Two for the Seesaw (play)

[2] With the opening cast of Henry Fonda (Jerry Ryan) and Anne Bancroft (Gittel Mosca), the play was directed by Arthur Penn and produced by Fred Coe.

A surprise hit, Two for the Seesaw earned Anne Bancroft, making her Broadway debut, her first Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play.

[3] Jerry Ryan, a recently divorced middle-aged attorney, moves from Omaha, Nebraska, to New York in order to separate himself from his ex-wife, Tess.

The book has been praised as a “uniquely honest, as well as informative, statement of what it means to have a play produced on Broadway at the present time.

By mid-November 1956, Gibson had completed his three-act play, Two for the Seesaw, which, by then, had a director, Penn, and producer, Fred Coe, attached to the project.

Actresses considered for the role of Gittel Mosca included Gwen Verdon, Lee Grant, Gaby Rodgers, Julie Harris, and Kim Stanley.

Henry Fonda, who was also sent the play, showed enthusiasm for the role of the man, and agreed to talk with Gibson, Penn, and Coe.

[3] Due to his six month contract,[3] Henry Fonda left the production on June 28, 1958, and was replaced by Dana Andrews, making his Broadway debut in the role of Jerry Ryan.

Reflecting on the process of bringing Two for the Seesaw to the Broadway stage, Gibson wrote, "In one word, the play is, in the image of its maker, imperfect.

"[3] Though the playwright and the production team of Two for the Seesaw encountered difficulties throughout rehearsals and out-of-town tryouts, the play itself as well as Gibson's prosaic account of its production in The Seesaw Log were heralded for championing “metropolitan audiences by clever accommodation to their standards of taste, interest, and value.”[7] Upon its opening night, Two for the Seesaw was met with mixed to positive reviews, heralded as “one of those simple, pleasant plays that obviously belong in the theatre, since they are almost always highly popular.”[8] Following the fifth week after the play opened on Broadway at the Booth Theatre, the total expenses of the production resulted in $15,826.35, with an operating profit of $8,597.73.

[3] Anne Bancroft's Broadway debut was praised, as a review from John Chapman of the Daily News from January 18, 1958, claimed, “her timing of movement and speech are flawless, and her warmth of personality is more than considerable.”[9] Tony Award nominations for Two for the Seesaw included Best Play, Arthur Penn for Best Director, and Anne Bancroft for Best Featured Actress in a Play, which she won.

[14] The play was adapted into a musical named Seesaw, which opened at the Gershwin Theatre on March 18, 1973, and closed after a total run of 296 performances and 25 previews.