A young girl lying bedridden, prisoner of a mysterious curse, is being treated by her father, the town pastor. Cheers from the audience subside and “The Crucible” by Arthur Miller starts.
Set in the late 1960’s, the play depicts the infamous event commonly known as the Salem Witch Trials. The play’s protagonist, John Proctor, must fight off accusations of witchcraft towards his wife by the play’s main antagonist Abigail Williams, wanting John for herself. The play follows John and the other towns-members through the entire ordeal, portraying the dangers of religious extremism and mass hysteria.
The Jesuit theatre, however, took these dark themes in stride, showing they can do more than just comical one-acts. A serious play was no problem for the experienced theatre department, capturing every intense and thrilling moment. Teaming up with students from Ursuline, Bishop Lynch, and Booker T, the cast put on an excellent show, one sure to rank among the best Jesuit plays of recent years. Junior Marshall Baird sums up the experience quite nicely:”Drama [is] more difficult than comedy, not despite the fact that they need to seem real, but because of it.”
“The thing that made the Crucible unique,” says Marshall Baird, “was the people who made it. We had a lot of younger actors, [as well as] a new co-director Mr. Patterson.” The lead, Sophomore George Rodriguez, delivered a compelling performance as John Proctor, portraying his part as if he were a professional actor. Alongside him, Booker T Washington student Corsica Steding and Ursuline junior Madison Murrah gave the antagonist Abigail Williams life, each adding their own touches to the role that made it even more convincing. Worth mentioning as well were Ursuline senior Adrian Collins, Jesuit senior James Abbot, Jesuit junior James Butterfield, Tess Jackson, and Rachel Cambell, all delivering inspiring performances that complete the world of “The Crucible”.
Showing that there are no weak links in the Jesuit theatre, the supporting cast put out convincing performances, completing the setting of a hysterical small community. The play wouldn’t have be complete without Jesuit students like Marshall Baird, Matthew Gilchrist, and Garret Alldredge, who brought their acting chops to the stage. Students from Ursuline, Bishop Lynch, and Booker T had strong showings as well, saving the audience from a bunch of guys trying to play female roles.
All in all, the show was a success, a great depiction of the play.
