New Children's Audiobook, Read by Marian Seldes, Now Available

By: Nov. 23, 2015
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More than a year after her death, beloved and legendary Broadway actress Marian Seldes again demonstrates her "talent to captivate" in a newly released recording of the delightful children's story Away in a Hollow. Written by Broadway actor Donald Corren, the story makes full use of Ms. Seldes' mellifluous voice and crystalline diction to tell the story of an anxious caterpillar who tries too hard to become a butterfly. Accompanied by a lush musical score composed and performed by Dennis Deal and watercolor illustrations by Broadway scenic artist Richard W. Prouse, Away in a Hollow is the perfect stocking stuffer for children of all ages.

Ms. Seldes, who passed away in 2014 after a 60 year career, was dubbed "the American theatrical diva for our time" by NY Times critic Clive Barnes. Her hypnotic reading of Away in a Hollow transports listeners to an oasis of "meditative playfulness," giving children and their parents a welcome respite from a frenetic world, while learning a thing or two about patience, expectations, and what it means to grow up.

Marian Seldes is among the First Ladies of the American Theatre. She appeared in over 85 productions, and was nominated for five Tony Awards, winning on her first nod for Edward Albee's A Delicate Balance. Long associated with Albee, Ms. Seldes also appeared in his Tiny Alice, Three Tall Women, and The Play About The Baby. She co-starred in several other landmark New York productions including Equus, Father's Day (Drama Desk Award), Painting Churches (Outer Circle Critics Award), and Deathtrap (for which she appeared in every one of the 1,809 Broadway performances, earning her the Guinness Book of World Records status as "Most Durable Actress." She also had an extensive career in movies, television and radio, where from 1974 to 1982 she was heard regularly on the CBS Radio Mystery Theater.

Ms. Seldes taught acting at The Juilliard School from 1967 to 1991, where her students included Oscar winners William Hurt, Kevin Kline and Robin Williams, Emmy winners Kelsey Grammer and Laura Linney, and Tony winner Patti LuPone. In 1991 she was inducted into the Theatre Hall of Fame, and in 2010 received a Tony Lifetime Achievement Award. "All I've done is live my life in the theater and loved it," she said at that time. "If you can get an award for being happy, that's what I've got."


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