ABSTRACT
When we did a run-through in front of Arthur Miller he was pretty impressed, but he made it clear within minutes that we were miles away. He did it in the kindest way - by telling the truth. He talked about the dialectical nature of the play: every argument posed is matched instantly by a counter-argument and then countered again. Each must be given equal weight and force. He was anxious that the audience should not stand in judgement on Victor or Walter. For three days we went through the play five minutes at a time. Arthur blossomed. It was like a master-class. Sometimes the insights were particular, down to the meaning of one line. When Victor says at the end that he is going to pick up his suit from the dry-cleaners, Esther, his wife, says 'Don't bother'. This is not cynical - it would be easy to play it that way - but loving and generous. She means that he no longer needs to make the effort to be other than he is - a policeman. Victor became a policeman when he believed - this is hinted in the text 162- that the Depression would bring the end of Capitalism: if there was chaos there would always be the need for policemen. Sometimes the guidelines were more general. The play, he said, was finally about love. The brothers love each other and want to come together, but can't.
