Arthur Miller’s A View from the Bridge speaks to modern-day issues
By MARRIE STONE
“Just remember, kid, you can quicker get back a million dollars that was stole than a word that you gave away.” –Eddie Carbone in Arthur Miller’s A View from the Bridge
It’s been said that plays exist in three time periods – the period they’re set, the period they’re written and the period they’re performed. In the case of Arthur Miller’s 1955 play A View from the Bridge, the distance between its writing and setting is negligible. But staging a 1950s play in 2024 America reveals some surprising similarities between the two eras.
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Photos by Aaron Rumley
(L-R) Matthew Salazar-Thompson, Richard Baird and Steve Froehlich star in Arthur Miller’s “A View from the Bridge,” now on stage at the Laguna Playhouse through November 17
“This play is resonating as much – if not more – than it ever has before,” said Director David Ellenstein, who is currently staging Miller’s play at the Laguna Playhouse. “It’s interesting to see how many other productions [of this play] are being mounted around the country. It’s definitely experiencing a resurgence.”
Playhouse favorite Richard Baird stars as Eddie Carbone, an Italian American longshoreman living in the slums of Brooklyn with his wife Beatrice and orphaned niece Catherine. Confronting themes like illegal immigration, the economic plight of longshoremen and turning on ones’ friends and relations, the play might strike a familiar chord with today’s audience.
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Margot White (Beatrice) and Richard Baird (Eddie) star in “A View from the Bridge”
A View from the Bridge just finished its run at North Coast Repertory in San Diego where it enjoyed a fantastic reception, both for its timeless themes as well as its relatability and authenticity. “So many people from New York, who grew up in 1955, told us, ‘Oh my God, this takes me back! You made me think of my mother and father.’ Classics like Shakespeare or British and Irish playwrights – although they’re amazing plays – can’t deliver that immediate impact. This play connects with people,” said Baird.
To prepare for the role, Baird revisited Franklin D. Roosevelt’s famous 1932 “Forgotten Man” radio address which honors men like Eddie who were longshoreman, miners, auto mechanics and other blue-collar workers who helped get the U.S. through the Great Depression and who no one talks about anymore.
“Eddie has this carapace of being the first Italian son and an old-school guy’s guy (what some might call “toxic masculinity”),” Baird said. “He believes in the old rules of the neighborhood and hard work. Now all those beliefs are turning into emotions. He’s a guy who believes men aren’t supposed to cry and now he wants to cry all the time. He’s having to deal with emotions he doesn’t understand.”
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(Front) Richard Baird and Marie Zolezzi; (Back) Coby Rogers
Inspired by a true story Miller heard in 1948 about a longshoreman who turned his own relatives into immigration officials, Miller recognized the Greek tragedy qualities of the real-life story. The event also underscored Miller’s own reactions to widespread McCarthyism prevalent in the late 1940s and ‘50s.
“That was the case in a lot of Miller’s writing,” Baird said. “That’s certainly what The Crucible is all about.”
In Eddie’s neighborhood, there’s nothing worse than being a rat. It’s worse than murder to these characters. “Watching Eddie’s old-world values collide with these younger characters who didn’t grow up during the Depression is interesting,” Baird said. “They’re excited about Broadway, watching movies, fancy clothes and going out dancing. Eddie can’t imagine a world where you don’t scrimp and save and give over everything to your family. There’s a lot of conflicting emotions going on with him.”
Welcome to all the fraught undertones of the United States in 2024, where the unpredictable future and complicated past are locked in fierce battle. Even if you’re familiar with this play, you might experience it anew through our modern-day lens.
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(L-R) Steve Froehlich, Lowell Byers, Margot White, Coby Rogers, Marie Zolezzi and Matthew Salazar-Thompson; (Back) Richard Baird
“There’s a real authenticity in the text because Miller grew up fairly close to Red Hook. He knows exactly how this community talks. It leaps off the page. A lesser playwright would make a stereotype of it, but here it’s very authentic,” Baird said.
“Miller wrote in archetypes, not stereotypes,” said Ellenstein. “Directing it, I found so much more nuance and humanity in it than I’d ever realized. I’ve always known it was an emotional play about deceit, family problems, security and revenge. But the real core of the play for me is the struggle we all have between the animal nature and the civilized nature. We all have this war going on in us. I think that’s why it’s getting this visceral response from the audience.”
Baird is joined on stage by some remarkable talent. Margot White plays Beatrice and Marie Zolezzi plays Catherine. Playhouse regulars might recognize Matthew Salazar-Thompson from his role in Murder on the Links last year.
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Marie Zolezzi (seated) and Margot White
“I’ve been at North Coast for 22 years. I’ve put on 170 plays. This play is in my top five,” Ellenstein said. “I’m proud of this one.”
A View from the Bridge runs through Sunday, Nov. 17. Performances will be Wednesdays at 7:30 p.m.; Thursdays at 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.; Fridays at 7:30 p.m.; Saturdays at 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.; Sundays at 1 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. There will be no performance on Sunday, Nov. 3 at 5:30 p.m. There will be a post-show talkback following the Friday, Nov. 8 performance.
Tickets range from $51-$100. For more information, or to purchase tickets, visit their website by clicking here.
Laguna Playhouse is located at 606 Laguna Canyon Road, Laguna Beach.
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Front (L-R): Richard Baird and Coby Rogers; Back (L-R): Marie Zolezzi, Margot White and Lowell Byers
