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THE CRUCIBLE Dates Production Dates: Thursday 31 October, Friday 1 and Saturday 12 November 2002. Cast
Production Team
Resume Arthur Miller's classic parable of mass hysteria draws a chilling parallel between the Salem witch-hunt of 1692 - 'one of the strangest and most awful chapters in human history' - and the McCarthyism which gripped America in the 1950s. The story of how the small community of Salem is stirred into madness by superstition, paranoia and malice, culminating in a violent climax, is a savage attack on the evils of mindless persecution and the terrifying power of false accusations. A Word From The Director Something bad, something quite horrible has happened........ "Dark forces are at work. The enemy is within, still dangerous, still threatening. The forces of the state and society must band together at all costs to root them out. There is a clear need for stern, possibly severe measures. No room for faint hearts; certainly no room for dissent... Sounds familar? Something of the War Against Terrorism? In fact we're in colonial New England where it's the devil and his supporters who must be destroyed at all costs rather than Al Quaeda. Arthur Miller's "Crucible", while firmly based on the Puritan witchhunts of the 17th Century, was written and produced at the time of the McCarthy hearings of the early 50s in America when the Cold War was at its heights and patriotic Americans suspected a red under virtually every bed. The parallels are clear - as they are to some degree today in Bush's America where the great fear centres on terrorist Muslims - real or imaginary - hovering in the shadows. We're doing the "Crucible" as our Autumn show in early November as our contribution to the Wandsworth Arts Festival. It's a considerable undertaking but, we hope, a satisfying one. It's stuffed with strong meaty parts and violent emotion." Pat Wilson Review The Magdalene Players chose a very challenging play and brought it off exceedingly well. The quality of the acting was good with particularly fine performances from David Ashton, whose fussy Reverend Parris was wonderful, Kathryn Daw (Abigial Williams) who was able to switch from indignant maid to threatening "friend" and home-wrecker effortlessly and Lucy Gray (Mary Warren) who should be noted for a sincere and mature performance at only sixteen. Nigel Gray played a convincing Reverend John Hale and Wendy Gilyot-Brown's Rebecca Nurse was both funny and moving. Sabina Sping-Spencer was expressive and genuine as Tituba although her lines, due to the Barbados accent, were sometimes unclear. The scenery, which consisted mainly of black walls and an appropriately lit window in each scene, worked very well in its simplicity, creating atmosphere without clutter. I know little about seventeenth century clothing but the costumes were certainly consistent throughout and convinced me. The director, Pat Wilson, did a grand job of placing huge amounts of people (I think ten was the most on stage at one time) on a very small stage with no blocking and no-one falling over. John and Goody Proctor, played by Chris Robertson and Alison Squires respectively, brought the play to a poignant close which left me with tears in my eyes. All in all, an exceptional production. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||