In celebration of the 100th anniversary of Arthur Miller’s birth on October 17, 1915, a variety of events will be held in New York, Michigan, and Spain to honor the legacy of the noted playright and former president of PEN International. At PEN American Center, our annual Arthur Miller Freedom to Write Lecture is named after the fierce defender of the freedom of expression. It is the culminating event of the week-long PEN World Voices Festival of International Literature and features leading voices addressing critical free expression challenges. 

Below are some events recommended by the Arthur Miller Foundation to celebrate Miller’s centenary.

Arthur Miller Centenary Reading on Broadway: The Arthur Miller Foundation will celebrate Arthur Miller’s 100th Birthday with a star-studded, one-night-only performance of Miller’s seminal works, which will benefit arts education in New York City public schools. The event will take place on the set of Miller’s A View From The Bridge, and feature scenes from Miller’s seminal works directed by Tony Award winner Anna Shapiro (August: Osage County). Broadway’s Lyceum Theatre, November 16.

The Arthur Miller Centennial / Twelfth International Arthur Miller Conference: The International Arthur Miller Conference returns to Brooklyn Heights, the neighborhood where Miller lived in the 1940s and ’50s. Distinguished American drama critic Christopher Bigsby will deliver the keynote address; Enoch Brater, the Kenneth T. Rowe Collegiate Professor of Dramatic Literature at the University of Michigan, will deliver the concluding remarks. The conference will include panels comprised of playwrights, theatre critics, actors, and directors. There will be staged readings and performances of Miller’s work, culminating in the world premiere staged reading of a new production of A View From the Bridge. This Muslim/Syrian version will be directed by Brooke Ciardelli, the founding artistic director of Northern Stage in Vermont. St. Francis College, Brooklyn: October 16–18.

University of Michigan: Arthur Miller Symposium: A three-day symposium honoring one of Michigan’s most distinguished alumni. Ann Arbor, Michigan: October 14–16.

Symphony Space Arthur Miller Centennial Event: An evening of conversation and film clips celebrating Arthur Miller’s masterpiece Death of a Salesman, including scenes from the 1966 telecast with Lee J. Cobb and Mildred Dunnock, the 1985 television adaptation with Dustin Hoffman and Kate Reid, and the 2000 telecast with Brian Dennehy and Elizabeth Franz. In conversation with Brian Dennehy and Laurie Kennedy, whose father Arthur Kennedy won a Tony Award for playing Biff in the original Broadway cast. Introduction by Rebecca Miller. Discussion led by Jack Doulin, Casting Director at New York Theater Workshop. Symphony Space, New York: October 22.

International Arthur Miller Centennial Conference,The Department of English of the University of Extremadura in Cáceres, Spain, will host the International Arthur Miller Centennial Conference, which aims to provide a forum for academic reflection into any aspect of the life and works of Arthur Miller. This 3-day conference will feature 4 plenary lectures, panels of concurrent paper sessions, 2 roundtable sessions, staged readings, and photographic and book exhibits. Plenary speakers: Christopher Bigsby (University of East Anglia, UK, pending confirmation); Matthew Roudané (Georgia State University), Félix Martín Gutiérrez (Universidad Complutense de Madrid), and Ramón Espejo Romero (Universidad de Sevilla). University of Extremadura, Cáceres, Spain: November 19–21.  

Learn more about Arthur Miller’s life and works, centennial celebration events, current/upcoming productions and publications at www.arthurmiller.org.