A LESSON IN SWIMMING - A Solo Show

by Michael Shutt

In 2015, more than 750,000 Americans experienced strokes This is one survivor's story.
Hilarious and poignant, A LESSON IN SWIMMING takes you inside writer/performer Michael Shutt's brain as it “breaks” and invites you to experience how deep the cracks really go. Left partially blind, partially paralyzed, and partial to chocolate pudding, Michael sets out on a quest to put the pieces of his broken brain back...

In 2015, more than 750,000 Americans experienced strokes This is one survivor's story.
Hilarious and poignant, A LESSON IN SWIMMING takes you inside writer/performer Michael Shutt's brain as it “breaks” and invites you to experience how deep the cracks really go. Left partially blind, partially paralyzed, and partial to chocolate pudding, Michael sets out on a quest to put the pieces of his broken brain back together and ultimately discovers that what he first perceived to be broken might instead have actually been cracked open.
Listen to it as a radio play at https://www.michaelshutt.com/alis-radio-play

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A LESSON IN SWIMMING - A Solo Show

Recommended by

  • E. M. Lewis: A LESSON IN SWIMMING - A Solo Show by Michael Shutt
    “

    What a beautiful play this is! In "A Lesson in Swimming," Michael invites the audience into the terrifying experience of what it's really like to have a stroke, and then through his battle to find his way back to himself afterwards. With hope and humor, friends and family, heaps of courage and a few well-placed show tunes... this play is a wonderful window into vulnerability, empathy, and our shared humanity.

    What a beautiful play this is! In "A Lesson in Swimming," Michael invites the audience into the terrifying experience of what it's really like to have a stroke, and then through his battle to find his way back to himself afterwards. With hope and humor, friends and family, heaps of courage and a few well-placed show tunes... this play is a wonderful window into vulnerability, empathy, and our shared humanity.

    ”
  • Jami Brandli: A LESSON IN SWIMMING - A Solo Show by Michael Shutt
    “

    Michael Shutt's, A Lesson in Swimming, is raw, vulnerable, scary, heartbreaking, hilarious and ultimately life-affirming. I'm truly floored how his brilliant solo show takes me through all of these emotions...and leaves me wanting MORE. The only thing better than reading A Lesson in Swimming is watching him perform these words. Thanks to Michael Shutt for sharing his riveting story of survival!

    Michael Shutt's, A Lesson in Swimming, is raw, vulnerable, scary, heartbreaking, hilarious and ultimately life-affirming. I'm truly floored how his brilliant solo show takes me through all of these emotions...and leaves me wanting MORE. The only thing better than reading A Lesson in Swimming is watching him perform these words. Thanks to Michael Shutt for sharing his riveting story of survival!

    ”
  • Ross Tedford Kendall: A LESSON IN SWIMMING - A Solo Show by Michael Shutt
    “

    Written from the heart, this solo piece achieves both the personal and universal story by its specifics and evocative imagery. Ranging from the heartbreaking to the surreal, this is an unforgettable story.

    Written from the heart, this solo piece achieves both the personal and universal story by its specifics and evocative imagery. Ranging from the heartbreaking to the surreal, this is an unforgettable story.

    ”
View all 4 recommendations

Development History

  • Reading, Moving Arts, 2019
  • Workshop, Moving Arts, 2019
  • Reading, Creative Rites/Beyond Baroque, 2018

Production History

  • Workshop, Moving Arts, 2019

Awards