Death of a Salesman – Pavilion Theatre, Glasgow

Writer: Arthur Miller

Director: Andy Arnold

Set Design: Neil Haynes

Costume Design: Vicki Brown

Composer: Niroshini Thambar

Andy Arnold helms a powerful staging of Death of a Salesman, Arthur Miller’s post-war exploration of the realities of the American Dream, at The Pavilion in Glasgow this week. The second of a pair of Miller adaptations in the city in as many weeks.

It has only taken until the end of the 1940s for the shine to go off the glittering American Dream. Miller’s anger and despair oozes from every pore of this play. The unstoppable force of Capitalism and the consequences of its pursuit to the ordinary man, are laid bare here.

While Miller’s dialogue is very much of its time, the subject matter, the human story it tells, still holds a particular resonance resonance in our ‘snowflake generation’ times. Willy’s ambitions for his children, in particular his relentless promotion of their small abilities and achievements, his unwillingness to acknowledge their (clear to everyone else) shortcomings, has led the pair to an aimless and unfulfilled adulthood. Nothing, no-one, no job, no amount of money will ever be good enough, contribute, in part, to Willy’s demise.

Scottish acting royalty David Hayman heads up a strong and sure-footed cast. Hayman delivers a touching vulnerability, a heart-breaking poignancy as well as a frustrating stubbornness as Willy desperately tries to save face with his relentless optimism that there will be better days ahead, even in the face of grim reality. Willy’s spiral to his ultimate demise, his slow realisation of his obsolescence, is excruciating to watch and deftly judged by Hayman.

Hayman is richly supported by the rest of the cast, in particular Daniel Cahill, who keeps a perfect rein on eldest son Biff’s mercurial moods. We feel every moment of Biff’s frustration, grief and anger at himself and his father. There are some small, sparkling moments provided by Bailey Newsome as waiter Stanley and Charlene Boyd as a real-life Betty Boop as Woman in Boston and a memorable turn from Benny Young as Willy’s “only friend” Charley.

Neil Haynes’ spare set is necessarily designed to direct full focus onto the complex tragedy that is unfolding in front of us. The action is punctuated by a trio of musicians playing live from the stage.

At a marathon three hours, the audience is put through the emotional wringer. The futility of the American dream for generations both young and old is starkly portrayed. As Biff screams out: “take your phony dreams and burn them”, we couldn’t agree more. A sure-footed staging of this classic American tale.

Runs until 8 March 2025 then continues to tour the UK www.deathofasalesmantour.co.uk| Image: Tommy Ga-Ken Wan