''
Away'' is a play by the
Australian
playwright Michael Gow. First performed by the
Griffin Theatre Company in
1986, it tells the story of three internally-conflicted families holidaying on the coast for
Christmas,
1968. It has become the most widely produced Australian play of all time and is part of the
Higher School Certificate syllabi or general High School Curriculum in many states, including
Western Australia and
New South Wales.
Each of the three families hopes that the holiday will resolve the crisis that they face. Roy, a headmaster, and Coral, his wife, realise that their marriage is falling apart as they grieve the death of their son in the
Vietnam War. Tom, an English immigrant and a pupil at Roy's school, knows that he is dying of
leukaemia even though his parents, Harry and Vic, have yet to tell him. Tom's family know that this could be their last holiday together, so they are determined to have fun. The third family comprises of uptight, martyrish mother, Gwen, her husband, Jim, and their daughter, Meg, who has become friends with Tom courtesy of their mutual appearances in the recent school play. There is a mutual affection between Meg and Tom that is explored and challenged during a near sex scene, where Tom - aware that his life is soon to end - transforms into a desperate weeping puppy and begs Meg to "Let (him) do it to (her)". During a storm the three families find themselves thrown together on the beach that is the play's setting and their antagonism are exploded and resolved.
With the play's conscious nods to
Shakespeare (it opens with the school's production of ''
A Midsummer Night's Dream'' and ends with ''
King Lear'') Gow emphasises the performativity of individual human responses to death, racism, class, and relationships. Gow sees the play as largely autobiographical.
In 2006, a national Australian tour commemorated the play's 20th anniversary. It was a co-production with The Queensland Theatre Company and The Griffin Theatre Company. Michael Gow is now the Artistic Director of The Queensland Theatre Company and the return of 'Away' to the Griffin was a cause for great celebration. The production then embarked on a sold out national tour.
This play is deeply loved as part of Australian culture. It is interesting to note that when the play was performed in the USA, many Americans did not realize Australia had been involved in the Vietnam War. They did not realize that many young Australians were lost in the Vietnam conflict or how unpopular the war had been due to conscription.
Winner of the 1997 Reputible Sands Actor's award and illustrious famed Australian Actor Thomas De Angelis described the play as "the epitome of Australian culture. The symbolic, metaphoric use of the beach as a healing and soothing place is fundamentally part of the Australian way of life. The phrase "going away" can mean something as simple as 'going on holiday' to something as serious as 'going off to die'. It is truly a masterpiece by Michael Gow and will go down in history as one of the most emotive Australian plays ever". He is quoted from Logies night 2005