"Willy Loman is a very complicated individual," Roberts says. "He's a very confused person. He carries around hopes and dreams, and reality - and never the twain shall meet. He has a grandiose view of his family and what his favorite son should be."
In reality, Biff isn't at all what his father hoped he would be. Vanderpool says Biff is the "truth-teller" in "Death of a Salesman," a foil to the Willy Loman character. "His function is to question things."
Briggs says the play "revolves around the last days of Loman, a failing salesman, who cannot understand how he failed to win success and happiness."
"Through a series of tragic, soul-searching revelations of the life he has lived with his wife, his sons and his business associates, we discover how his quest for the 'American Dream' kept him blind to the people who truly loved him," Briggs explains.
"Willy is obsessed with success - for himself and his sons - but his tragic flaw is his inability to see himself and the world around him as it really is."
Roberts says Loman is the deepest character in a play he's seen, and that's a challenge to portray. "He's a volcano of emotions and you never know what side the lava will go down," he notes.
The characters' expositions contribute to the appeal of the play, Briggs says.
"I enjoy the moments where a character may act in an unexpected way, or have a revealing self-realization, accusation or confession," he explains. "I like watching the characters discover who they are."
The rest of the cast of "Death of a Salesman" is: Ellen Stafford (portraying Linda Loman); Dan Norvell (Ben); Bill Glover (Charley); Michael Coleman (Howard); Chuck Taylor (Bernard); Diana Foreman (The Woman); Julie Powell (Miss Forsythe); Alexandra Hawkins (Letta); Anne Blackburn (Jenny); and Joey Jones (Stanley).
If you go:
Death of a Salesman
8 p.m. Feb. 19-21 and 26-28
3 p.m. Feb. 22 and March 1
Ragged Edge Community Theatre, Harrodsburg
Cost: $12/adults, $8/children
Tickets: (859) 734-2389
Web site: www.raggededgetheatre.org
