An interview with Michael GowAccording to Gow, his play Away became an Australian classic 'accidentally'.
In this interview, he talks about the way he overlays the context of the Vietnam War and the rise of materialism with the themes of coming of age and accepting the death of a child to create a play that is powerful and complex.
What is the function of a play within a play? There are several examples of this in Away. It opens with a school production of A Midsummer Night's Dream, and closes with a scene from King Lear. In Act 4 Scene 3, Tom and Coral perform their own play, The Stranger on the Shore. These plays within a play are used to mirror Away's central narratives and themes, and add complexity of meaning.
The play explores the bond between a child and their parent. The tension between Meg and her mother Gwen contrasts with the affectionate relationship between Tom and his parents. Vic and Harry, who are preparing for the death of their terminally ill son, are paralleled by Coral and Roy, who have already lost their son to war and spend the play overcoming their loss and grief.
