Not Lost in Translation

Reviewed by Mary Alderson

It seemed like such an unlikely choice. A Chinese actor asked Arthur Miller to come to China to direct Death of a Salesman in Chinese in 1983. Now a new play about that project is on the Avon stage at the Stratford Festival: Salesman in China.

Miller’s all-encompassing tragedy, Death of a Salesman, is rooted in the American dream as it was in 1949. In 2017, there was a brilliant production of Death of a Salesman at St. Jacobs Country Playhouse, perfectly directed by the late Marti Maraden. Willy Loman was played by George Wendt, and unfortunately many in the audience assumed it was a comedy when “Norm from Cheers” trudged on stage lugging his salesman’s suitcases. They laughed at him. But that soon changed. Wendt as Willy wants to get rich. He brags constantly that he is well liked and has the largest territory, exaggerating his income. He also has great hopes for his son Biff, who was a high school football star, and could have gone to university on scholarship if he hadn’t failed math. He still believes that Biff and his brother, Hap, will do great things and come into their own.

In reality, Willy is a failure at his job and gets fired, and both sons are ne’er-do-wells. Biff is a drifter who has spent time in jail for theft, and Hap is a philanderer who has a menial job. But Willy has bragged and fantasized for so long, he now believes his own glorified lies. He tells the boys to steal from the construction site next door, and cheat on their school exams, then wonders where they went wrong. Sadly, his wife, Linda, goes along with his lies, yet he treats her badly.

Recalling Death of a Salesman, I wonder how this play can possibly translate in China? How could a driven pursuit of capitalism resonate in a communist country?

That is what makes this new play, Salesman in China so interesting. Why would Chinese actor Ying Ruocheng ask Arthur Miller to come to China to direct this show?

Perhaps the Chinese saw Willy for the loser that he is and that his pursuit of the so-called American dream is a farce. Or perhaps, as Miller says in the play, it is a story of fathers and sons.

In Salesman in China, the rehearsals are a struggle and both Miller and the Chinese cast are unhappy. Bickering through a translator is frequent. The star Ying Ruocheng’s frustration is almost agonizing. Fortunately, he speaks English and he and Miller eventually settle their differences and the play opens.

For the most part, the play is rather depressing, and the audience is left wondering why there can’t be some compromises. But thankfully there are a few laughs. An unsmiling stage manager who demands that breaks be taken when he calls them creates humour with his poor timing.

There are sub-titles projected at the front of the stage – when the characters are speaking in English, the words appear in Chinese and vice-versa. The use of the translators creates humour when we can read the words and they are not quite what the person said. Often the translator lets personal feelings dictate the responses.

Adrian Pang is brilliant as Ying Ruocheng who plays Willy Loman. He wants Beijing to see a first-rate production of Death of a Salesman, and he agonizes over his role and working with Arthur Miller. He also functions as a peacemaker when the rest of the actors don’t understand or appreciate Miller. In Pang, we can see how heavily this weighs on him. Pang shows us that Ruocheng’s struggle is pulling him down, just as Willy Loman is pulled down and finally destroyed.

Tom McCamus, a favourite at Stratford Festival with 17 seasons behind him, is perfect as Arthur Miller. As the creator, he is very protective of his work and has strong opinions as to how it should be presented. His temper is held in check by his wife Inge Morath played thoughtfully by Sarah Orenstein.

The rest of the 19 cast members are all excellent, taking us back in  time to 1983 when it was so important for them to rehearse this play and get it on stage.

It’s a seemingly unbelievable, fascinating play, written by a theatre couple, playwright Leanna Brodie and actor/director Jovanni Sy. Sy is also the director of this production. I had the pleasure of seeing him perform in 2000 as the King of Siam in The King and I at Huron Country Playhouse in Grand Bend. His character then showed the importance of sharing cultures, just as this play does.

This is an enlightening work taking us behind the scenes in a theatre at a particular place and time. And yet the driving ambition to put on the best show possible and bring in full-house audiences goes across all cultural boundaries. The desire for that standing ovation is timeless. And yes, George Wendt was amazing as Willy Loman and received a standing ovation, even though the audience had come to laugh.  Salesman in China also had a loud and long standing ovation in Stratford, and we expect that this new play will move forward to more audiences in the near future.

Salesman in China continues in repertory until October 26 at the Avon Theatre, Stratford. Tickets are available at the Stratford Festival at 1-800-567-1600, or check www.stratfordfestival.ca

Photo: Adrian Pang 彭耀順 as Ying Ruocheng (left) and Tom McCamus as Arthur Miller in Salesman in China. Photo by David Hou.

Salesman in China
By Leanna Brodie and Jovanni Sy
Suggested by the memoirs of Arthur Miller and Ying Ruocheng
Directed by Jovanni Sy
Performed by Adrian Pang, Tom McCamus, Sarah Orenstein, et al.
Avon Theatre, Stratford
August 23 to October 26, 2024
Reviewed by Mary Alderson