Say Hello to Willy Loman and the Death of the American Dream

[caption id="attachment_74215" align="alignnone" width="3521"] The cast from Death of a Salesman. Photo by Michele Wilson[/caption]

By Annette Hinkle

Despite being a recurring mantra in society, the American Dream, as it has long been labeled, remains an illusive and transitory objective. That may be because what defines it ultimately depends not on definition, but upon individual perception, vision and even the era in which one lives.

From 19th century immigrants arriving at Ellis Island in hopes of a fresh start in the tenements of the Lower East Side, to the 1960s nuclear family living in the split level ranch at the end of a cul-de-sac, when expectations of the American Dream fail to materialize there are excuses, frustrations, anger and often, utter despair.

This week, Bay Street Theater opens a new production of “Death of a Salesman,” Arthur Miller’s 1949 Pulitzer Prize-winning play about hopes, disappointment and ultimately, the derailment of the American Dream.

Joe Minutillo directs while David Manis plays Willy Loman, the hapless protagonist of the play about an aging salesman who finds himself living in a world that he frequently understands less and less as time goes on. His two sons, Biff (Rob DiSario) and Happy (Scott T. Hinson), were to be his legacy and despite pretenses that they are living up to the dream, their own dismal failures in life come shining through. Meanwhile Willy’s wife Linda (Carolyn Popp) strives to keep the family intact and sane.

While this is a play that deals with the very adult problems of a man destined to descend in a downward spiral, “Death of a Salesman” is being presented as part of Literature Live! Bay Street’s educational initiative for middle and high school students. Literature Live! began nine years ago when Bay Street Theater set out to create a programming that would bring classic books to life for students who were required to read them in the classroom.

That first year, some 800 students came to Bay Street for Literature Live! and in the years since, the theater has presented productions such as “The Diary of Anne Frank,” “The Scarlet Letter,” “The Crucible,” “To Kill a Mockingbird,” “Of Mice and Men” and “The Miracle Worker,” and along the way, it has grown considerably.

This year, Bay Street’s Executive Director Tracy Mitchell says over 3,000 kids from 56 schools across Long Island will come for school day performances of “Death of a Salesman” during its three-week run. In addition, the theater will offer weekend public performances of the play — including over Thanksgiving weekend.

“This program was one of those things where we were discussing how we could do more with the schools, and instead of going to them, have them come here to see a professionally staged piece of theater,” recalls Mitchell. “From an educational standpoint, we thought plays might help students who have a different way of learning — those who are not necessarily the best readers or who are dyslexic,”

“The teachers we talked to said they’d love to see more American literature produced of books they’re reading for the curriculum,” she adds. “We thought, wouldn’t it be great to combine the two to see how it works.”

By all accounts, Literature Live! has succeeded beyond expectations and in the years since its inception, Bay Street has made sure that every play produced is based on a book being read by the highest possible numbers of students in area schools.

“We’re always looking for the one book that's the biggest from that year’s curriculum,” says Mitchell. “Sometimes it might be read in high school only, other times it can cross over to middle school and serve both.”

Though Joe Minutillo, a former high school teacher, has directed a number of Literature Live! productions for Bay Street, this is the first time he’s directed “Death of a Salesman.” He has, however, taught the book at the high school level.

“When I taught it, I approached it from a director’s standpoint,” he says. “There are always some nuances and some exploration when you’re actually directing something like this. You often get in a discussion with an actor or actress who might see something you haven’t seen.”

If Minutillo has one regret with “Death of a Salesman” it’s that he wishes he had more time to spend with the piece prior to the opening show.

“This, I think, is Arthur Miller’s crown jewel and is a great piece,” notes Minutillo. “It’s not a comedy, but the exploration within the structure of this family, like his other works, it’s universal and it’s why it stands the test of time.”

“You have not just what Willy’s going through, but how it effects the rest of the family, the secrets we keep inside ourselves,” he adds.

Along the way, the play is also about the loss of a parent’s status in the eyes of the children and how the family structure collapses when members are unable to rely upon each other for support.

“So many things that are happening. It’s a great, great piece but you’re not gonna walk out of there singing a tune,” says Minutillo. “It forces you to think of your own world and personal lives.”

When asked if he think students will have the capacity to understand the complexities of the inherent drama in the script and the loss of the American Dream, Minutillo responds:

“I do think a lot to kids who haven’t grown up in the trajectory of the failure of the American Dream still understand that the dream has changed over the years — and the whole world seems to be changing.”

One of the challenges with this production is compressing the over two-hour original script into a one act running 90 minutes — a requirement for Literature Live! due to the constraints of the students’ school schedules.

“When you’re working with a piece that is so great like this, you want to be careful when editing. We’re surgically taking things out without destroying the soul of the piece,” says Minutillo. “Still, there is some incredible magic happening and the chemistry between the cast is picking up and it’s getting better and better.”

Bay Street theater’s Literature Live! production of “Death of a Salesman,” by Arthur Miller begins with school group performances on Monday, November 6. Thanks to a matching challenge grant from the Century Arts Foundation and Bay Street’s board of trustees, school groups are able to attend performances for free.

Public performances of the play are offered Thursday through Saturday, November 9 to 18, and Thanksgiving weekend November 24 and 25 at 7 p.m. Matinee performances will be offered on Saturdays, November 11, 18 and 25 at 2 pm. Tickets are $20 to $35 and available online at baystreet.org, or by calling the box office at (631) 725-9500.