Death of a Salesman Tickets
The Death of a Salesman is a play written by Arthur Miller in 1949. The play was a recipient of the 1949 Pulitzer Prize for Drama and Tony Award for Best Play, which made him a national sensation. Arthur transformed his story into one of the most successful dramas in American history.
The basis for the dramatic conflict in the play was from Arthur’s conflict with his uncle, who was also a salesman. There was a continuous competition between his cousin and himself, and his uncle never accepted failure in his family. The story addresses the painful conflicts within a family and brings up bigger issues regarding American national values and the cost of blind faith in the American dream.
The story takes place in New York and in Boston. Willy Loman is an aging salesman who returned early from a road trip. He started having difficulty remembering things and distinguishing the present from his past. His wife, Linda suggested he ask his boss about working locally in New York instead of traveling each week to work. Willy believes he is not of value as a traveling salesman and that working locally would probably be the better option.
Throughout the story, Willy has flashbacks of his past and talks to images he has imagined thinking they are real people. Willy’s sons were worried about their father and took it upon themselves to talk to his former employer and ask about getting a loan to start a business.
Willy’s wife, Linda admits to their sons that they are struggling financially and that their father has attempted suicide. The next day, Willy felt that his boss would give him a job transfer to New York, but instead his boss fires him. He started to panic and hallucinate and speak with imaginary people.
Eventually, Willy realized his son who he felt was a failure seemed to really love him. Unfortunately, Willy can’t get past the failure bit. He thought the greatest contribution that he could make toward his son’s success was to commit suicide. Then, his son could use the life insurance money to start his own business. Not long after, there was a loud crash and Willy was dead.
A Death of a Salesman is about the fundamental American values and the American Dream of material success at the time it was written. It is a timeless theater production that gets better and better with each performance. You don’t want to miss your chance to witness an American dream that has gone astray. You will find yourself lost in time between dodging the past, present and the empty hopes of the future.
