May 5, 2026… Arthur Miller’s Pulitzer Prize–winning classic Death of a Salesman takes the stage at the Stratford Festival, immersing audiences into the fragile, deeply human world of Willy Loman. Directed by Dean Gabourie and starring Tom McCamus as Willy alongside Lucy Peacock as Linda Loman, the production remains one of theatre’s most piercing explorations of ambition, identity and the cost of the American dream.
In this searing portrait, an aging salesman clings to a fading vision of success, convinced that charm and perseverance will secure the respect and stability he has spent his life chasing. As memory and reality blur, the illusions that have sustained him begin to unravel, exposing the quiet devastation of a family in crisis. With emotional immediacy and striking set and costume design, this production draws audiences into an intimate world where past and present collide, long-suppressed truths emerge and the price of unfulfilled promise is revealed.
“Ultimately, Death of a Salesman is about the cost of familial loyalty. Willy offers the ultimate sacrifice for his family because he believes it is the only way to provide them with the financial stability and inheritance that he failed to achieve through a lifetime of selling,” says Gabourie. “Although brutal and misguided, in Willy’s mind, this deeply poignant sacrifice is an act of love.”
Death of a Salesman also features Josh Johnston as Happy Loman, Matthew Kabwe as Charley, David W. Keeley as Uncle Ben, and Joe Perry as Biff Loman, with Sean Arbuckle as Howard Wagner, Shane Carty as Second Waiter, Michael Louis Johnson as Stanley, Trumpet Player, Karthik Kadam, Devin MacKinnon, Krystin Pellerin as Miss Forsythe, Irene Poole as Jenny, Chick Reid as The Woman, Raymond Strachan as Bernard, Liam Tobin, Nadine Villasin as Letta and Jennifer Villaverde.
Gabourie is joined by Set Designer Scott Penner, Costume Designer Denyse Karn, Lighting Designer Louise Guinand, Composer and Music Curator Michael Louis Johnson and Sound Designer John Gzowski.
Death of a Salesman officially opens on May 28 and runs until October 24 at the Avon Theatre. Tickets are available at stratfordfestival.ca or by calling 1.800.567.1600.
The 2026 season also features The Tempest, Guys and Dolls, Something Rotten!, Waiting for Godot, The Hobbit, The Importance of Being Earnest, Saturday, Sunday, Monday, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Othello, The Tao of the World and The King James Bible Play. For more information, visit stratfordfestival.ca.
The 2026 Season is supported by Ophelia Lazaridis.
Proud 2026 Season Partners: BMO, Canada Life and RBC Royal Bank.
Production Co-Sponsor: VFG Wealth.
Production Underwriters: The Harkins-Manning Family in memory of Jim & Susan Harkins.
CAST (in alphabetical order)
Sean Arbuckle Howard Wagner
Shane Carty Second Waiter
Josh Johnston Happy Loman
Michael Louis Johnson Stanley, Trumpet Player
Matthew Kabwe Charley
Karthik Kadam Understudy
David W. Keeley Uncle Ben
Devin MacKinnon Understudy
Tom McCamus Willy Loman
Lucy Peacock Linda Loman
Krystin Pellerin Miss Forsythe
Joe Perry Biff Loman
Irene Poole Jenny
Chick Reid The Woman
Raymond Strachan Bernard
Liam Tobin Understudy
Nadine Villasin Letta
Jennifer Villaverde Understudy
ARTISTIC CREDITS
Director Dean Gabourie
Set Designer Scott Penner
Costume Designer Denyse Karn
Lighting Designer Louise Guinand
Composer and Music Curator Michael Louis Johnson
Sound Designer John Gzowski
Fight and Intimacy Director Anita Nittoly
Assistant Set Designer Jung A Im 임정아
Assistant Costume Designer Jordan Chambers
Assistant Lighting Designer Arantza Lopez Luna
Stage Manager Anne Murphy
Assistant Stage Manager Erin Fitzgerald
Assistant Stage Manager Corinne Richards
Assistant Stage Manager Delaney Small
Production Stage Manager Bona Duncan
Production Stage Manager Maxwell T. Wilson
Production Assistant Monique Danielle
Technical Director Eleanor Creelman