A View from the Bridge

A View from the Bridge is the most Greek of Arthur Miller's tragedies, featuring an intractable hero (Richard Harder) whose hubris lies in the delusion that his house is his castle — a delusion that leads only to jealousy, betrayal, and revenge. Off Broadway West has a tendency to select large ensemble dramas that exceed the depth of the company's ensembles; as a result, its productions always offer a few strong lead performances accompanied by much weaker supporting casts. This is especially problematic in a high-tension drama requiring a fair amount of dialect work, since even the strongest moments tend to falter when the wrong performer stumbles onto the scene. The company (now in its third season) might make better use of its obviously limited resources by choosing plays with smaller casts, giving dynamite actors like Harder more of a chance to control the stage. It might even be a good idea to let Arthur Miller, Harold Pinter, and Tennessee Williams fend for themselves, and opt instead for more contemporary scripts by lesser-known playwrights. That's how Off Broadway West can begin making a more vital contribution — and avoid the risk of becoming just another middle-of-the-road community theater.