By Barbara & Scott Siegel…
The Revivals of Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesmanand August Wilson’s Joe Turner’s Come and Gone.
Perhaps the most anticipated dramatic revival of the season would have to be Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman. On the surface, that’s a surprising statement because this esteemed play was already very recently revived. But the casting of Nathan Lane as Willy Loman and Laurie Matcalf as his long-suffering wife, Linda, has made this latest incarnation of the play a must-see event. And having seen it, with quibbles aside, it is a monumental display of brilliant performances.
Let’s get those quibbles out of the way right up front: the set design by Chloe Lamford is a high concept failure. Everything on the set is centered around Willy’s car; it’s there in every scene of the play except the very last, and it’s presence is both too obvious and too distracting at the same time. The casting of smaller roles is a bit disappointing, as well, because one would want everyone in the cast to be up to the performances of the leads. That said, Lane, Metcalf, and their two adult children, Christopher Abbott as Biff and Ben Ahlers as Happy, bring Miller’s play to aching, haunting life.
Let’s take Arthur Miller’s play as a given: it is an indestructible work of art. It can be done better or worse, but it will survive a mediocre production and still be worth seeing. Put actors in the lead roles who understand the words, and put the production in the hands of a wise, seasoned, and intelligent director like Joe Mantello, and you get brilliance.
Nathan Lane’s poignant portrayal of a broken man is breathtakingly sad. His greatness as a serious actor should never be in doubt after this; in a performance moment we will never forget, like a last puff of wind in his sails, near the very end of the play, this wounded and dying man suddenly makes one last stab at dignity, seemingly expanding in size and height as he howls in defiance: “I’m Willy Loman!” It is a moment that is as thrilling as it is shattering.
Likewise, Laurie Metcalf gives a performance that defines love. She knows Willy isn’t the man he pretends to be (or would like to think he is), but her devotion is complete. She loves her two wayward sons, but it’s Willy that she lives for. Known as a ferocious actress, Metcalf, channels her power into keeping Willy going. One could easily say that this play is as much about the character of Linda as it is about Willy, and you wouldn’t be wrong.
Finally, those two wayward sons are portrayed with their own emotional complexities with a deft touch that fully completes the picture of this tragic American family.
From the crumbling American dream of Death of a Salesman to the struggle to become an American family in the revival of August Wilson’s Joe Turner’s Come and Gone, the full weight of history is upon the Broadway stage this season (adding in, of course, the brilliant revival of Ragtime earlier this season at Lincoln Center).
The pivotal element of this early Wilson play is the journey Herald Loomis (Joshua Boone) is making to find his wife, from whom he was torn away more than seven years before. He is not trying to reunite with her. He simply needs to find her, deliver their daughter to her, and then try to start a new life for himself. Tortured and tormented by his past experience, Loomis carries the heavy baggage of the Jim Crow South. The play is his passageway (and ours) to salvation.
Beautifully written by Wilson, it features a cast of characters who are well-defined, entirely real, and touchingly human with their failings and foibles. Boone’s performance is searing, but stealing the entire enterprise is a long-time August Wilson player, Ruben Santiago-Hudson. His performance lifts the entire production and makes it electric. One hopes he gets the recognition he deserves for his work in this play, despite the fact that more famous marquis names are headlining the production: Taraji P. Henson and Cedric The Entertainer. We have no doubt that these two are bringing fans into the Barrymore Theatre, but let’s hope audiences will become fans of Santiago-Hudson when they leave.
Joe Turner’s Come and Gone is powerful stuff. Directed by Debbie Allen with a special touch that gives additional presence to the richly conceived female characters in the play, this is a formidable and necessary addition to any theatergoer’s list of must-see shows this season.
Much to come in future columns. Looking forward to sharing our thoughts with you on The Lost Boys, Schmigadoon, Titantique, The Rocky Horror Show, Becky Shaw, and more!
Top photo: Nathan Lane and Laurie Metcalf in Death of a Salesman
