A superb cast elevates a rare revival of a lesser-known Arthur Miller play at the Marylebone Theatre. The Price, written in 1968, is not one of Miller's best works, but it remains compelling in its uncompromising cynicism. Originally conceived as a rebuke to the abstract, consequence-free tone of 1960s theatre, this drama explores the fractured American Dream through a family's painful reckoning with the past.
Plot and Characters
New York cop Victor, played by Elliot Cowan, returns with his wife Esther (Faye Castelow) to his late father's home to sell the furniture before the house is demolished. This task reopens old wounds about what Victor sacrificed to care for their bankrupted parent while his brother Walter (John Hopkins) became a successful doctor. The weight of this history is made almost tangible by a heavyweight creative team led by director Jonathan Munby. Anna Watson's lighting picks out chairs, lamps, and mementos as if they were bones, while Jon Bausor's forced-perspective set creates a mausoleum-like atmosphere, with dusty, stifling piles of things crowding the stage.
The Dealer's Entrance
Into this tale of family strife drops wily furniture dealer Gregory, played by Henry Goodman, who is approaching 90 years old and has lived many lives. Unlike everyone else on stage, Gregory relentlessly adapts to the present rather than seeking meaning, blame, or absolution in the past. Nostalgia is not his game. Goodman plays this show-stopping character with twinkly inscrutable perfection, his shambolic bluster hovering between sincerity and lived-in pragmatism. He informs Victor that these objects from the past have no intrinsic value; it is about what is in style now. Gregory is the blunt face of capitalism in a crumpled coat.
Performances
Cowan impresses in the more thankless role of the tortured sibling, capturing the quiet desperation underlying Victor's resentment of Walter. His need to hold onto his misery gives his choices meaning. When Walter, played with brittle slickness by Hopkins, challenges this version of events, the confrontation is explosive. Esther is caught in the middle, with Castelow shading in a tangle of love and anger. The first half sees Gregory bartering with Victor over the financial value of the furniture, while the second act revolves around a mirroring battle to determine the cost of the past. Walter's offer of a job to Victor is an attempt to buy forgiveness and own the story. Miller heavily underlines the idea that everything is transactional.
Critique
While it is thrilling to see talented actors really knock chunks out of each other, with Munby excavating every ounce of pain from their performances, a sense of drag begins to set in as Miller circles the same arguments. There is also something structurally awkward about how Gregory is shunted off into a side bedroom after the interval to make room for Miller's replay of the Prodigal Son story. His occasional reappearances feel increasingly jarring, turning him into a weird sort of guest star. However, there is seriously meaty material here about how we take ownership of our lives when value is relative. Even a lesser Miller is greater than most.
Details
Address: Marylebone Theatre, 35 Park Rd, London NW1 6XT. Transport: tube: Marylebone. Price: £19.50-£96. Runs 2hr 40min. Dates: Fri 24 Apr to Sat 2 May 2026, various times. Visit the website for full schedule.
