From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

2006 revival poster

Barefoot in the Park is a play by Neil Simon.

Its focus is on newlywed couple Corie and Paul Bratter, who are setting up house in a minuscule fifth-floor walkup apartment in a mid-Manhattan brownstone. Paul is a strait-laced attorney, Corie a far more spontaneous free spirit. The two must contend with a lack of heat, a skylight with a gaping hole, several long flights of stairs, oddball neighbor Victor Velasco, and Corrie's well-meaning mother, in addition to adjusting to married life.

The play, inspired by the early days of Simon's marriage at the time, was the playwright's third effort, following the comedy Come Blow Your Horn and less successful musical Little Me, and his first major hit.

After two previews, the Broadway production, directed by Mike Nichols, opened on October 23, 1963 at the Biltmore Theatre, where it ran for 1530 performances. The cast included Robert Redford as Paul, Elizabeth Ashley as Corie, Mildred Natwick as Mrs. Banks, Kurt Kasznar as Velasco, and Herb Edelman as a telephone installer. Replacements later in the run included Robert Reed and Tony Roberts as Paul, Penny Fuller and Joan van Ark as Corie, Ilka Chase, Eileen Heckart, and Sylvia Sidney as Mrs. Banks, and Jules Munshin as Velasco.

Nichols won the Tony Award for Best Director of a Play, and nominations went to Simon for Best Play, Ashley for Best Actress in a Play, and Saint Subber for Best Producer of a Play.

After 26 previews, a Broadway revival directed by Scott Elliott opened on February 16, 2006 at the Cort Theatre, where it ran for 109 performances. The cast included Patrick Wilson as Paul, Amanda Peet as Corie, Jill Clayburgh as Mrs. Banks, and Tony Roberts as Velasco. Efforts to contemporize the characters clashed with the addition of a decidedly 1960s soundtrack featuring tunes by Petula Clark and the Byrds, among others, and the critics found it to be dated and lacking humor.

The play served as the inspiration for a short-lived 1966 ABC sitcom entitled Love on a Rooftop. Although its source wasn't credited, the series about a newlywed couple living in a small, windowless, top-floor apartment clearly had its roots in Simon's work.

Simon adapted his play for a 1967 feature film, starring Redford and Jane Fonda, directed by Gene Saks.

In September 1970, ABC launched two series based on Simon plays, The Odd Couple and Barefoot in the Park. The latter, one of the first to employ an African-American cast (including Nipsey Russell and Thelma Carpenter), was cancelled after thirteen episodes.

A 1980 HBO telecast starred Richard Thomas as Paul, Bess Armstrong as Corie, Barbara Barrie as Mrs. Banks, and Hans Conreid as Velasco.

• Internet Broadway Database listing
• TV series at the Internet Movie Database
• New York Times review of the 2006 revival