Broken Glass at the Young Vic

Directed by Jordan Fein, Arthur Miller’s Olivier Award-winning play follows a Jewish woman in 1938 New York, whose preoccupation with the rising anti-Jewish violence leaves her mysteriously paralysed. Exploring themes of identity, relationships and denial, it’s a warning about the dangers of remaining silent.

The play is set in Brooklyn, where on the other side of the world, Nazi Germany has just carried out Kristallnacht, or “Night of Broken Glass”. Suddenly unable to walk, Sylvia Gellburg’s doctor suggests a link between the atrocities and what he diagnoses as “hysterical paralysis”. Sylvia is labelled “insane” for her obsession with strangers an ocean apart, but when innocent people are being attacked in the streets, and everyone is continuing as normal, Miller calls into question who the insane ones really are. Through conversations with Dr Harry Hyman (brilliantly played by Alex Waldmann), Sylvia also explores the lack of intimacy in her marriage to husband Phillip, whose violence and internalised antisemitism serve as a microcosm of a universal issue.

The set design is minimal, but cleverly so. What begins as a table sprawled with newspapers is later replaced by a bed, highlighting the intersection between the global and domestic space, a concept which is explored throughout. World clocks are positioned above a long glass window, behind which characters take turns to stand and watch the events onstage, and a goldfish endlessly circles its glass bowl. The effect is a claustrophobic sense of helplessness, turning a mirror on society and its reaction, or lack thereof, to uncomfortable realities.

After an interesting initial set-up, there are moments in the second half where the pacing feels a little slow, but this is mitigated by brilliant performances. The acting is impeccable, particularly by Pearl Chanda (Sylvia) and Eli Gelb (Phillip), and the New York accents from a predominantly British cast are very convincing. Staged in the round, the intermittent use of stark lighting illuminates the audience, poignantly making the spectators themselves part of the story. Just as Sylvia’s haunting foresight implores those around her to share her horror, we too are encouraged not be passive bystanders.

Fein’s thoughtful direction amplifies its source material as a moral lesson for society. Written in 1994, Broken Glass is one of Miller’s lesser-known plays, but its commentary on the consequences of turning a blind eye to major world events remains timeless.