19 May All My Sons

The current incarnation of Arthur Miller’s shattering play All My Sons under the direction of Jack O’Brien at Roundabout Theatre is a marvel of acting and production values.

The piece is a jewel in Mr. Miller’s canon and in the cast’s capable hands the dialogue sizzles and the action soars over the audience with a veracity that ignites the plot and burns in glowing embers of urgency.

Tracy Letts, Benjamin Walker and Annette Bening light up the stage. Photo by Joan Marcus.

The theme of business contracts, production and profit circumventing human lives and safety during World War II is at the center of the controversial actions taken by two questionable businessmen supplying materials for war planes and the resulting catastrophe for more than twenty GIs. It was possible that their actions were also directly responsible for the loss of one of their own sons.

A timeless rumination on the struggle between capitalist business interests and humanity, the play is effective and thought-provoking on multiple levels. Filled with deep nuance and pathos, the script is at once magnificent in size and intimately close; making the final moments all the more shocking and heartbreaking.

All My Sons runs through June 30.