Sylvia Sidney’s connection to the Historic Elitch Theatre spans decades. She first appeared at the theatre as a young member of the 1928 summer stock cast, where they threw her a party for her 18th birthday! 48 years later (in 1976) she would appear at the theatre again and would celebrate her 66th birthday during the run of the show!
In 1990, the film Andre’s Mother premiered on PBS. It was a film in which Sidney played the grandmother of the title character, who had passed away from AIDS, and it was groundbreaking as one of the earliest films on the subject of AIDS. However, five years earlier, Sidney also appeared in An Early Frost, which was the very first major film to deal with the issue of AIDS. Sidney won the Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress in a Series, Miniseries or a TV Movie for An Early Frost.
The photo above is from 1976 when Sydney returned to the theatre in a production of Sabrina Fair.
Seasons at the Theatre
- 1928
- 1976
Elitch Theatre Productions/Roles:
- 1976 – Sabrina Fair
Notable Roles, Awards, and Other Work:
- Sidney was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in Summer Wishes, Winter Dreams in 1973.
- She played Juno, a case worker in the afterlife, in Tim Burton’s 1988 film Beetlejuice, for which she won a Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress.
- Sidney appeared in the television production of An Early Frost for which she won a Golden Globe Award. An Early Frost is a 1985 American made-for-television film that was the first major film broadcast on a major television network, NBC, to deal with the topic of AIDS. It was viewed by 34 million households in its initial airing and was the highest rated show of the night, even beating Monday Night Football. It received 14 Emmy nominations, winning 3 including Best Original Teleplay, plus a Peabody Award, as well as multiple Golden Globe nominations, including one for Sylvia Sidney who won for Best Supporting Actress.
- Sidney was in the groundbreaking AIDS film, Andre’s Mother.
Elitch Theatre Connections:
- The 1932 film, Merrily We Go to Hell, as well as the 1934 film, Good Dame, starred Sidney and alumni, Fredric March.
- Sidney appeared in the pilot episode of WKRP in Cincinnati as the imperious owner of the radio station, which starred Elitch Theatre alumni, Gary Sandy.
