Death of a Salesman Tickets

Death of a Salesman – “Attention must be paid”

When you want more than a fun night out, this is perfect. If you want more meaning and depth in your theatre, this one's for you. It's the US playwright Arthur Miller's masterpiece, Death of a Salesman, and it has barely been off the stage since it was first produced in 1949. This is a Pulitzer Prize winner, it deals with “the tragedy of a man who gave his life, or sold it” in pursuit of the American Dream, and it remains a powerful classic of our times, a requiem to the main character and to everyone like him.

Following a smash hit sell-out of a run at the Young Vic theatre, this critically acclaimed production of Death of a Salesman transfers to the Piccadilly Theatre for a limited ten week season. And it's not to be missed. In Miller's words, describing Willy Loman, "I don't say he's a great man…but he's a human being, and a terrible thing is happening to him. So attention must be paid. He's not to be allowed to fall in his grave like an old dog. Attention, attention must finally be paid to such a person."

The brilliant Marianne Elliott and her team sit at the heart of this splendid play, and true to form they've messed with our heads in the most wonderful way. The play is now an African American tragedy and the results are remarkable. The staging is dazzlingly good, the perfect backdrop for Miller's words that, while written in 1948, are still just as relevant to our modern world.

The star of the show is salesman Willy Loman, played by the exceptionally talented Wendell Pierce. Loman has travelled the roads for thirty five years selling his wares, and he is exhausted to the core, tired to the very bottom of his soul. A shadow of his former self, he never did make it to the top spot and his two sons, for whom he was once everything, are less than impressed. Linda is Willy's wife. She knows he isn't a great man, no matter how much he'd love to be.

The staging, which is suitably grey and dull, reveals both of the Lomans as trapped by a dream-gone-bad that's incredibly potent, which millions fail to achieve. The Lomans have almost paid off their mortgage but the house feels like a trap too, adding to the daily drudgery of just about managing, under constant pressure to do more, do better. Now Willy has finally reached his breaking point.

At the end of the day this is a beautifully observed family tragedy, and a fabulous cast adds to its appeal. Pierce is stunning. Sharon D Clarke as Linda in awe-inspiring, revealing how her quiet determination holds everything together. Arinzé Kene and Martins Imhangbe are off-the-scale cool as the brothers Biff and Happy. Add jazz music and it's more or less perfect. What a totally fantastic play.

Who is this show for?
Death of a Salesman is an adult play dealing with adult themes, probably best for teens upwards, and under fives won't be admitted into the theatre.