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‘Youdon ’thavetoch oosebetween
yourpersonallifeandcareer.
Ihavetol ookatm ydysfunction
whenitcomestomyp ersona llife’
at his coyness.(Heeventually forceshimself
to sayit.)Overall,London actors and audiences
are, he says,“slightlymoreappreciative of
the text”.
Pierce himself is happytogooff-script.“Iam
dangerous on Twitter!IalwaysthinkIamtalking
tomyself. AndthenIrealise–Oh.My.God.”He
is also fiercelypolitical, fiercelyDemocratic. In
2016 ,hebacked Hillary Clinton, and was charged
with battery inAtlantaafteranargument with
aBernieSanderssupporter turnedviolent.(He
underwent counsellingand community service.)
Thisround he is leaningtowards Kamala
Harris,the senator from California. But his
message is broader.“Listen,IhateDonald
Trump [but]wehave to be careful not to
think it’sTrump only. He has movedmillions
of people who sharehis beliefs.That is more
concerning to me,”hesays.“Just getting rid of
him is tantamount to [sayingwehadbecome]
post-racial with Obama.”O
ur time is nearlyup, although
Pierce sits unhurriedinthe
armchair.Itell him that
thereisone line inDeath of a
SalesmanthatIcan’t reconcile
with the African-American
experience–namely, whenLoman is nostalgic
for “the great times”.
Pierce burstsintomockprotest.“Spoken like
ayoung man!Youhaven’t hit that wall. And it’s
gonna crash down onyouone day!” Heonce
againreturns to the past.“Thinkabout the men
andwomen who diedinthe muddyMississippi,
alone, at the end ofalynchman’s rope,because
theysaid, ‘I’mfighting for generations who one
daywill vote.’
“Lookatsome of the photographs.There’s
one famous one.Just googlephotographsof
lynchings.You seeaman,bloodiedand cut and
stripped and bare. With thousands of white
people around him. It’smomentsbeforehis
death and theytakeaphoto.That’sthe thing that
reallygets me–we’re gonna murder this man for
no reason, andwe’regonna document it.People
arecheering and laughing.”
By nowweare standing–barelyafoot apart,
andPierce ispointinginto myeyes with two
fingersfrom his right hand.
“A nd yousee this blackman, fullofdignity,
looking into that lens,saying,‘Remember me.
Youremember me.’And let that definewho you
aretoday,and howyou act. That’s acourage and
aloveandadignity andabeauty.Ithinkofthat
man.Youfind that and put it in that FT article.
That manstaring into the future, knowinghis life
is ending,and saying,‘Youremember me.’Act
accordingly, young man, actaccordingly.”
He is channellingaforce thatcould fill the
West End into my earsalone. By the time he has
finished,Ican almost seethe lynchedman before
me.Idon’t quiteknowhowto respond.Wesimply
shakehands,thenPierce strides off into the
photographers’studio.
“Henry,think of our morning,” he calls back,
brightly. “We’ve had serious discussions.But it
was joyous too, yes? The twocan co-exist.”“DeathofaSalesman”runsatL ondon’sPiccadilly
TheatrefromOctober24toJanuary42020.
GETT HenryMance is the FT’s chieffeatures writerYIMAGES; ALAMY;PHILLIPYOUMANS/TRIBECA