Arthur Miller’s well-known work, Death of a Salesman is on right now at the Scarborough Village Theatre. The first production of 2024 for the Scarborough Theatre Guild and directed by Mario D’Alimonte, this intense family drama proves its timelessness in this new production. With a unique set and stirring performances, Death of a Salesman certainly changed my mind about this classic Miller play.

Death of a Salesman is one of those works where it’s harder to find someone who hasn’t read it than someone who has! It chronicles the lives of the Loman family: Willy, a salesman and the family’s patriarch, his wife Linda, and their sons Biff and Happy. When the play opens, we learn that Willy hasn’t been fully acting himself lately, which in turn brings his sons home for a visit. Biff, a former high-school all-star athlete who now doesn’t have a solid profession, and Happy, a business man himself and who takes after his father in more ways than just that, witness their father’s strange behaviour while also attempting to reassure their parents of their own security for the future. Throughout the story we get glimpses of the family’s past and the choices which have led them to their current situation.

One of my problems with this text has always been that I didn’t relate to Willy Loman at all; I’m from a generation where we’ve been told since elementary school that we’ll have several careers (not just jobs, careers) in our lifetimes. It makes it very difficult to understand someone whose sense of being is so tied up in his profession. However, with age comes wisdom and experience, and while I still don’t relate to Willy, I certainly can pity him. For his company to fire him after 34 years of working there is inexcusable, especially with no severance or retirement plan. The level of regret he feels by the end of the play is also a little more understandable with age as well (who has much to regret at 15 or 16 when you’re reading this in High School?). What I did realize was that Biff is really the protagonist of this story. As much as the title makes us automatically focus on the patriarch, it’s really Biff who has the most emotional growth throughout the story. Biff is certainly a character I can relate to, and it’s his trajectory within the story which made my throat catch a couple of times.

Petra Brockus’ set design is a great visual representation of not only the environment the Loman’s live in, but also the emotional state of the family. To be able to fully show the upstairs bedrooms as well as the kitchen (where most of the action takes place), the upper level of the house is separated into two sections: one for the boy’s room and one for the parents. Yet it shows a house divided, quite literally, by generation, which we find to be more and more true as the play goes on. When I saw that they have a thrust stage setup at Scarborough Village Theatre, I wasn’t sure how they were going to address the dream-like sequences which normally occur on the apron portion of a proscenium stage; however some simple paint adjustments made it easy to understand when we were in Willy’s memories rather than the present moment.

The cast of Death of a Salesman all give dynamic and memorable performances. Mark Rittinger stars as Willy Loman, and everything from his dazed mumblings to startling outbursts were note perfect. He made me feel a compassion for that character which I’ve never felt before. Annette Huton gives a powerhouse performance as Linda Loman; her passion and ferocity are fully on display in this production and I absolutely loved it. Adrian Novakov plays Biff and gives a nuanced and heartfelt performance. His performance elicited a level of empathy for that character I’ve never had before. Dan Bowers rounds out the Loman family as Happy, and he was the perfect combination of sly and sweet. Novakov and Bowers have a great chemistry together and give the play its vivacity. Scott Baker (Ben), Alan Maynes (Charlie), and Daniel Goldman (Bernard) all deliver impressive performances as Willy’s family and neighbours as they float through Willy’s life and memories. Rounding out the cast is Tyler Thomas, Bernadette Brennan, Farzana Islam, Ali Jiwani, and Erin Jones who each add their own enthusiasm and spark to their roles.

If you haven’t seen Death of a Salesman before, or haven’t touched the text since school, head out to Scarborough and check out this production. I’m so glad I went; it really helped to change my perspective of the play and certainly gave my partner and I plenty to talk about over dinner and the drive home. Performances continue through to January 27th. For more information and tickets, visit: https://theatrescarborough.com/scarborough-theatre-guild/productions/death-of-a-salesman/

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Cover photo: The cast of Death of a Salesman. Photo by Julie Adams Photography

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