The Price is right
Arthur Miller’s forgotten classic gets a rich treatment by the Elite Theatre Company
By Christina Semaan 06/26/2008
As I was taking my seat in the Petit Playhouse in Oxnard, I noticed that it is quite a small venue. The stage set was beautiful — a generic word, I know, but it is the most accurate description. Everything — from the Victorian style armchair and couch to the old Victrola and tube radio — was perfect and fitting for Arthur Miller’s The Price.
The Price is one of Miller’s less-known plays, probably because, as a play written in the 1960s, it never directly touches on any of the more pressing issues of that era. Instead, we are taken back to a family feud that stretches across time, from the Depression to 1968, when the story is set. Its title takes on two meanings: the price of some old furniture, which belongs to the late father of the protagonist Victor Franz (Howard Leader), that he and his wife, Esther (Linda Schaver), are trying to sell; and the price of the trade-offs one makes in life. Victor paid the price of giving up a better future to care for his sick father, while Walter, his brother (Tom Eubanks), abandoned the family and pursued a high-paying job as a doctor. As a result, they have an estranged relationship; even by the end of the play, they never reach a resolution.
Walter has not seen Victor in years, and the two are brought together to sell off the furniture that belonged to their father. Inevitably, they end up digging through their past, which is full of resentment and unanswered questions. Before they cut off contact from each other, Victor had asked Walter to loan him money so he could attend college, which Walter coldly denied. The audience discovers, along with Victor, that not only did Walter deny his brother the help he needed but so did their father, who simply hid his money away, keeping its existence a secret. The revelation made Victor’s sacrifice of becoming a cop to make ends meet rather than attaining a more fulfilling job seem almost pointless. He later adamantly defends it, however, saying he did not want to see his father end up homeless.
While I waited for the show to start, I overheard that the actors were a bit taxed for rehearsal time — they intended for the show to be ready the previous week — and I worried that I was in for a somewhat unprepared performance. In the first scene, Victor walked in, looked over the room and its stacked-up furniture, moved over to the Victrola and cranked up a laughing record.
By the time his pushy wife joined him, I completely disregarded my earlier worry. They connected the way the characters were meant to, as an imperfect, bickering couple.
Steve Grumette, as elderly furniture dealer Gregory Solomon, offered the audience their laughs. As the drama’s biggest source for comic relief, he stole every scene he was in, and the audience clearly enjoyed his presence, even when he merely crept onstage in the midst of an intense argument between brothers to snag an orange from his briefcase. His performance was memorable, even though the actor could never visually pass as a 90-year-old.
The argument scene between brothers had the potential to lend itself to overacting, but both actors played it with the right amount of balance. The size of the venue and limited seating contributed to the audience’s reactions and how they connected with what they saw onstage, especially during dramatic scenes such as those between Victor and Walter. Leader’s character was so believably furious it occasionally felt a bit like I was getting
a scolding.
Overall, The Price is a well-acted, beautifully designed play with a classic script.
The Price runs through July 20. For performance dates and times, visit www.elitetheatre.com.
Other plays in production in Ventura County
• It’s Only Life at the Rubicon (1006 E. Main St., Ventura, 667-2912). Through July 13.
• The Odd Couple at the Conejo Players Theater (351 S. Moorpark Rd., Thousand Oaks, 495-3715). Through July 19.
Also: Conejo Afternoon Theater presents Social Security from June 28-July 19.
• The Music Man at the Ojai Art Center Theater (113 S. Montgomery St., Ojai, 646-0117). Through July 19.
• As You Like It at California Lutheran University’s Kingsmen Shakespeare Festival (60 W. Olsen Rd. #1800, Thousand Oaks, 493-3512). Through July 13.
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One of the most difficult projects I've been involved with but thanks to a talented cast, we have a wonderful production.
Howard