A compelling and challenging tale of the Salem Witch trials

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 18: A tragic tale of love, betrayal and witchcraft will be brought vividly to life in Bermuda next week.

Warwick Academy’s production of The Crucible is sure to be as compelling as it will be challenging for the cast.

And for director Chris Jones it is a far cry from the school’s last play Hairspray.

He said: “I wanted to do a straight drama this time.

“I enjoy staging musicals but you get bogged down in all the baggage that accompanies them — the choreography, the musical arrangements, the set and so on.

“I’ve never done a musical which didn’t prove to be a horror in terms of staging on some level.

“With this particular production, I’ve been able to focus specifically on what I wanted to achieve and it’s been pretty plain sailing, for the most part.”

Arthur Miller’s sobering and shocking play is a dramatization of the Salem witch trials that took  place between 1692 and 1693. He wrote the play in 1952 as an allegory of McCarthyism, when the US government blacklisted accused communists.

The story went on to achieve considerable success in theatres and even hit the silver screen in 1996 with Daniel Day-Lewis playing the lead role.

Today it is still widely studied at schools and its core themes of persecution and paranoia still remain relevant.

This may be why Warwick’s head of drama has chosen to keep the time setting of his production ambiguous.

While the set itself is pure white and the costumes black and ‘oldey-worldy’.

He added: “When I staged The Crucible last time, I used really powerful, intense music over the finale and people were staggering out completely shook up.

“I believe I got it wrong on that occasion as I genuinely believe it’s a love story overall — John and Elizabeth’s — and that’s what I need to focus on this time.

“I wanted to keep it simple and elegant. I still think the set is striking and the costumes are great but the focus should be on the drama itself this year and the characters.”

Kieran Hamilton takes on the tragic hero John Proctor in this dark tale.

He said: “It’s a difficult role to play because it could be really easy for an audience to dislike him; you’ve got to get the balance right.

While Lily Martin plays his wife, Elizabeth and Kori White takes on the part of the scheming seductress Abigail Williams.

Be prepared for this production to start with a bang.

Jones added: “Even if I pay top price for a book, I’ll trash it if the first ten pages don’t get my interest so I always try and begin a production with a real attention-grabber, if possible.

“So that explains the opening of Act One and Two with this particular production.”

Information

What: The Crucible
Where: Warwick Academy
When: November 24 to 26
Time: 7:30pm
Tickets: $20 available at the main reception or by calling 236-1917.