“Learn how to live and you’ll know how to die; learn how to die, and you’ll know how to live.”–Morrie Schwartz
In Tuesdays with Morrie, which opened last night with Theater J at the Edlavitch DC Jewish Community Center, the two greatest mysteries and challenges humans deal with —how to live and how to die— are explored as the central themes. Based on the best-selling memoir by Mitch Albom, Tuesdays with Morrie is the powerful and moving story of Mitch Albom, a hard-driving sportswriter, and Morrie Schwartz, his former college professor, who is dying of ALS.
The play, by Albom and Jeffrey Hatcher, recounts the visits that Albom made (on Tuesdays) to the home of his college sociology professor, 16 years after graduating from Brandeis University. It is an illustration not only of a friendship that spans generations, but of the need for connection and the direct transmission of life lessons, and of compassion that overcomes the fear of death. There are indeed moments in the play that elicit tears, but there is also much laughter, warmth, and wisdom.
Morrie (Michael Russotto) has spent most of his life as a professor of sociology, a position he has fallen into only “by default.” An excellent teacher, he retired in his 70’s only after he begins to lose control of his body to ALS, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. The disease slowly immobilizes his body, but, ironically, leaves his mind as lucid as ever. He realizes that his time is running out, and that he must share his wisdom on life with others before it is too late to do so. Morrie connects with people as one of the bright, shining souls in the world, noted by Ted Koppell, whose TV interviews actually led Mitch to reconnect with him.
Mitch (Cody Nickell) has long since given up the college-era dream he once shared with Morrie of being a jazz pianist. Instead, he has been living what others would call “the dream”, covering sports for the Detroit Free Press, yet is seemingly unsatisfied. Cycling through TV channels one day, he comes across Koppel talking with his old professor. He reaches out to his favorite professor for a visit, and then another, and then he begins making a habit of the Tuesday visits. With a tape recorder in hand, he imagines sharing a “course on living” taught by Professor Morrie Schwartz — or as Mitch calls him, “Coach.”
Mitch serves as the play’s narrator, yet in the grand theatrical tradition, Morrie, too, shares memories. The play’s opening minuet of Morrie and Mitch moving about the stage establishes an initial, if fleeting, physical parity between the two characters. There was a time when Morrie wasn’t confined to the armchair in his study, and this opening duet underscores that this will be a story they both share.
Cody Nickell, as Mitch, successfully navigates playing not only a character in the story, but also the narrator, and briefly, Morrie’s doctor. Often pacing the stage, Nickell gets at Albom’s drive, his restless ambition and his (unexpressed) yearning for meaning. Initially resisting “touchy-feely” contact, Mitch’s eventually emerging tenderness (in a poignant scene, helping Morrie from his chair to his bed) and final expression of loss at the end is rendered expertly, offering a sense of closure for the audience, as well.
From his armchair residence, Michael Russotto’s performance as Morrie is beautiful. Morrie’s loss of motor function and ease of speech is incremental and is carefully crafted over the course of the play. Russotto manages these physical transformations with skill, and also captures adroitly Morrie’s humor, clarity of thought, and the depth of his humanity. The slightly mischievous twinkle in Morrie’s eye while his body fails him, remains one of the most lingering memories from this performance, and this play.
Theater J’s production, under the sensitive direction of Jenna Place, features one of the loveliest sets we have seen in some time. Scenic Designer Debra Kim Sivigny embraces a leaf motif to reinforce the play’s themes (“A leaf grows colorful just before it dies”). With free hanging windows to remove the need for actual walls, the large cyclorama painted with a Japanese Maple remains unobstructed. The use of minimal set pieces also helps the intimacy of a private space for these two men. The set gives Lighting Designer Andrew R. Cissna the opportunity to use soft lighting directly on the playing areas, drawing our focus into the most intimate moments between the two actors. Mathew M. Nielson’s sound design is nearly flawless in its subtlety; gently guiding our emotions without ever taking us out of a moment. At times, the music may have been a tad overly sentimental, but it still always fits in this particular production of the script.
The script itself hews faithfully to its direct source material, Morrie Schwartz’s lessons on living. Thus, the play abides with pithy, relevant quotes, yet our favorite occurs when Mitch challenges Morrie to admit that he envies the younger man his youth. Morrie responds that he does not, and elaborates: “The truth is, part of me is every age. I’m a three-year-old, I’m a five-year-old, I’m a thirty-seven-year-old, I’m a fifty-year-old. I’ve been through all of them, and I know what it’s like. I delight in being a child when it’s appropriate to be a child. I delight in being a wise old man when it’s appropriate to be a wise old man. Think of all I can be! I am every age, up to my own.”
Audiences will be moved, and nourished, by this touching, humorous, respectful, and heartfelt production. We highly recommend it.
Running Time: Approximately 105 minutes with no intermission
Tuesdays With Morrie plays through December 5, 2021 2020 on The Trish Vradenburg Stage in the Aaron & Cecile Goldman Theater in the Morris Cafritz Center for the Arts in the Edlavitch DC Jewish Community Center— 1529 16th Street NW in Washington, DC. Tickets are available for purchase by calling the box office at 202-777-3210 or by purchasing them online.
Streaming options, for on-demand viewing anytime between November 22 and December 5, 2021 are available by clicking here.
Socially-distanced seating options are only available by calling the Ticket Office at 202-777-3210 and are good for the following performances:
- Friday November 26, 2021 at 8:00pm
- Saturday November 27, 2021 at 2:00pm
- Sunday November 28, 2021 at 7:30pm
- Wednesday December 1, 2021 at 7:30pm
At this time, everyone entering Theater J at the Edlavitch DC Jewish Community Center must show proof of full vaccinations status, either digitally or on paper, in order to attend an in-person performance. Those with a medical or religious exemption for vaccination must show proof of NEGATIVE Covid-19 PCR Test taken with 72 hours of their arrival at the EDCJCC. All patrons, regardless of vaccination status must wear masks throughout the entirety of their visit, with the exception of eating and drinking in designated areas.
