Nathan Lane, Laurie Metcalf to star in ‘Death of a Salesman’ on Broadway

Christopher Abbott and Ben Ahlers will also star in Arthur Miller's drama, and the production marks Lane and Metcalf’s first time on Broadway together since 2008.

Summary

• Nathan Lane; Laurie Metcalf; Christopher Abbott; and Ben Ahlers will star in a Death of a Salesman revival on Broadway at the Winter Garden Theatre starting March 6
• The classic play follows a salesman who realizes his American dream remains out of reach after years of work
• The revival reunites Lane and Metcalf on Broadway for the first time since 2008

Nathan Lane, Laurie Metcalf, Christopher Abbott, and Ben Ahlers will lead a new revival of Death of a Salesman on Broadway for 14 weeks only this spring, with performances beginning March 6 ahead of an April 9 opening at the Winter Garden Theatre.

Death of a Salesman is one of the most celebrated American plays of all time. Written by Arthur Miller, the show follows Willy Loman, the title salesman forced to come to terms with the fact that the American dream he’s worked toward for years will always be out of reach. The show premiered on Broadway in 1949 and was last seen there in 2022, in a production starring Wendell Pierce as Willy and Sharon D. Clarke as his wife, Linda.

Lane and Metcalf will now take on those iconic roles, performing together on Broadway for the first time since the 2008 play November. Lane is a three-time Tony Award winner for A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, The Producers, and Angels in America, and he is also a three-time Emmy Award winner for his TV and film work, including on Only Murders in the Building.

Metcalf is a two-time Tony and four-time Emmy Award winner best known for her performances in Roseanne and Hacks on screen and Three Tall Women and A Doll's House, Part 2 on Broadway. She is currently starring in Samuel D. Hunter's Little Bear Ridge Road on Broadway through February 8, 2026.

Additionally, Abbott and Ahlers will star as Biff and Happy Loman, respectively. Abbott is best known for his Golden Globe-nominated performance in Girls and previously starred off Broadway in 2023's Danny and the Deep Blue Sea. Ahlers is known for his TV roles on The Last of Us and The Gilded Age, and his last NYC stage performance was in 2024's Tender Napalm off Broadway.

Joe Mantello (Wicked), who currently directs Metcalf in Little Bear Ridge Road, also stages Death of a Salesman. The show also features scenic design by Chloe Lamford, costume design by Rudy Mance, lighting design by Jack Knowles, and sound design by Mikaal Sulaiman.

“In 1995, while rehearsing a Terrence McNally play with Joe, he turned to me one afternoon out of the blue and quietly said, ‘Someday you and I are going to do Death of a Salesman,’" Lane said in a statement. "And true to his word, 30 years later, that day has come.”

“Collaboration is everything in the theatre," Metcalf said in a statement. "I am lucky to be going from one exciting project to another with Joe Mantello — and in the very same season. Joe and Nathan are longtime collaborators, and my shared history with — and deep respect for — them makes what might otherwise feel daunting feel familiar, and absolutely thrilling.”

"It’s been incredibly rewarding to work closely with the Arthur Miller Estate who’ve so generously opened the archive and encouraged real exploration," Mantello said in a statement. "Looking through Miller’s early drafts revealed insights into the play’s first impulses — including some surprising theatrical ideas that feel both deeply familiar and unexpectedly modern."

Kate Miller, Trustee of the Arthur Miller Literary and Dramatic Property Trust, said in a statement, “Part of what's so exciting about Joe Mantello’s approach is that he has been immersing himself in our extensive archives and interacting with Arthur's earliest drafts of Salesman — sounding out a deeper understanding of the play's inner workings.

"It's been wonderful to work with someone who is successfully finding new ways into a play that's been thoroughly studied, taught, and performed by the greatest artists in the world for nearly eighty years. Mantello’s approach will bring Salesman’s impactful and ever-relevant commentary on the American dream to modern audiences, and we're so eager to see it come to life."

The production was first teased in a March 2025 article in The New York Times.

Check back for information on Death of a Salesman tickets on New York Theatre Guide.

Photo credit: Nathan Lane, Laurie Metcalf, Christopher Abbott, and Ben Ahlers. (Photos courtesy of production; Lane photo by Luke Fontana; Metcalf photo by Rich Fury)