Miles from Home

By Michael Melski

Miles From Home is the incredible true-to-life story of Johnny Miles, a child coal miner who not only survived some of the worst privations and brutality in the history of Canadian industry, but survived and escaped to win the Boston Marathon in 1926 in World Record Time, beating the reigning Olympic Champion. All this without ever having even seen a marathon before. With his trademark humour and heart, Michael Melski’s Miles From Home tells an epic story on a small stage, about the power of determination, the endurance of family, and the miracle of human possibility in an inhuman time.

“

Melski’s script is a model of examining the tensions that high-performance athletes and their families face at any time. He also smartly links the Miles family woes to the greater story of the labour troubles in the turbulent 1920’s in Cape Breton by drawing the hardships of the work itself (cave-ins, black lung, etc.) and the tragedy of the murder of William Davies by company thugs. It is an engrossing story of a real underdog triumphant, told with humour and heart.

Ken Chisholm, Cape Breton Post

Production Details

4 Male

2 Female

120 minutes, 2 acts

By Michael Melski

Production History

Miles from Home was a smash hit at its World Premiere in summer 2001, and broke box office records at Ship’s Company Theatre. Nominated in 2002 for a Robert Merritt Award for ‘Outstanding Play’.

More Plays By Michael Melski

  • Corvette Crossing

    By Michael Melski

  • Creepy and Little Manson

    By Michael Melski

  • The Fly Fisher’s Companion

    By Michael Melski

  • Hockey Mom, Hockey Dad

    By Michael Melski

  • Miles from Home

    By Michael Melski

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