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Arthur Miller’s The Crucible
5th - 7th July 2012
Reviewed by
The play takes place in Salem, Massachusetts in 1962, but the parallels
between the witch-hunt in Salem in 1692 and the McCarthyism of the 1950s
across America are frightening. Miller wrote The
Crucible as an allegory of McCarthyism: the era in which the American
Government, led by a young Senator called Joseph McCarthy, accused innocent
people, often artists and writers, of being communists. Miller himself
was accused of having communist sympathies and was called in front of
the committee for questioning. Many reputations and livelihoods were destroyed
by this and even today it remains an embarrassing time in America’s
history.
Miller did not use historical records for his characters; he merged people
from history and moulded them to suit the play. He uses fewer girls and
raised the age of antagonist Abigail Williams from 11 to 17 to allow for
the fictional sexual relationship with protagonist John Procter - and
accordingly lowers his age, as history dictates that he would have been
70 at the time of the trials. Putting sexual jealousy as the root cause
of the lies that led to persecution allowed Miller more creative freedom
with his writing. Like the trials of McCarthyism, the Salem witch trials
required no evidence and were widely publicised in the community, forever
tarnishing names and reputations. Both Salem and McCarthyism have become
synonymous with failed justice.
The Crucible has been reproduced many times all over the world due to
the underlying story being as relevant today as it has ever been; the
basic threat of persecution and accusation due to people’s beliefs
is still a problem today. This production brought to Unity by Merseyside
Academy of Drama and Josef Weinburger Ltd, although an amateur production,
was superb. The cast wonderfully told the heart wrenching tale of loyalties,
lies and failed justice. Nakib Narat as John Proctor was outstanding,
his face etched with despair and desperation. While Jessica Olwyn as Abigail
Williams perfected the manipulative jealousy of a scorned woman perfectly,
each sly glance carefully played out to a captivated audience.
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