Young Reporter: Saint Georges Secondary School take on Arthur Miller's 'The Crucible'

First performed in January 1953, Arthur Miller’s play is fictionally based on the 1962 Salem Witch trials in Massachusetts. After being caught dancing and experimenting with witchcraft in the middle of the woods by Reverend Parris, orphan Abigail Williams is accused of being a witch. However, when some of the other girls involved in the dancing that night begin to fall ill and lose consciousness, Abigail is forced to threaten all of them to never speak of the night they all danced to kill Elizabeth Proctor, the wife of John Proctor; with whom Abigail had an affair. To pass the blame, Abigail and the girls accuse other women in the village to be witches, creating a society ruled through fear. This causes John Proctor to become the main focus of the play between Abigail and his wife– ‘should he confess to witch-craft and damn his soul or deny dealings with witch-craft and be hung?’

The inspiration to perform Arthur Miller’s stage play was from the reactions of students who ‘loved it’ when studying it in class and adapting it to their stage has been, what their director calls, ‘a huge challenge that they have really taken to and enjoyed’

Directed by the Head of Drama, Dave Higson, the school play is emphasised to be an interpretation of Miller’s aims and the key themes of the play: religion, control through fear, mistrust, marriage, love and fidelity; and they are all portrayed in different ways and by different people. Not only are drama students involved to tell the story and ‘generate an emotional response’, dance students and the student tech team are participating to further create ambiance and the mood the school want to portray.

A significant feature the school is using this year is their ¾ round stage and thrust which immerses the audience into the ‘dark, intense and court like environment’ it provides. In this way, the audience are transported into the lives of the characters walking around them and the feeling of a courthouse allows them to better judge what is happening.

The ¾ round stage was used in last year’s performances of Shakespeare’s ‘The Taming of the Shrew’, where it was a great success. As one of the audience members of that play myself, the staging was useful and enticing when it came to seeing things such as character development.

Rehearsals began last June and it has been an anticipating six months for students, and teachers alike, to perform in front of friends and family.

If you are interested in seeing this play, the details are as follows:

Performances will take place on Thursday 4th December and Friday 5th December in SGS’s main hall. Doors open at 7pm for a 7:30pm start.
An interval will take place between Acts two and three where snacks and refreshments will be sold alongside a raffle.
The play will finish approximately 9:45pm.
Tickets are £4 in advance or £5 at the door – tickets can only be bought on the school site.
Due to government legislation, photographs cannot be taken by the audience but there will be photos on sale from dress rehearsals. Additionally, if you leave your details at the box office, you can receive a DVD of the night’s performance for a fee.

Emma Cooper,
Saint Georges C of E School