Awake and Sing

1972 NR 1h 35m 7.2

Water Matthau heads the cast of this television re-creation of Clifford Odet's 1935 Broadway play-the full length work performed on the commercial stage by the legendary Group Theatre. This portrait of a Jewish family in a Bronx tenement...

Water Matthau heads the cast of this television re-creation of Clifford Odet's 1935 Broadway play-the full length work performed on the commercial stage by the legendary Group Theatre. This portrait of a Jewish family in a Bronx tenement perfectly captures the spirit of the depression years, and is suffused with details of character and place that combine to be affecting even now. The Bergers burdened by fanatical difficulties have taken in a boarder - Moe Axelrod "Mathew Matthau"-who lost a leg in World War I. Cynical and outspoken, Moe adds a spark to the somewhat accepting lives of the Bergers. The family fights to survive on sixteen dollars a week while the intellectual, Marxist leaning grandfather "brilliantly played by famed Yiddish theatre star, Leo Fuchs" tries futilely to spur his family to action with the junction, "Awake and sing, ye that dwell in the dust." -Isaiah 26:19

Awake and Sing background

Info about Awake and Sing

Studio(s): KCET, Broadway Theatre Archive

Originally Released: Jun 03, 1972

Production Country: United States

Genres: Drama