The Price arthur miller artist note: Years ago in Edmonton, at the first intermission of a very good production of Arthur Miller’s All My Sons, I remarked aloud, to myself, “Say, this guy just built an entire act of a single scene… Impressive!” In The Price he goes at least one better: the entire play is arguably one continuous scene. And the action is in real time – all that happens does so in the time it takes for us to watch it. You gotta have your stuff together to do that. In real estate the cry is Location! Location! Location! The same can apply to drama: in 1968, a floor in a New York brownstone, crammed with furniture duster-cloaked, waiting. Ghosts dwell here. I admire Miller’s economy, his attention to structure, the taut weave of character with idea, the startling uniqueness in dialogue and action; he is a writer who is a warehouse of the world he studies. And I am fascinated by his stage directions, parenthetical tips to actors on what motivates particular choices by the characters. Often they are complex, contradictory, inviting philosophical consideration –“(the new interruption seems odd – observing more than speaking)”, “(he breaks off as though fearful of saying something)”, “(Fighting a treason to himself, thus taking on a strained, humorous air)”, “(His reserve has possibilities of accusation)”, “(She exits with her life)”. I kind of like Miller looking over my shoulder, caring how the play will land. Finally what impresses me is the fact of family as a measure of society. Recently there was a gathering at my sister’s rented cottage on Lake Erie. Our parents had long since died, and my sons could not be at the party – but all were with us anyway. Every time I see my brother or sister, our children are there as are our parents. We carry the whole package with us wherever we go! And when my (older) brother appreciated the colourful back roads he and his wife drove to get there, I said, “You’ve lived around here this long and only now you’re seeing the back roads?” And he remarked on my snippiness, and I have no idea where it came from, except perhaps from a time 50-odd years ago when he was being scouted by the Hamilton Ti-Cats, while I had to repeat much of my Grade 13.
David Fox, Gregory Solomon in The Price
illustration: chris silas neal
the price arthur miller
1968 u.s.a.
production
cast
Diana Leblanc Director
David Fox Gregory Solomon
Phillip Silver Set, Costume & Lighting Designer
Michael Hanrahan Victor Franz
John Gzowski Sound Designer Alison Peddie production stage manager
Stuart Hughes Walter Franz Jane Spidell Esther Franz
Melissa Novecovsky assistant stage manager Marinda de Beer rehearsal stage manager Ashlyn Ireland rehearsal assistant stage manager Kelly McEvenue alexander coach Corey Waters assistant to the lighting designer
production sponsor
The Price is presented by special arrangement with SAMUEL FRENCH INC. Any video and/or audio recording of this performance by any means whatsoever is strictly prohibited. There will be one 20-minute intermission. Approximate running time 2 hours and 50 minutes.
background notes Arthur Miller was once asked what set the great dramatists apart from second rank playwrights. In typical fashion he didn't hesitate, he came directly down from the mountain. The great ones, he said, have a fierce moral sensibility that is essentially unquenchable. Writers who can make their peace with the inequities of the world are, he felt, lesser dramatists. He believed the great writers burn with their questions. They are not, and they will not be reconciled. Miller’s burning questions return again and again in his work. Why do fathers and sons find it so difficult to understand (and to forgive) each other? Are our memories always unreliable? What are the consequences of making difficult choices in our lives? The Price deals especially with repercussions, though in a more conventional way than Death of a Salesman. There are no flights of fantasy, no flashbacks. Miller even observes the classical unities: the action unfolds in a single physical space over the course of, as Aristotle poetically put it, “a single revolution of the sun.” This focused and passionate story seems familiar at first: two brothers who haven’t spoken in 16 years come together to clear out their dead father’s attic – imagined in luxurious detail for this production by designer Phillip Silver. Victor is a cop, close to retirement from a life sacrificed to helping his father, who, like Arthur Miller’s own father, lost everything in the stock market crash of 1929. Victor’s wife Esther is hoping that the sale of her father-in-law’s effects will finance the more comfortable life she has always craved. Victor’s asked his brother Walter, now a rich and famous surgeon, to come help him. We think we know what we’re in for until we meet the wily furniture dealer, Gregory Solomon. At nearly 90 he’s seen it all and nobody is better – or more maddening – at negotiating a fair price. Yes, it seems familiar but as Royal Lyceum director Mark Thomson says, “Miller refreshes your thinking.” The title of the play refers not only to the financial value of the contents of the attic, but also to the personal price each brother has paid for the life he’s chosen. Victor shelved his own dreams to put his father first. His brother paid an equally high price for his own, more superficially selfish choices. Each man believes he had no choice. Each believes the other did have a choice and made the wrong decision. Each is convinced he’s paid the higher price. This production reunites Soulpepper stalwarts Michael Hanrahan as Victor and Stuart Hughes as Walter, who bring a rich collaborative history to their roles. Director Diana Leblanc is known for her fresh, soulful interpretations of classic plays. Jane Spidell, who won a Dora Award for her work in last year’s production of Doc, brings her powerhouse vulnerability to the role of Esther. And the brilliant David Fox makes his Soulpepper debut as the wily Solomon. Guided by this masterful group of artists, this under-appreciated gem by one of the undisputed masters of American drama promises to be a rare treat. Biography Considered one of the greatest dramatists of the 20th century, Arthur Miller was born on October 17, 1915 in Harlem, New York. Miller’s professional career spans over seven decades, including works such as All My Sons (1947), Death of a Salesman (1949), and The Crucible (1953) – plays that cemented his status as one of the defining voices of the American stage. A lesser-known but powerful story in Miller’s canon, The Price (1968) deals with the loss of a family member and the literal and emotional baggage that’s left behind.
Background Notes by Associate Artist Paula Wing.
soulpepper production Jacqueline Robertson-Cull
Phil Atfield
Geoff Hughes
Janet Pym
stitcher
dresser
head of hair & makeup
Joanne Lamberton cutters
Tracy Taylor
Greg Chambers
Paul Boddum
props buyer
props builder
painter
Stephanie Jarick Morgan Webster scenic artists
Mike Keays carpenter soulpepper thanks: Sgt. Warren Coffey, NYPD retired; Det. Robert Mladinich, NYPD retired; NYc Sergeants Benevolent Association, Ed Mullins, President., Mar-Lyn Lumber Sales Ltd., PRG Toronto.
illustration: chris silas neal
Soulpepper Theatre Company is an active member of the Professional Association of Canadian Theatres (pact), the Toronto Alliance for the Performing Arts (tapa) and Theatre Ontario, and engages, under the terms of the Canadian Theatre Agreement, professional artists who are members of Canadian Actors’ Equity Association. Scenic Artists and Set Decorators employed by Soulpepper Theatre Company are represented by Local 828 of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees.
YOUNG CENTRE FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS DISTILLERY HISTORIC DISTRICT