Born Yesterday is set to close on Broadway following the matinee today; it will have played 28 previews and 73 performances. The production, which stars Jim Belushi, Robert Sean Leonard, and Nina Arianda, opened Sunday, April 24, at Broadway's Cort Theatre, 138 West 48 Street. Doug Hughes directed the classic Garson Kanin comedy.
For her performance as Billie Dawn, Nina Arianda won the Outer Critics Circle Award for best actress in a play and received nominations for Tony and Drama Desk Awards. Born Yesterday also received nominations for best revival of a play from the Drama Desk and Outer Critics Circle. And the production's costume designer, Catherine Zuber, received a Tony nomination for best costume design for a play. Born Yesterday also marked the return to Broadway of Jim. Belushi and Leonard after long hiatuses.
The cast of Born Yesterday also includes Frank Wood, Terry Beaver, Patricia Hodges, Michael McGrath, Fred Arsenault, Bill Christ, Jennifer Regan, Liv Rooth, Danny Rutigliano, Andrew Weems, and Chris Barnes.
The scenic design for Born Yesterday is by John Lee Beatty; costume design is by Catherine Zuber; lighting design is by Peter Kaczorowski; original music/sound design is by David Van Tieghem; hair/wig design is by Tom Watson; casting is by Jay Binder; fight direction is by J. David Brimmer; production stage manager is Tripp Phillips.
Emmy Award nominee Jim Belushi ("According to Jim," "The Defenders"), Tony Award winner Robert Sean Leonard (Best Featured Actor for The Invention of Love), and Outer Critics' Circle nominee Nina Arianda ("A breakout performance-one of the highlights of the year" Charles Isherwood, The New York Times for Venus in Fur) head the cast in Born Yesterday, Garson Kanin's award-winning comedy. Tony Award winner Doug Hughes (Doubt) directs this timeless and timely story of a not-so-honest businessman and a not-so-ditzy blonde out to "capitalize" on everything Washington has to offer.
Born Yesterday had its New York premiere on February 4, 1946 at Broadway's Lyceum Theatre, starring Paul Douglas, Judy Holliday, and Gary Merrill, and produced by Max Gordon. It became an instant hit, ran for 1,642 performances (moving to the Henry Miller's Theatre), and remains the seventh longest running play in Broadway history. The play was adapted to the screen in 1950 with Judy Holliday winning an Academy Award for repeating her stage triumph, this time alongside Broderick Crawford and William Holden with George Cukor directing. Born Yesterday was revived on Broadway in 1989, starring Ed Asner and Madeline Kahn, and ran for five months, following a national tour.
Born Yesterday is produced by Philip Morgaman, Anne Caruso, Vincent Caruso, Frankie J. Grande, James P. MacGilvray, Brian Kapetanis, and Robert S. Basso in association with Peter J. Puleo. Previews began Thursday, March 31.
