My Name is Lucy Barton

A SAMUEL FRENCH, INC. TITLE

My Name is Lucy Barton

Full-Length Play, Drama  /  1w

A haunting new solo play adapted by Rona Munro from the bestselling novel by Pulitzer Prize winner Elizabeth Strout.

Image: 2020 Manhattan Theatre Club Production (Matthew Murphy for MurphyMade)

  • Cast Size
    Cast Size
    1w
  • Duration
    Duration
    90 minutes
  • SubGenre
    Subgenre
    Adaptation (Literature)
  • Audience
    Target Audience
    Adult

Details

Summary
Lucy Barton wakes after an operation to discover – much to her surprise – her mother at the foot of her bed. They haven’t seen each other in years. During their days-long visit, Lucy begins to understand her past, come to terms with her family, and find herself as a writer.
History

My Name Is Lucy Barton opened at the Bridge Theatre in London in June 2018, directed by Richard Eyre and starring Laura Linney. On January 15, 2020, the show opened on Broadway at Manhattan Theatre Club's Samuel J. Friedman Theatre, again starring Laura Linney under the direction of Richard Eyre.

(1 female)

LUCY

  • Time Period Present Day, 1980s
  • Setting A hospital room.
  • Duration 90 minutes

Media

“Tremendously affecting… This delicate memory piece resonate[s] with the soaring vitality of a fully lived-in present.” – The Hollywood Reporter

“Compelling… The title character of My Name Is Lucy Barton, Rona Munro’s crystalline stage adaptation of Elizabeth Strout’s 2016 novel… may be the most translucent figure now on a New York stage.” – The New York Times

“Munro's play stands quite well on its own, distilling the crucial elements of Strout's work into a steadily moving, compelling narrative of its own.” - Newsweek

“Rich and complex… make[s] it seem like a specific character with an esoteric set of problems and circumstances is speaking for all of us.” – The Chicago Tribune

“Tremendously affecting… As direct, deceptively straightforward and singularly focused as its title implies. At the same time, it unfolds a wealth of seemingly unrelated mini-narratives, personal insights and half-buried memories to draw the complicated connection of a daughter to her flinty mother, reconciling with the legacy of a miserable childhood.” – The Hollywood Reporter

“Strout’s language, deftly adapted for the stage by Rona Munro, is simple in the way of a coiled pot or a Shaker chair, a solid, unfussy construction whose elegance lies in its polished unity.” – The New Yorker

“Elizabeth Strout’s first-person narrative… fits perfectly on the stage… What comes out in performance, even more than in reading the book, is the idea that, even if you totally reinvent yourself, your past remains inescapable.” – The Guardian


Videos

  • My Name Is Lucy Barton - Page to Stage youtube thumbnail

    My Name Is Lucy Barton - Page to Stage

  • "I found my mother sitting..." youtube thumbnail

    "I found my mother sitting..."

  • "My mother stayed with me..." youtube thumbnail

    "My mother stayed with me..."

  • My Name Is Lucy Barton: Laura Linney youtube thumbnail

    My Name Is Lucy Barton: Laura Linney

Photos

  • My Name is Lucy Barton

    Image: 2020 Manhattan Theatre Club Production (Matthew Murphy for MurphyMade)

Licensing & Materials

  • Minimum Fee: £70 per performance plus VAT when applicable.

Scripts

Available Formats:

Authors

Rona Munro

Rona Munro has written extensively for stage, radio, film and television, including the trilogy The James Plays for the National Theatre of Scotland, The National Theatre of Great Britain, and the Edinburgh International Festival. Other credits include award-winning plays Iro ...
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Elizabeth Strout

Elizabeth Strout is the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Olive Kitteridge, the #1 New York Times bestseller My Name Is Lucy Barton (longlisted for the Man Booker Prize 2016), The Burgess Boys, Abide with Me, Amy and Isabelle and Anything Is Possible. Her most recent book, Oli ...
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