During the early 1960s Gielgud had more successes as a director than as an actor. He directed the first London performance of Britten's opera "A Midsummer Night's Dream" (1961) at Covent Garden and Hugh Wheeler's "Big Fish, Little Fish" on Broadway, the latter winning him a Tony for Best Direction of a Play in 1961. His performance as Othello at Stratford in the same year was less successful; Franco Zeffirelli's production was thought ponderous and Gielgud "singularly unvehement". As Gaev in "The Cherry Orchard" to the Ranevskaya of Ashcroft he had the best of the notices; his co-star and the production received mixed reviews. The following year Gielgud directed Richardson in "The School for Scandal", first at the Haymarket and then on a North American tour, which he joined as, in his words, "the oldest Joseph Surface in the business".