This character is clearly meant to be Elia Kazan, the brilliant and legendary director of On the Waterfront, who was a friend and collaborator of Arthur Miller’s. The other interesting real life representation is the rather minor character of Mickey, played by Jonathan Thompson. The scenes with her are a fascinating glimpse that we don’t always get into the mind of men like Miller, who in real life married Monroe after having an affair with her only to have the relationship end shortly before her death. It’s hard to see the boozy, by that time 36-year-old, Monroe in the young Olivar. Alycia Olivar played the role beautifully, although it was one of the roles where the age of the cast was somewhat of a hindrance. It also depicts her in all her frailty and addiction-addled mania quite admirably. The character of Maggie caused a minor scandal, as the play depicts her in a less than flattering light. At the time of the play’s release in 1964, her death by apparent suicide was still fresh in people’s minds, having happened only two years earlier. The play is notable for many reasons, but two of the most interesting are some of the real life representations within.Īside from Miller, the character Maggie, his second wife, is clearly his second wife in real life, Marilyn Monroe. He was on stage for the entirety of the performance, which in itself is not an easy feat. Quentin was admirably brought to life by a talented young actor named Joseph Workman, who really had to carry a lot of weight here, essentially doing double duty as narrator and star. Then, as in Miller’s own life, Quentin reminisces on his first, second, and third wives, and the respective anxieties and troubles between him and them. To make sure this is not missed, the young actor playing Quentin was dressed as basically a young Arthur Miller: slender, with thick rimmed glasses and a suit. The play concerns a lawyer named Quentin, who is very transparently a representation of Miller himself. This play is an unusual and divisive piece that takes place mostly in the writer’s memories. Now she’s back with a production of the great playwright Arthur Miller’s After the Fall, an autobiographical and abstract play by the writer of dozens of classic plays and films, including Death of a Salesman, The Price, The Crucible, and The Misfits. Last time we checked in with OSU’s Elizabeth Helman, she was directing the successful Bard in the Quad series for the university.

After the Fall by Arthur Miller