Death of a Salesman

On Friday, a friend and I went to go see a play, Death of a Salesman. It was incredible! The Death of a Salesman, starring Peter Jacobson (Dr. Taub from House MD), is a tragedy about the pitfalls of the modern man. Though originally set in the late 1940's, the themes of the play are still incredibly relevant to life today, truly a timeless performance. 

The main character, Willy Loman, is a travelling salesman in the northeast who is on the precipice of disillusion with his job. He desperately wants to maintain the idealistic vision that a man's reputation still counts for something in the workplace, but deep down he understands that his life does not align with that of human nature. This is shown throughout the play with his desire to grow a garden, against the advice of his wife who reminds him that nothing will grow where they live (Brooklyn). This garden, ultimately becomes symbolic of his death. 

His internal struggle is also reflected in the behavior of his two sons, more specifically Biff Loman. Biff is a more wild spirit than his father, travelling the country doing odd jobs that ultimately don't pay very well. He tries to appease his father with an attempt to get in the business of salesmanship, but fails due to his non-conformist nature. This is a major point of contention between Willy and his sons. Willy wants his boys to be great, as any father would, and constantly boasts how far they will make it to his coworkers. But, he fails to fully understand that his son's version of success is vastly different than the version perpetuated by modern society. 

Something that constantly comes up in the play is Willy's struggle with money. Even though this play was set nearly 80 years ago, many of the struggles are more relevant than ever. For example, at one moment in the beginning of the play, Willy complains to his wife that the refrigerator broke as soon as they paid it off, and comments that they manufacturer likely did it on purpose. This has never been more true than today, with tech companies selling products designed to be obsolete within a few years of purchasing. In all honesty, if Willy was transported to the life of an average person today, it would be a satirical and wildly exaggerated version of his reality. 

Overall, I really loved the performance. From the overarching story, all the way down to the prop usage, the entire experience was wonderful, not to mention the raw emotion portrayed by the actors. I seriously doubt that any play in the near future will be able to surmount this performance.