A Look Back at Playing for Time

One of the most controversial and lauded of all television films, Playing for Time dramatized the shattering true story of how singer Fania Fénelon and a group of women hoped to escape death by performing in an orchestra while imprisoned at Auschwitz. Scripted by playwright Arthur Miller, this presentation garnered huge ratings, earned the coveted Peabody Award, and became one of the few television movies to be screened at the Cannes and Deauville Film Festivals. It also won the Emmy as Best Dramatic Special, as did Miller and two of its stars, Vanessa Redgrave and Jane Alexander. Thirty years after its original broadcast, both actresses, along with the film’s producer, Linda Yellen, will reunite for a discussion of the program’s importance and its impact.

The DVD of Playing for Time is now available, please contact OliveFilms.com.

Presented with New York Women in Film & Television’s Women’s Film Preservation Fund

This event is part of the Robert M. Batscha University Seminar Series. 

To attend a private reception, join us for PALEYAFTERDARK. Call 212.621.6780 or email membership@paleycenter.org.

Playing for Time Screenings

Scripted by playwright Arthur Miller, Playing for Time dramatizes the true story of how singer Fania Fénelon and a group of women created a makeshift orchestra in hopes of escaping extermination at Auschwitz. Vanessa Redgrave and Jane Alexander both won Emmy Awards for their performances. (1980; 150 minutes)

SCREENINGS
Friday, November 19 at 3:00 pm              
Saturday, November 20 at 3:00 pm
Sunday, November 21 at 12:15 pm

Screenings are FREE to Members
Included with general admission