Sunrise at Campobello | |
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Written by | Dore Schary |
Characters |
Franklin Delano Roosevelt Eleanor Roosevelt Sara Delano Roosevelt |
Date premiered | January 30, 1958 |
Place premiered |
Cort Theatre New York City, United States |
Original language | English |
Subject | FDR's battle with polio |
Genre | Drama |
Setting | Campobello Island, New Brunswick, Canada |
Sunrise at Campobello is a 1958 play by American producer and writer Dore Schary based on U.S. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt's struggle with polio. The film version was released in 1960.
The original Broadway production was presented at the Cort Theatre by The Theatre Guild and Dore Schary and directed by Vincent J. Donehue. It opened on January 30, 1958 and closed on May 30, 1959 running for 556 performances. It starred Ralph Bellamy as Roosevelt. Bellamy won a Tony Award for Best Actor. Others in the cast included Henry Jones as Louis McHenry Howe; Mary Fickett as Eleanor Roosevelt; Anne Seymour as Sara Delano Roosevelt and, in his Broadway debut, James Earl Jones. Bellamy repeated his role in the film version of the play, but was not Oscar-nominated for his performance, though Greer Garson was Oscar-nominated for her performance as Eleanor.
The production won three other Tonys including Best Play (producers were Lawrence Langner, Theresa Helburn, Armina Marshall and Dore Schary), Best Director of a Play (Vincent J. Donehue) and Henry Jones won for Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play. Mary Fickett was nominated for Best Supporting or Featured Actress in a Play.