''Morning's at Seven'' is a play by

Paul Osborn Paul Osborn (September 4, 1901 – May 12, 1988) was an American playwright and screenwriter. Osborn's original plays are '' The Vinegar Tree'', ''Oliver Oliver'', and ''Morning's at Seven'' and among his several successful adaptations, ''On Borr ...

. Its plot focuses on four aging sisters living in a small

Midwestern The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of the United States. ...

town in 1928, and it deals with ramifications within the family when two of them begin to question their lives and decide to make some changes before it’s too late. The original

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

production, directed by

Joshua Logan Joshua Lockwood Logan III (October 5, 1908 – July 12, 1988) was an American director, writer, and actor. He shared a Pulitzer Prize for co-writing the musical ''South Pacific'' and was involved in writing other musicals. Early years Logan w ...

, opened on November 30, 1939, at the

Longacre Theatre The Longacre Theatre is a Broadway theater at 220 West 48th Street in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City, United States. Opened in 1913, it was designed by Henry B. Herts and was named for Longacre Square, now known ...

, where it ran for 44 performances. Director Logan chose to set it in 1938, which at the end of the Depression and the beginning of World War II seemed to make it less palatable to the audiences of that time. The cast included

Dorothy Gish Dorothy Elizabeth Gish (March 11, 1898June 4, 1968) was an American actress of the screen and stage, as well as a director and writer. Dorothy and her older sister Lillian Gish were major movie stars of the silent era. Dorothy also had great s ...

Jean Adair Jean Adair (born Violet McNaughton; June 13, 1873 – May 11, 1953) was a Canadian actress. She was also known as Jennet Adair. Career Born Violet McNaughton in Hamilton, Ontario, Her work as Jennet Adair in vaudeville included performing as a ...

, Enid Markey, and

Kate McComb Kate Norton McComb ( Scudder, formerly Walker; 1871–1959) was an American radio and stage actress who performed on Broadway. She also played the piano and sang. Originally not wanting to act professionally, McComb began her professional caree ...

. After 16 previews, the first Broadway revival, directed by

Vivian Matalon Vivian Matalon (11 October 1929 – 15 August 2018) was a British theatre director. Born in Manchester, Matalon began his career as an actor in a series of forgettable British films, but his greatest success has been as a director of West End, ...

, opened on April 10, 1980, at the Lyceum Theatre. The cast included

Nancy Marchand Nancy Lou Marchand (June 19, 1928 – June 18, 2000) was an American actress. She began her career in theatre in 1951. She was most famous for her television portrayals of Margaret Pynchon on ''Lou Grant'' and Livia Soprano on ''The Sopranos''. ...

Maureen O'Sullivan Maureen O'Sullivan (17 May 1911 – 23 June 1998) was an Irish-American actress, who played Jane in the ''Tarzan'' series of films during the era of Johnny Weissmuller. She performed with such actors as Laurence Olivier, Greta Garbo, William ...

Elizabeth Wilson Elizabeth Welter Wilson (April 4, 1921 – May 9, 2015) was an American actress whose career spanned nearly 70 years, including memorable roles in film and television. In 1972 she won the Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play for ...

, Teresa Wright,

Lois de Banzie Lois de Banzie (4 May 1930 – 3 April 2021) was a Scottish-born American stage, film, and television actress. Career Theatre De Banzie may be best known for her Drama Desk Award-winning and Tony Award-nominated performance in Paul Osborn's p ...

, and

David Rounds David Rounds (October 9, 1930, Bronxville, New York – December 9, 1983, Lomontville, Ulster County, New York) was an American actor of stage and screen. He received both a Tony Award and a Drama Desk Award in 1980 for his role in ''Morning' ...

. This production, set back to its original 1920s period, was a great success, running for 564 performances and receiving numerous

Tony Awards The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual c ...

and

Drama Desk Awards The Drama Desk Award is an annual prize recognizing excellence in New York theatre. First bestowed in 1955 as the Vernon Rice Award, the prize initially honored Off-Broadway productions, as well as Off-off-Broadway, and those in the vicinity. Fo ...

. After 27 previews, the second Broadway revival, directed by Daniel Sullivan, opened on April 21, 2002, once again at the Lyceum, where it ran for 112 performances. The cast included

Elizabeth Franz Elizabeth Franz (born Betty Jean Frankovich) is an American stage and television actress. Life and career Franz was born Betty Jean Frankovich in Akron, Ohio, the daughter of a factory worker. She won a Tony Award for her role as Linda Lo ...

Frances Sternhagen Frances Hussey Sternhagen (born January 13, 1930) is an American actress; she has appeared on- and off-Broadway, in movies, and on TV since the 1950s.Joy, Car"Frances Sternhagen in Talks to Join Company of Broadway Magnolias" Broadway.com, Nov ...

Estelle Parsons Estelle Margaret Parsons (born November 20, 1927) is an American actress, singer and stage director. After studying law, Parsons became a singer before deciding to pursue a career in acting. She worked for the television program '' Today'' and ...

Piper Laurie Piper Laurie (born Rosetta Jacobs; January 22, 1932) is an American actress. She is known for her roles in the films ''The Hustler'' (1961), ''Carrie (1976 film), Carrie'' (1976), and ''Children of a Lesser God (film), Children of a Lesser God' ...

Julie Hagerty Julie Beth Hagerty (born June 15, 1955) is an American actress. She starred as Elaine in the films ''Airplane!'' (1980) and '' Airplane II: The Sequel'' (1982). Her other film roles include ''A Midsummer Night's Sex Comedy'' (1982), ''Lost in Am ...

Buck Henry Buck Henry (born Henry Zuckerman; December 9, 1930 – January 8, 2020) was an American actor, screenwriter, and director. Henry's contributions to film included his work as a co-writer for Mike Nichols's ''The Graduate'' (1967) for which he r ...

Christopher Lloyd Christopher Allen Lloyd (born October 22, 1938) is an American actor. He has appeared in many theater productions, films, and on television since the 1960s. He is known for portraying Dr. Emmett "Doc" Brown in the ''Back to the Future'' tril ...

, William

Biff McGuire William "Biff" McGuire (October 25, 1926 – March 9, 2021) was an American actor. Best known as Inspector Kramer in ''Nero Wolfe'' (1979). Early years McGuire attended Hamden High School and the University of Massachusetts, where he studied agr ...

, and

Stephen Tobolowsky Stephen Harold Tobolowsky (born May 30, 1951) is an American character actor. He is known for film roles such as insurance agent Ned Ryerson in '' Groundhog Day'' and amnesiac Sammy Jankis in '' Memento'', as well as such television characters ...

. It was a popular and critical success and received numerous

Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual c ...

and

Drama Desk Award The Drama Desk Award is an annual prize recognizing excellence in New York theatre. First bestowed in 1955 as the Vernon Rice Award, the prize initially honored Off-Broadway productions, as well as Off-off-Broadway, and those in the vicinity. F ...

nominations. Over the decades since it was written, the play has proven to be a popular choice for

regional In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...

community A community is a social unit (a group of living things) with commonality such as place, norms, religion, values, customs, or identity. Communities may share a sense of place situated in a given geographical area (e.g. a country, village, t ...

, and

summer stock theatre In American theater, summer-stock theater is a theater that presents stage productions only in the summer. The name combines the season with the tradition of staging shows by a resident company, reusing stock scenery and costumes. Summer stock th ...

productions; but it has never been made into a theatrical motion picture.

Television productions

The play has been performed on live television on several occasions. It was adapted b
Robert Wallstens
and performed on television as part of ''

The Alcoa Hour ''The Alcoa Hour'' is an American anthology television series that was aired live on NBC from 1955 to 1957. The series was sponsored by Alcoa. Overview Like the ''Philco Television Playhouse'' and ''Goodyear Television Playhouse'' that had prece ...

'' 1956/57 season. Air date was 4 November 1956. The cast included

Lillian Gish Lillian Diana Gish (October 14, 1893February 27, 1993) was an American actress, director, and screenwriter. Her film-acting career spanned 75 years, from 1912, in silent film shorts, to 1987. Gish was called the "First Lady of American Cinema", ...

in the role of Esther Crampton and her sister

in the role of Arry Gibbs.

June Lockhart June Lockhart (born June 25, 1925) is an American actress, beginning a film career in 1930s & 1940s in such films at ''A Christmas Carol'' and '' Meet Me in St. Louis''. She primarily acted in 1950s and 1960s television, and with performances on ...

, Dorothy Stickney, Evelyn Varden, and

David Wayne David Wayne (born Wayne James McMeekan, January 30, 1914 – February 9, 1995) was an American stage and screen actor with a career spanning over 50 years. Early life and career Wayne was born in Traverse City, Michigan, the son of Helen M ...

were also in the cast. In 1982

directed a television broadcast of the 1980 Broadway revival with

, Teresa Wright, and

Kate Reid Daphne Katherine Reid (4 November 1930 – 27 March 1993) was an English-born Canadian stage, film, and television actress. She played more than one thousand roles, most notably onstage in '' Death of a Salesman'', in the 1980 film ''Atlantic C ...

replacing

. The revival was first telecast on Showtime and later on

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

.https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0435700/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1

1980 awards and nominations

for Best Reproduction (winner) *Tony Award for Best Direction of a Play (Vivian Matalon, winner) *Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play (David Rounds, winner) *Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play (Lois de Banzie, nominee) *

for Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play (Rounds, winner) *Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play (de Banzie, winner) *Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Ensemble Performance (winner) *Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Director of a Play (Matalon, winner) *Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Costume Design (nominee) *Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Lighting Design (nominee) *Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Set Design (nominee)

2002 nominations

*Tony Award for Best Revival of a Play (nominee) *Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play (William Biff McGuire and

, nominees) *Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play (

, and

, nominees) *Tony Award for Best Scenic Design (nominee) *Tony Award for Best Costume Design (nominee) *Tony Award for Best Direction of a Play (Daniel Sullivan, nominee) *Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Revival of a Play (nominee) *Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play (Franz, nominee) *Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Set Design of a Play (nominee)

References

External links

1939 production credits1980 production credits2002 production creditsInternet Movie Database listing
's ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' review of the 2002 revival]
1945 ''Theatre Guild on the Air'' radio adaptation
at

Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Morning's At Seven 1939 plays American plays Broadway plays Tony Award-winning plays Fiction set in 1938 Midwestern United States in fiction Plays set in the United States