 "Tragedy, Power, Hysteria" | 2009-06-13 |
| - Reviewed By User: A3OJFPKMCXKOM0 |
Arthur Miller's classic play based on the Salem Witch trials of 1692 demonstrates superstition, hysteria, and control. After being discovered dancing in the woods (strictly forbidden) one girl refuses to wake, and suspicions arise. Under pressure, the girls soon confess to communing with the devil. Young Abigail Williams senses her power as lead confessor, and milks the opportunity. Soon many stand accused, special judges arrive from Boston, and the town is quick to condemn. Hysteria reigns, and none are safe from its blows. The gallows await the imprisoned, thought they may win a reduced sentence by confessing their guilt. A couple skeptics led by John Proctor speak up, but the tables turn and they soon find themselves shackeled. Those that grimace at the willingness of the judges to trust superstition and obvious frauds should consider the power dynamics of a fundamentalist, church-ruled society. Those that understand the hysteria of McCarthyism in the early 1950's should see clear parallels from this moving demonstration. This play is well worth your time, as is the stirring 1996 film with Winona Ryder and Daniel Day Lewis.
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 "Playing Tituba" | 2009-02-22 |
| - Reviewed By User: A18CCDGV8JQP0U |
When I was up at Cambridge back in the olden days when there were only three women's colleges and men's colleges were single sex, I tried my hand at acting and ended up joining an "indie" production of "The Crucible. By "Indie" I mean that it was not produced by either the of the two drama societies the Amateur Dramatic Club and the Mummers, nor by a college drama society. It was instead produced by this second-year student and performed in a church and performed by people who answered an ad in Varsity. That was how I got into it.
I probably got the part of Tituba because I am Chinese and they didn't have a more authentic applicant. I also was a member of the ADC. What we did have was the up and rising freshman actress to play Abigail Proctor. We happened to be reading English at Griton in the same year. She was a much better actress.
But one thing that really struck me when I was reading this play was how it was basically the McCarthy Treason trials and Miller's take on them. I didn't know about the trials first-hand but I was certainly aware that they had happened and the kind of hysteria behind it.
Having said that, I also did not think that Miller was trying to portray Salem, Massachusetts when those trials took place. Gone from the picture in spite of the presence of a minister is any sense of the religious fervor and fear which also played a significant role then. This went beyond orthodox political thinking. I don't think that we ever quite got the crying-out scene right, but I don't think there was all that much guidance either. And actually, looking back now, I am not so sure that the rest of the cast were quite as aware of the McCarthy trials as perhaps they should have been. Certainly they were never mentioned at any rehearsal I ever attended. And the copy we used was not footnoted or anything, nor did it have an introduction.
All this indicates to me that Miller's play did not travel all that well, as is the case with a few others I have read. Not "Death of a Salesman" though.
That little production did all right though. It was also the last time I acted in Cambridge. I didn't figure there were going to be too many opportunities for a not-so-wonderful Chinese actress (of course I didn't think so then) and started working for the newspaper rather more seriously. But I still have the play, and I read it again every so often.
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| "ok" | 2009-02-06 |
| - Reviewed By User: A2GKPDZ91UB5XB |
| the book was ok, its used bud if just need to read it its perfect. |
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| "." | 2008-09-25 |
| - Reviewed By scoutcraftpiratess |
| Okay, so all sorts of historical details are altered for the sake of character drama, but so what? It does not change the fact that this is one heck of a great play that offers it all: romance, betrayal, psychology, murder, and more, all set in a sleepy little Puritan town obsessed with witches that has become the victim of the "games" of a few young girls. br /br /While I would hardly recommend it to someone going for deep facts of the Salem Witch Trials, this still draws on historical characters and does an excellent job of portraying them as real people. You feel for them, even the ones you hate. br /br /"The Crucible" is well-named as the pot that heats everything up, and Miller takes minor events and shows how they become the tragedy that was the witch trials.br /br /This is an incredibly powerful and important story that teaches messages as the drama entertains. |
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| "Courtesy of Mother Daughter Book Club.com" | 2008-07-02 |
| - Reviewed By User: A1NSJ7IFI4IZ4Q |
| The Crucible by Arthur Miller is a great book to read with a mother-daughter book club. It provides an outlet to talk about issues the girls are covering in school, and to find out about how their perspectives differ from those of their moms. The issues of witchcraft and socially sanctioned violence against a targeted group seem eerily relevant to some of the things going on in our world today. This book challenged all of us to think about the most important things in our lives and what we're willing to sacrifice to achieve a higher cause. |
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| "Prompt service" | 2008-07-01 |
| - Reviewed By User: A2WEBUJ43SW9K0 |
| Daughter needed it for a project for an accelerated class. It came in time and she was able to complete her assignments with a new book. |
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