Westport Country Playhouse Begins Season with MITCH ALBOM'S TUESDAYS WITH MORRIE

Westport Country Playhouse will kick off its 2025-26 Season with Len Cariou and Christopher J. Domig in “Mitch Albom’s Tuesdays with Morrie,” by Jeffrey Hatcher and Mitch Albom, based on the book by Mitch Albom, for four performances, Thursday through Saturday, September 4 – 6. Director is Erwin Maas. The staged adaptation is based on the best-selling memoir beloved by over 18 million readers worldwide. “Tuesdays with Morrie” is the first of six productions during the Playhouse’s 2025-26 Season, extending from September through July.

“We are thrilled to launch our new season with a brief run of ‘Tuesdays with Morrie,’ beautifully adapted by Jeffrey Hatcher from Mitch Albom’s best-selling memoir,” said Mark Shanahan, Westport Country Playhouse artistic director. “This deeply moving play at long last brings Broadway legend Len Cariou to the Playhouse stage, alongside his wonderful co-star Chris Domig. Together, the two earned widespread acclaim in Sea Dog Theater’s celebrated Off-Broadway production, praised for both the beautiful simplicity of Erwin Mass’s direction and the undeniable chemistry of its actors. Reunited at the Playhouse, we’re excited for the creative team to share with our audience this moving story, filled with warmth, humor, and heartfelt lessons about living life to the fullest.

“It is a particular joy to welcome Mr. Cariou, whose storied career on stage and screen has made him beloved around the world, as he delivers his extraordinary artistry to our Westport Country Playhouse audience,” said Shanahan. “What a perfect way to open the new season ahead, one brimming with unforgettable characters, timeless music, and classic stories both old and new.”

Based on journalist Mitch Albom’s real-life relationship with his former college professor Morrie Schwartz, “Tuesdays with Morrie” invites the audience into their weekly Tuesday visits - conversations filled with humor, wisdom, and soul-searching truths about what really matters in life. The story takes place 16 years after Albom graduates college as he reconnects with Morrie, now facing the final chapter of his life. What begins as a casual visit becomes a life-changing weekly ritual – a “last class” in the meaning of life, love, and legacy. The production was originally staged at Sea Dog Theater.

Len Cariou, as Morrie Schwartz, gained prominence for his Tony Award-winning title role in the original cast of “Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street” (1979). Prior, he earned nominations for “Applause” (1970) and “A Little Night Music” (1973). Cariou has had supporting roles in films such as “The Four Seasons” (1981), “Thirteen Days” (2000), “About Schmidt” (2002), “Flags of Our Fathers” (2006), “Prisoners” (2013), and “Spotlight” (2015). Cariou was nominated for an Emmy for “Into the Storm” (2009) and recurred in the shows “Murder, She Wrote” (1985–1992), “Brotherhood” (2005-2006), and “Damages” (2010), and starred in “Blue Bloods” (2010–2024).

Christopher J. Domig, as Mitch Albom, is an Austrian-American actor, writer, and artistic director of the award-winning Sea Dog Theater in New York City. His stage work—including “Tuesdays with Morrie” with Tony winner Len Cariou—along with film and television roles, reflects a commitment to both craft and community. Sea Dog Theater productions that he has led or performed in have earned multiple awards for excellence. Domig’s projects range from adaptations to original works, often exploring justice, meaning, and human connection. A long-time researcher of Viktor Frankl’s life and ideas, he creates performances that engage audiences deeply. www.christopherdomig.com 

Director Erwin Maas is a New York-based theatermaker, curator, educator, and international arts advocate from the Netherlands with extensive international experience across a variety of creative and community contexts. In New York, his directions both Off-Broadway and site specific have received multiple New York Times Critic’s Picks and awards. His directing work ranges from plays by contemporary playwrights to devised, interdisciplinary immersive projects, opera, music theater, and dance with performances for all ages. He is the co-executive director of the Pan-African Creative Exchange (PACE) and teaches at CUNY Brooklyn College's MFA Performance and Interactive Media Arts Program (PIMA).www.erwinmaas.com

Authors are Jeffrey Hatcher and Mitch Albom. Jeffrey Hatcher’s plays, original and adaptations, have been produced on Broadway, Off-Broadway, and in theaters around the world. They include the book for the Broadway musical “Never Gonna Dance,” “Dial M for Murder,” “Three Viewings,” “A Picasso,” “Scotland Road,” and “The Turn of the Screw.” He has written screenplays for the films “The Duchess,” “Casanova,” “Stage Beauty,” and, most recently, “Mr. Holmes.”

Mitch Albom is an internationally renowned and best-selling author, journalist, screenwriter, playwright, radio and television broadcaster, and musician. His books have collectively sold 42 million copies worldwide; have been published in 51 territories and in 48 languages around the world; and have been made into Emmy Award-winning and critically-acclaimed television movies.

The creative team includes Guy de Lancey, lighting, set, and Costume Designer; Eamon Goodman, sound designer; Sally Shaw, recorded vocals; Christopher J.  Domig, original composition; and James FitzSimmons, stage manager.

Tickets are $45, $55, and $65. Student tickets are $20. Running time is approximately 90 minutes, no intermission. Recommended for ages 13 and up. Performances are Thurs., Sept. 4, at 7 p.m.; Fri., Sept. 5, at 8 p.m.; and Sat., Sept. 6, at 3 and 8 p.m.

Production Supporter is Cherie Flom Quain. Corporate Supporter is 3030 Park by Senior Living Hospitality. 2025 Programming and Season Sponsor is Barbara Streicker. Media sponsors are Moffly Media and WSHU Public Radio. Westport Country Playhouse is a 501(c) (3) not-for-profit organization.

For full details on the production, visit: https://www.westportplayhouse.org/show/tuesdays-with-morrie/

The Playhouse 2025-26 Season will continue with “The Importance of Being Earnest,” Oscar Wilde’s most famous comedy, October 28 – November 15; “A Sherlock Carol,” a Playhouse holiday tradition, returning by popular demand for its third consecutive year, December 13 – 21; “Big Band Broadway,” part of the Broadway Scores at the Playhouse series, featuring Tony Award winner Debbie Gravitte as Broadway’s greatest hits meet the bold brass and swinging rhythm of the Big Band era, January 29 – February 1; “Primary Trust,” Eboni Booth’s 2024 Pulitzer Prize-winning breakout play, an uplifting, gentle, and powerful exploration of change, friendship, and quiet courage, April 14 – May 2; and “Agatha Christie’s The Murder of Roger Ackroyd,” newly adapted for the stage by Mark Shanahan in association with Agatha Christie Ltd., from the novel by Agatha Christie, July 14 – August 1.

A complete schedule of Playhouse events is available at https://www.westportplayhouse.org/whats-on/ All play titles, artists, dates, and times are subject to change.