“Goodnight Oscar” premiered at the prestigious Goodman Theatre in Chicago in spring of 2022 as a new work, with Sean Hayes playing Oscar Levant. The show transferred to the Belasco Theatre on Broadway one year later, for a special limited run. It was both critically-acclaimed and audience-adored. The show garnered 3 Tony nominations and Hayes took home the Tony for Best Actor in a Play. 

FTF is proud to be the first company in the nation to secure the rights and bring “Goodnight, Oscar” to the stage since its Broadway run.

WHO WAS OSCAR LEVANT?

Well, it’s complicated…

One of the 20th century’s greatest wits, known for his wise-cracking humor and tell-all TV appearances, Oscar was also a piano virtuoso, composer, & America’s highest-paid classical concert star in his era. He was the premier interpreter of George Gershwin’s music. Levant was obsessed with Gershwin's music almost all his life. Eventually, the two became fast friends, but it was a fraught relationship. George wrote countless songs that immediately entered the popular canon, but Oscar penned only one: “Blame It On My Youth.” Despite the professional jealousy, when George died unexpectedly of a brain tumor in 1937, Oscar pledged to keep his music alive.

But Oscar became a celebrity less for his music and more for being a beloved TV guest, quiz show panelist, and movie star, notably appearing in An American in Paris with Gene Kelly. Throughout the late 1950’s and early 60’s, Levant’s wickedly funny barbs delighted audiences and mortified the censors on shows like What’s My Line, The Celebrity Game and, famously, on The Tonight Show with Jack Paar. 

You see, before there was Fallon, Letterman, or Leno… there was Jack Paar, the man who truly invented late-night television as we know it. A sophisticated TV man, Paar distilled it down to the essentials: two chairs, a couple of microphones, and authentic, unguarded conversation. Millions tuned in on the edge of their seats, eager to see what inevitably would happen live, especially when Paar dipped into his collection of regulars whose appearances always brought out the best in him. And Oscar was Jack’s very favorite sparring partner. He variously called Levant “my favorite far-outpatient,” and “one of America’s true geniuses.” 

A taboo-breaking trailblazer, Oscar was one of the first celebrities to speak openly about his mental health and a host of other touchy subjects on live TV. Once called “America’s first publicly dysfunctional celebrity” and “Hollywood's original Hollywood meltdown” by NPR, Oscar was ridiculed, and even demonized at times, but he was always in on the joke.  Famously public about his inner battles, Oscar wasn’t afraid to appear before audiences in a flight of mania, inconsolably depressed, or hyper-medicated. Some critics railed against his appearances as uncomfortable, profane, or even grotesque. But others hailed him for bringing a new level of candor to late-night and lessening the stigma of mental illness.

So, what happens when these forces and more combine on one fateful night in 1958…?

Well, it’s complicated…

Come and see for yourself when FTF proudly presents the humor and heartbreak, the genius and insanity, of smash-hit, Tony-winning play “Goodnight, Oscar.” 

Franklin Theatrical Fellowship is a semi-professional theatre company with a new vision for the performing arts in Franklin. We strive to bring the kind of arts programming to our city that not only entertains an audience with excellence, but also challenges all of us to be a better community. We believe that the telling of stories and the sharing of laughter, tears, songs, or powerful words help us understand one another more fully. Our productions also include good old-fashioned southern hospitality-- with local snacks and beverages lovingly offered free of charge. We also provides an opportunity for thoughtful conversation with our cast, director, and your fellow audience members after each performance. In an era of loneliness, isolation, bitterness, and division we need this kind of interaction more than ever. In addition to producing great shows, FTF also works to make the arts more accessible to all children and students in our area, not matter their background or socio-economic status.

Welcome to FTF… make yourself at home. 

Visit our website FTFshows.org to learn more.