Our Fourth Year dramatists received rave reviews as they entertained audiences with their production of Arthur Miller’s The Crucible. Will Conyers reports on the production:
Suspicion was high in The Hammond Theatre last week as Hampton and Lady Eleanor Holles pupils performed the joint Fourth Year play The Crucible. After months of rehearsals under the direction of Drama teacher Mrs Laura Moore, the cast produced compelling performances.
Written by Arthur Miller, the play follows the families of the accused during the Salem Witch Trials in Massachusetts 1692, in which John Proctor, Arthur Miller’s infamous anti-hero, fights for his families lives whilst striving to keep his good name in the village. The play is split into four acts, each one containing more energy, dark humour, gripping soliloquies and fervent arguments than the previous, before a final climax in act four.
Despite the simple and rectangular staging, the cast transported the Hammond audience to a church meeting room, John Proctor’s living room, the Salem courthouse and before the curtain fell, the town jail.
The cast showed off their acting abilities in magnificent style; whether it be as a cruel judge, an influential landowner or a paranoid priest. Finlo Cowley, who played Reverend Parris, perfectly summed up the production:
We’d been practising hard to not only learn our lines but to get into the mindset of each of our characters, and upon performing, even we felt emotionally swept away, not just the audience.
A huge thank you must go to Mrs Moore, Miss Barnes and Miss Gregory for their constant dedication to the play and commitment to improving it. Thanks must also go to the technical crew for helping make the production such a success.
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