A Memory of Two Mondays

"A Memory of Two Mondays" is a play by Arthur Miller.

The one-acter, based on Miller's own experiences, focuses on a group of desperate workers struggling to make a living in a Brooklyn automobile parts warehouse during the Great Depression of the 1930s. Concentrating more on character than plot, it explores the dreams of a young man yearning for a college education in the midst of people stumbling through life in a haze of hopelessness and despondency.

Paired with the original one-act version of "A View from the Bridge", the first Broadway production, directed by Martin Ritt, opened on September 29 1955 at the Coronet Theatre, where it ran for 149 performances. The cast included Van Heflin, J. Carrol Naish, Jack Warden, Eileen Heckart, and Richard Davalos, who won the Theatre World Award for his performance.

In 1959, Miller adapted the play for an ITV broadcast starring Alan Bates [http://www.alanbates.com/abarchive/tv/memory.html] .

Miller adapted the play for a 1971 television movie directed by Paul Bogart. The cast included George Grizzard, Barnard Hughes, Estelle Parsons, Catherine Burns, Jerry Stiller, J. D. Cannon, Harvey Keitel, Tony Lo Bianco, Kristoffer Tabori, Dick Van Patten, and Jack Warden.

After seven previews, a Broadway revival directed by Arvin Brown opened on January 26 1976 at the Playhouse Theatre where, paired this time with "27 Wagons Full of Cotton" by Tennessee Williams, it ran for 67 performances. The cast included Thomas Hulce, John Lithgow, Tony Musante, Meryl Streep, and Joe Grifasi.

1976 awards and nominations

*Tony Award for Best Featured Actress in a Play (Streep, nominee)
*Theatre World Award (Streep, winner)
*Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Actress in a Play (Streep, nominee)
*Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play (Leonardo Cimino and Roy Poole, nominees)
*Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play (Alice Drummond, nominee)
*Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Director of a Play (nominee)
*Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Costume Design (nominee)
*Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Lighting Design (nominee)
*Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Set Design (nominee)
*Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Revival (nominee)

External links

* [http://www.ibdb.com/production.asp?ID=2527 1955 production at the Internet Theatre Database]
* [http://www.ibdb.com/production.asp?ID=3787 1976 production at the Internet Theatre Database listing]
* [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0211511/ Internet Movie Database listing]