Tuesdays with Morrie is the autobiographical story of Mitch Albom, an accomplished journalist driven solely by his career, and Morrie Schwartz, his former college professor. Sixteen years after graduation, Mitch happens to catch Morrie’s appearance on a television news program and learns that his old professor is battling Lou Gehrig’s Disease. Mitch is reunited with Morrie, and what starts as a simple visit turns into a weekly pilgrimage and a last class in the meaning of life.
VDL Awards Entries 2021
The Witness for the Prosecution
Malvern Theatre Co. Inc.
25 Jun 2021 - 10 Jul 2021
Following the success of ‘Our Town’ in 2018, Peter Newling has chosen to direct another classic at Malvern Theatre Company – and this time it’s a courtroom drama by Agatha Christie. The affable Leonard Vole is being tried for the murder of a wealthy woman – defended by Sir Wilfred Robarts. Unfortunately his alibi depends on the testimony of his callous wife, who after the discovery of a legal loophole, decides to appear in court against him. To Sir Wilfred’s surprise this is only the first in a series of puzzling revelations and reversals. Courtroom thrills to warm your winter!
This Way Up
Lilydale Athenaeum Theatre Company
30 Jun 2021 - 11 Jul 2021
This modern, fast paced Australian comedy by the writer of the hilarious and successful play Secret Bridesmaids Business, delivers comedy with a true heart. It is about relationships – the absent partner, a guy in love with the wrong girl, a girl in love with the right guy who doesn’t notice she’s alive, and a woman who wants her absent partner to give up his day job. Elizabeth Coleman first came to attention with her dark comedy It’s My Party (And I’ll Die If I Want To), which premiered at the 1993 Melbourne Comedy Festival. In 1999 Elizabeth’s next play, Secret Bridesmaids’ Business, broke box office records in Melbourne before embarking on a triumphant national tour in 2000 and being adapted into a telemovie. Elizabeth’s comedy about love gone wrong, This Way Up, premiered in Melbourne in 2001. Elizabeth has also written many screenplays for television, most recently Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries.
The Architect
Brighton Theatre Co.
30 Jul 2021 - 8 Aug 2021
The Architect is disarming, funny and true, and dances nimbly around sentiment for so long, it feels more akin to the unlikeliest sort of romantic comedy than an end-of-life drama.
When John is heading overseas to indulge his passion for historical re-enactments of famous medieval battles, he decides to employ a carer for his partner, Helen, who is ill.
Initially Helen is appalled by the idea and only agrees by choosing the least likely candidate; a dubious young drifter and jack-of-all-trades. Lennie seems to be a fish out of water but nevertheless makes himself right at home.
A touching rapport develops between him and Helen, delicate and spontaneous, gentle but unflinchingly honest.
Death of a Salesman
Essendon Theatre Co.
25 Nov 2021 - 4 Dec 2021
The story revolves around the last days of Willy Loman, a failing salesman, who cannot understand how he failed to win success and happiness. Through a series of tragic soul-searching revelations of the life he has lived with his wife, his sons, and his business associates, we discover how his quest for the “American Dream” kept him blind to the people who truly loved him. A thrilling work of deep and revealing beauty that remains one of the most profound classic dramas of the American theatre.
THREE LITTLE WORDS
Heidelberg Theatre Company
25 Nov 2021 - 9 Dec 2021
Married straight couple, Tess and Curtis, have decided to separate. Their friends, gay couple Bonnie and Annie, are devastated. What now for their twenty years of shared experiences, at home and on holiday?
Wildly funny, yet firmly thought-provoking, this recent play from Melbourne’s Joanna Murray-Smith is a fascinating study of friendships and alliances, and reveals how easily they can shatter when situations change.