Good Night, Oscar

By Doug Wright, Directed by Lisa Peterson

Featuring Sean Hayes as Oscar Levant

Mar 12 - Apr 17, 2022 in Goodman's Albert Theatre

Anything can happen on live TV. And one night, it did. Emmy Award-winning actor and producer Sean Hayes (Will & Grace) stars as the irrepressible Oscar Levant.

It’s 1958, and Jack Paar hosts the hottest late-night talk-show on television. His favorite guest? Character actor, pianist and wild card Oscar Levant. Famous for his witty one-liners, Oscar has a favorite: “There’s a fine line between genius and insanity; I have erased this line.” Tonight, Oscar will prove just that when he appears live on national TV in an episode that Paar’s audience—and the rest of America—won’t soon forget. Good Night, Oscar explores the nexus of humor and heartbreak, the ever-dwindling distinction between exploitation and entertainment, and the high cost of baring one’s soul for public consumption.

Read Content Advisory Info

Good Night, Oscar is appropriate for ages 14 and up. It contains mature themes. For more information contact the box office at 312.443.3800

Please note: In compliance with the City of Chicago vaccine requirement, proof of vaccination with an FDA or WHO-authorized vaccine is required for all guests. Masks are required at all times in the theater and patrons under 5 are not permitted. Learn more at GoodmanTheatre.org/Protocols.

Buy Tickets

Select a performance to purchase tickets.

View As Calendar

Artists

Doug Wright Playwright
Lisa Peterson Director
Sean Hayes Oscar Levant

Oscar Levant

Oscar Levant (1906 -1972) was an American concert pianist, composer, actor, and raconteur who eventually became one of the most celebrated and sardonic wits of his era. The son of Russian immigrants, Levant moved from New York to Hollywood in 1928 where he met and befriended George Gershwin. Over the next two decades he composed the music for more than twenty movies. At the height of his popularity, Oscar Levant was the highest-paid concert artist in America. Levant's 1945 recording of “Rhapsody in Blue” remained one of Columbia Records' best-selling albums for decades and the first exposure for many to the Gershwin masterpiece. From the 1930s through the mid-1950s, Levant appeared in a number of feature films, often playing a pianist or composer including major supporting roles in the notable Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer musicals The Barkleys of Broadway (1949), An American in Paris (1951), and The Band Wagon (1953). In 1938 and 1939 Levant worked on Broadway as a conductor (filling in for his brother Harry) on Kaufman and Hart’s The Fabulous Invalid and conductor and composer for The American Way, another Kaufman and Hart production. Levant became well known to a wider audience as a regular panelist on the radio quiz show Information Please in the late 1930s and 1940s. This led to a series of radio and television appearances including, NBC radio's Kraft Music Hall starring Al Jolson, NBC’s Who Said That? and between 1958 and 1960, he hosted a television talk show on KCOP-TV in Los Angeles, The Oscar Levant Show, which later became syndicated. In time, Levant's reputation as a caustic, sometimes provocative humorist eclipsed his former glory as a pianist.

Accessibility

Join us for any of the following accessible performances.

Questions? Please contact 312.443.3800 (voice), 312.443.3829 (TTY/TDD) or email Access@GoodmanTheatre.org.

Touch Tour* and Audio-Described Performance
Saturday, April 9
12:30pm Touch Tour & 2pm Performance

American Sign Language-Interpreted Performance
Friday, April 15 at 8pm

Open-Captioned Performance
Saturday, April 16 at 2pm

See All Accessibility Information for Good Night, Oscar

*Touch Tours for the 2021/2022 Season will not have access to the stage due to current health and safety protocols, but will feature alternate pre-show sensory introductions.

Season Overview

Welcome back to your home for theater, Goodman Theatre.

A thrilling line-up awaits as we return to stage and resume performances. The 2021/2022 Season reflects the artistic excellence that you love, and the commitment to our Chicago community that you expect. Come share the moments—together, in-person, once again—that inspire our collective humanity.

EXPLORE MEMBERSHIPS