The Crucible - UBC Theatre Review

"Art thou a witch?  For if thou art not thou best have proof."

Having been both a student and participant of the Theatre for many years I count myself fairly qualified to speak on the efficacy of a play.
"Any play is worth seeing because it shapes your taste and broadens your mind.  Seeing a bad play shows you just as much about what makes good theatre as seeing a broadway spectacle."
These are some words from one of my old directors that I have always taken to heart.  How do you now what you like until you see it preformed and pontificate about it to others?  Art shapes our perception of art. #Meta-blah-blah-blah
BUT ANYWAY.

A couple of friends and I got together this past week and attended UBC Theatre's rendition of Arthur Miller's classic play.  I have a vague memory of either reading The Crucible or having it summarized to me sometime within my higher education however I had yet to see it performed live.  I understood it to be about the Salem Witch Trials which happened in America's early history but that's more or less the extent of my knowledge.  So sitting down in my seat I didn't really know what to expect.  I had no preconceived notions about this play specifically however the few other UBC productions I have attended in previous years left me rather underwhelmed in both production quality and the technical ability of the actors.  That being the case I do my best to enter any review with as little bias as possible so with my disbelief firmly withheld I took my seat.  

There are some obvious "barriers to entry" when putting on a play like The Crucible, the largest of which is the dialogue.  As with any script that isn't written in modern syntax it takes a little bit of adjusting to be able to fully understand what is being said.  I obviously can't speak for others but for the productions benefit it only took me ten minutes or so to change gears and fall into the rhythm of the lines.  However I fully appreciate that I read Shakespeare for fun and so I may not be a good example of an average theatre-goer.  

What I first noticed from a critical perspective was the set and sound design.  As we sat down we were greeted by a large, simply laid out room containing multiple lanterns, a small bed and several large wooden beams forming a roof; their apex meeting in the middle of the stage.  As the story unfolds and events begin to deteriorate so do these beams giving the image of the roof collapsing in on itself or possibly a hand slowly curling into a fist.  The set is basic but rightfully so serving both its utilitarian purpose as well as providing symbolism which furthers the plot.  The sound design also provides an effective touch as disembodied girls laughter, incoherent whispering and slow heartbeats echo occasionally through the darkness.

For me this production got exponentially better as time went on.  Wether it was nerves or the previous week of daily performances as the play started several of the actors stumbled over lines and seemed more in their heads than present in the moment.  However, they gained their momentum back and especially after the intermission we saw rise to some exceptionally good moments.  The courtroom scene with John Proctor (Aidan Wright), Mary Warren (Olivia Lang), Abigail Williams (Heidi Damayo) and her entourage of girls stands out in my mind as well as the final climactic scene between John Proctor and his wife Elizabeth (Shona Struthers).  When you have a play like The Crucible that is almost three hours long it is essential to keep the energy up in order not to loose the attention of the audience; and I believe they achieved that.  Especially throughout Act Two I was completely invested in both the characters and events happening on stage and genuinely wanted to see how the end would tie everything together.  

In summary, I would like to send my congratulations to the cast and crew of The Crucible!  It was a production not without flaws but with moments of brilliance which definitely outshone them.