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The Price (play)

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The Price
Scene from a 2017 Greek production
Written byArthur Miller
CharactersVictor Franz
Esther Franz
Gregory Solomon
Walter Franz
Date premieredFebruary 7, 1968
Place premieredMorosco Theatre, New York City
Original languageEnglish
GenreDrama
SettingThe attic of a to-be-demolished brownstone apartment building, New York City

The Price is a two-act play written in 1967 by Arthur Miller.[1] It is about family dynamics, the price of furniture and the price of one's decisions. The play premiered on Broadway in 1968, and has been revived four times on Broadway. It was nominated for two 1968 Tony Awards.

Miller stated that he wrote the play as a response to the Vietnam War and the "avant-garde plays that to one or another degree fit the absurd styles."[2]

Productions

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The play opened on Broadway at the Morosco Theatre on February 7, 1968 where it played until the production moved to the 46th Street Theatre on November 18, 1968. The play closed on February 15, 1969 after 429 performances. The opening cast included Harold Gary as Gregory Solomon, Pat Hingle as Victor Franz, Kate Reid as Esther Franz, and Arthur Kennedy as Walter Franz.[3]

The Price was nominated for two 1968 Tony Awards, for Best Play (Arthur Miller, writer; Robert Whitehead, producer) and Best Scenic Design (Boris Aronson). The Price lost in the "Best Play" category to Tom Stoppard's Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead. The play was profiled in the William Goldman book The Season: A Candid Look at Broadway.

A UK revival of the play was staged from August 9 to August 25, 2018 at the Theatre Royal, Bath to mark the 50th anniversary of the original run. Directed by Jonathan Church, it starred Brendan Coyle as Victor, Sara Stewart as Esther, Adrian Lukis as Walter and David Suchet as Gregory Solomon.[4] The production transferred to Wyndham's Theatre in London's West End from February 5 to April 27, 2019.[5]

It will be revived in the Gate Theatre (Dublin, Ireland) in 2023, directed by Conleth Hill.[6][7]

Production history

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The Price has been revived four times on Broadway since the original 1968 production:

Notable Regional Productions:

Casts

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Characters 1968 Original Broadway cast 1979 Broadway revival 1992 Broadway revival 1999 Broadway Revival 2017 Broadway revival 2019 West End revival
Victor Franz Pat Hingle Mitchell Ryan Hector Elizondo Jeffrey DeMunn Mark Ruffalo Brendan Coyle
Esther Franz Kate Reid Scotty Bloch Debra Mooney Lizbeth MacKay Jessica Hecht Sara Stewart
Gregory Solomon Harold Gary Joseph Buloff Eli Wallach Bob Dishy Danny DeVito David Suchet
Walter Franz Arthur Kennedy Fritz Weaver Joe Spano Harris Yulin Tony Shalhoub Adrian Lukis

Overview

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After the Great Depression, Victor Franz gave up going to college to support his father. After 30 years, Victor returns to sell his parents’ estate. His wife, Esther, his brother, Walter, and a canny furniture dealer have their own agendas. Victor must finally deal with his sacrifice.

Characters

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  • Victor Franz - A police sergeant, eligible for retirement and approaching his fiftieth birthday. The character is based on Irving Abrams, Miller's childhood friend, who attended Columbia University and had the highest IQ on the NYC police force.[18]
  • Esther Franz - Victor's wife, it is suggested that Esther may have a problem with drinking.
  • Gregory Solomon - A wily Russian-Jewish antique dealer, an octogenarian.[18] Michael Billington of The Guardian described the character as "a blissfully comic creation who, at first, appears to have wandered in from a Neil Simon play, but who is well aware this is his last chance to defy time."[19]
  • Walter Franz - Victor's brother, a successful doctor Victor hasn't spoken to in years.

Adaptations

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Цена [ru] — film by Mikhail Kalik. USSR 1969 year.

The Price was adapted for television, directed by Fielder Cook from a script by Miller, and broadcast as part of the Hallmark Hall of Fame on the NBC network on February 3, 1971. David Burns played Mr. Solomon, Colleen Dewhurst played Mrs. Franz, George C. Scott played Victor Franz, and Barry Sullivan played Walter Franz.[20] The production was nominated for six Emmy Awards, including Outstanding Single Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role (Scott), Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in Drama (Burns), Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Drama - A Single Program (Cook), and Outstanding Single Program - Drama or Comedy (David Susskind, producer). Scott and Cook won.

Awards and nominations

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Original Broadway production

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Year Award ceremony Category Nominee Result
1968 Tony Award Best Play Nominated
Best Scenic Design Boris Aronson Nominated
Outer Critics Circle Award Outstanding Play Won
Outstanding Performance Harold Gray Won

1971 Television Special

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Year Award ceremony Category Nominee Result
1971 Primetime Emmy Award Outstanding Single Program - Drama or Comedy David Susskind Nominated
Outstanding Single Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role George C. Scott Won
Outstanding Single Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role Colleen Dewhurst Nominated
Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series David Burns Won
Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Drama - A Single Program Fielder Cook Won
Outstanding Achievement in Art Direction or Scenic Design - For a Dramatic Program or Feature Length Film, a Single Program of a Series or a Special Program John Clements Nominated
1972 Directors Guild of America Award Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Movies for Television Fielder Cook Nominated

1979 Broadway revival

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Year Award Category Nominee Result
1980 Drama Desk Award Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play Fritz Weaver Nominated

1992 Broadway revival

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Year Award Category Nominee Result
1993 Tony Award Best Revival Nominated
Drama Desk Award Outstanding Revival of a Play Nominated
Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play Eli Wallach Nominated

1999 Broadway revival

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Year Award ceremony Category Nominee Result
2000 Tony Award Best Revival of a Play Nominated
Drama Desk Award Outstanding Revival of a Play Arthur Miller Nominated
Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play Harris Yulin Nominated
Outer Critics Circle Award Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play Bob Dishy Nominated
Outstanding Featured Actress in a Play Lizbeth MacKay Nominated

2017 Broadway revival

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Year Award Category Nominee Result
2017 Tony Award Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Play Danny DeVito Nominated
Drama Desk Award Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play Won
Outer Critics Circle Award Outstanding Revival of a Play Nominated
Outstanding Featured Actor in a Play Danny DeVito Won
Drama League Award Outstanding Revival of a Play Nominated
Distinguished Performance Danny DeVito Nominated

2019 West End revival

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Year Award Category Nominee Result
2019 Laurence Olivier Award Best Revival Wyndham's Theatre Nominated
Best Actor David Suchet Nominated
Best Actor in a Supporting Role Adrian Lukis Nominated

References

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  1. ^ Miller, Arthur. Echoes Down the Corridor: Collected Essays, 1944–2000. New York: Viking, 2000, p. 297 ISBN 0670893145
  2. ^ Miller, Arthur (1999-11-14). "The Past and Its Power: Why I Wrote 'The Price'". Retrieved 2019-02-08.
  3. ^ " 'The Price' 1968 Broadway" Playbill, accessed August 16, 2016
  4. ^ "The Price — Theatre Royal Bath".
  5. ^ "Arthur Miller's the Price to transfer to the West End with David Suchet". 15 October 2018.
  6. ^ "The Price by Arthur Miller".
  7. ^ "The Gate, after a challenging decade, looks to 'become the type of civic space a theatre should be'". The Irish Times.
  8. ^ " 'The Price' 1979" ibdb.com, accessed August 16, 2016
  9. ^ " 'The Price' 1992" ibdb.com, accessed August 16, 2016
  10. ^ " 'The Price' 1999" ibdb.com, accessed August 16, 2016
  11. ^ " The Price 1999" Playbill, accessed August 16, 2016
  12. ^ Viagas, Robert. "Mark Ruffalo and Danny DeVito Begin Previews in Broadway 'Price'" Playbill, February 16, 2017
  13. ^ Vine, Hannah. "Mark Ruffalo and Danny DeVito Bring 'The Price' Back to Broadway" Playbill, March 1, 2017
  14. ^ The Price acttheatre.org, accessed August 16, 2016
  15. ^ Pierpont, Katie. "Arthur Miller Classic 'The Price' to Play Center Theatre Group's Mark Taper Forum" theatermania.com, February 11, 2015
  16. ^ The Price timelinetheatre.com, accessed August 16, 2016
  17. ^ "Hal Linden is right for ‘The Price’ at Arena Stage" washingtonpost.com, accessed November 5, 2017
  18. ^ a b Miles, Ben. "Review. The Price" ShowMag, February 2015, retrieved February 17, 2017
  19. ^ Billington, Michael (2018-08-17). "The Price review – David Suchet glows in Arthur Miller revival". The Guardian. Retrieved 2019-02-08.
  20. ^ The Price paleycenter.org, accessed August 16, 2016

Further reading

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