Death of a Salesman is everyman’s story

One night last week, we went to the CCP to watch a film written by Arthur Miller titled Death of a Salesman and found the place packed with people lining up for tickets. The film’s title sounded vaguely familiar, although we weren’t certain if we had watched it before. All we know is that by the end of the screening, we were enveloped by a strong feeling of sadness that we couldn’t explain. We decided to look for other explanations for feeling this way.

From the author Miller’s published recollections of opening night, he had written the following excerpts “…there was no applause at the final curtain… Strange things began to go on in the audience. With the curtain down, some people stood… then sat again… Some, especially the men, were bent forward covering their faces, and others were openly weeping… It seemed forever before someone remembered to applaud.”

For a play released in 1949, we felt it exceedingly strange that it would affect the audience of 2014 in this manner. What then would explain its enduring factor? We then realized that neither age nor time would affect the enthusiasm for this play. It is timeless and enduring. Because it dealt with everyman’s struggles, hopes and pains, it will last forever. A reviewer shared her take on Death of a Salesman by writing, “Death of a Salesman has been performed many times…in both English and non-English speaking countries, and in a diverse range of languages and cultural contexts. It has even been played before a native audience in a small Artic village, with them returning night after night to witness the performance in a language they didn’t understand.”

How appropriate was this comment to the fact that Death of a Salesman which we had gone to watch had been translated in Filipino. It wouldn’t make a difference that the play was retitled Pahimakas sa Isang Ahente or whether it was translated into Ilocano, Bisaya, Batangueño, Panggalatok, Chavacano, et al. Because it deals with the same familiar problems of everyone, language will remain the least of our worries.

Death of a Salesman (Pahimakas sa Isang Ahente) is the story of Willy Loman (Nanding Josef) as the traveling salesman of many, many years who believes that this status will continue for the rest of his life. That is the tragedy that can only bring Willy to disaster. In the beginning, when Willy was at the top of his class, he was respected and sought after, but times change and sadly, Willy refuses to go along with the flow. He demands the same respect and treatment like before and when he doesn’t get it, he proudly begins to make excuses, faulting others rather than himself. It is also the tragedy of his wife Linda (Gina Pareño) who plays along with Willy’s pretenses instead of telling him the truth. It is likewise the tragedy of his children Biff (Yul Servo) and Charley (Bong Cabrera) who prefer to run away from home, rather than face their father’s failed ambitions.

Performances are from Oct. 5 to 19. Call Tanghalang Pilipino of schedule and ticket prices through 0905-2544930 or 0908-5941384.

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