| Duet for One | |
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Theatrical release poster |
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| Directed by | Andrei Konchalovsky |
| Written by | Tom Kempinski |
| Starring | Julie Andrews Alan Bates Max von Sydow |
| Distributed by | Golan-Globus Productions Ltd. |
| Release date(s) | November 1986 |
| Running time | 107 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Duet for One (1986) is a film adapted from an award-winning British play, a two-hander by Tom Kempinski, about a world-famous concert violinist named Stephanie Anderson who is suddenly struck with multiple sclerosis. It is set in London and directed by Andrei Konchalovsky. The story is based on the life of cellist Jacqueline du Pré, who was diagnosed with MS, and her husband, conductor Daniel Barenboim, and only marginally fictionalized.
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Stephanie Anderson is struck with Multiple Sclerosis and she is slipping into the depths of depression. She begins seeing a psychiatrist and despises him for not being able to feel her pain. Her conductor husband is also drifting away from her, having an affair with his secretary. Stephanie shuts herself away from the world, once locking her door and replaying her old concert tapes, watching despairingly as her on-screen self plays music that she will never be able to create again. She attempts suicide but fails when her maid rescues her. Soon, however, she comes to terms with the facts of her bitter end and realizes that life must go on.
Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Drama Role : Julie Andrews (Nominated)
Duet for One premiered at the Bush Theatre in 1980 with Frances de la Tour and David de Keyser in the leading roles. It had successful runs in the West End and on Broadway. A major revival was staged by the Almeida Theatre in 2009, starring Juliet Stevenson and Henry Goodman. This revival too was lauded by the critics, and it subsequently transferred to the Vaudeville Theatre in the West End.
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