With
stars like Colin Friels and Genevieve Lemon, the play Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller would a mistake to miss, with
each member of the cast delivering outstanding performances. This year from the
23rd of June until the 19th of August, the Belvoir
revives a Pulitzer prize winning play, with director Simon Stone portraying a
most moving interpretation of Willy Loman.
Brief
Synopsis-
Willy Loman is feeling his age. He and his wife Linda are
struggling to make their mortgage repayments. The company he works for is
branching out in new directions and it looks like he’s about to be left behind.
When his university drop-out son, Biff, moves back home after years of
drifting, old tensions rise to the surface. Arguably the greatest play of the
twentieth century, Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman is
about a man refusing to let go of the false dreams we were all once promised. (The
Belvoir)
Whether you
are a novice or a long-time fan of Miller’s work, the play communicates the
loss of the American Dream, the disappointment and
disillusionment of individuals young and old who place their faith in an
economic system that doesn’t deliver. Stone is able to capture the essence of
the piece through the minimal props and mis en scene, due to the use of one car
on stage throughout the performance. Subtle lighting changes mark the shifts in
time and each actor’s performance is beyond powerful. Upon leaving the play,
even the average audience member feels as though he has been hit by a thick blow
of intensity as the weight of the plot comes thick and fast. The word whispered
as we filtered into the night was; “intense”
and there is nothing more to be said.
In a
comfortable theatre in the round setting, adult prices are around $60 and this performance
would indeed be a shame to miss. If perchance you do, the performance boasts an
extended season at the Theatre Royal.
