@ Bedlam Theatre, Edinburgh, until Sat 14 Nov 2015
There’s been many a student production of The Crucible over the years, including here at Bedlam, but EUTC have pulled out some stops for this one. A giant wooden hut has been constructed in the auditorium, housing both cast and audience for this elaborate and accomplished staging of Arthur Miller‘s classic.
The play is a fictionalised account of the witch trials that took place in Salem, Massachusetts, at the end of the 17th century. For the crime of consorting with the devil, twenty locals were hanged, a reminder of how recently medieval justice prevailed in the West. When Miller wrote the play, it was intended as allegory for the Communist “witch hunts” taking place in contemporary America, but that extra layer of context isn’t needed to enjoy a play which stands alone as a potent study of human ignorance and mass stupidity.
The Crucible requires a huge cast of villagers, a sure sign of the play’s real life origin; a purely fictional play could easily skimp on characters. So recently after colonisation, English regional accents persisted, as they do on stage tonight. Provincial attitudes persist too. Everyone knows each other’s business. Absence at church is noted and frowned upon. Word spreads fast. This is the tinderbox into which the spark of one girl’s accusations of witchcraft is thrown.
Among near-universally strong performances – even George Prové, who unfortunately appears to have lost his voice, commands attention as the local Reverend Parris – it’s a little churlish to single individuals out, but both Sasha Briggs as Abigail Williams, the girl whose accusations start the scandal, and Douglas Clark as accused farmer John Proctor, merit particular mention for their dynamic portrayals of key roles. No-one lets the side down though. There’s a depth of talent in this cast.
In truth, while the wooden set is impressive, it is something of a gimmick, and means poor sight lines in parts. At times too, carried away with emotion, words get lost in the fits of angry shouting. Certain scenes could bear turning down a notch with no loss of effect. Nonetheless, while this is a student performance in name, it’s of much higher quality than that would imply. It’s a production fully worthy of this powerful play.