May 4 marks the birthday and screen and stage legend Audrey Hepburn. To celebrate, we're taking a look back at her Tony-winning turn in Jean Giraudoux's Ondine on Broadway.
Ondine opened on Broadway at the 46th Street Theatre (now the Richard Rodgers) February 18, 1954. The play, adapted by Giraudoux from the novel Undine by Friedrich de la Motte Fouqué, was directed by Alfred Lunt and played 157 performances before closing July 3 of that year. The production earned two Tony Awards—Best Actress for Hepburn and Best Director for Lunt.
Ondine follows a knight named Ritter Hans who enters the forest on an errand for his betrothed. In the process, he encounters Ondine, a water sprite with whom he falls in love. Unsurprisingly, things don't exactly go swimmingly for the pair.
Hepburn starred as Ondine, with Mel Ferrer, John Alexander, Alan Hewitt, Robert Middleton, and Marian Seldes completing the cast. The production featured music by Virgil Thompson, set design by Peter Larkin, costume design by Richard Whorf, lighting design by Jean Rosenthal, and music supervision by William Kraft.
