate characters of Steward, Jailor and Barmaid. The amount of
information the characters passed on to the audience was also
reduced, muddling folks' understanding
Tony Award®, Tony®, the Tony Award® logo, and
the Tony Award® medallion are registered trademarks of the American
Theatre Wing
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