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The Crucible  Elizabeth Teeter as Betty Parriss, Saoirse Ronan as Abigail Williams and Tavi Gevinson as Mary Warren Production photos by Jan Versweyveld. by Rachel Goddard This 1953 historical drama takes on a whole new meaning when watched through the vision of Broadway director Ivo van Hove, fresh off of his Broadway directorial debut with last fall’s A View From a Bridge. Van Hove takes the famous story of the disturbing Salem Witch trials and strips it of the historical time period to isolate the timeless themes of the play. The play centers around John Proctor, played by Ben Whishaw, following the action after a secretive, recently severed adulterous relationship with his young lover, Abigail Williams, played by Irish film star and Academy-award nominee, Saoirse Ronan. After Abigail’s small circle of friends from the town begin to tamper with witchcraft in an attempt to put a curse on Proctor’s wife Elizabeth, fear coats the entire town. The play’s haunting shadows of McCarthyism comes to a heart breaking crescendo when Elizabeth Proctor, played by the talented Sophie Okonedo, is arrested for witchcraft. John is immediately thrust into the witch hunt, and is forced to reconcile with his past mistakes in a battle between societal ethics and personal truth.
The curtain rises to reveal the set that we are left with for the entirety of the play. The set, designed by Jan Versweyveld; resembles a classroom of a cold and sterile school setting a prison-like mood. Furthering the eerie tone, we see girls dressed in modern school-girl uniforms chanting for a brief moment while staring upstage at a large chalkboard before the curtain comes back down. The design suggested a post-apocalyptic time period which highlights the survivalist mindset of the town of Salem, where anyone can be accused of witchcraft and put to death. Without the Puritan costumes that further distance the modern audience from this play, the actors were liberated to perform with a gritty naturalism, dragging the audience uncomfortably close into the action of the play. Possibly the freshest aspect of Ivo van Hove’s interpretation was the blatant emphasis on the reality of the witchcraft. The scheming girls’ participation with the devil is not simply suggested as has been the case in previous productions. Immediately after the first scene we see one of the girls fly, levitating several feet in the air. Later we see the girls manifested as if possessed by a dark presence which seems to affect the lights of the room, a moment of grand spectacle as sparks shot from the fixtures and pieces of the ceiling crash onto the stage. Later, large amounts of garbage and debris fly from stage left, leaving the audience no doubt that the accusations of witchcraft on these girls in real. This interpretation makes it rather challenging to side with our protagonist, John Proctor, who for the majority of the play claims the witchcraft is made up and simply a game that these girls play. Perhaps the most thrilling moment however was the appearance of a live wolf walking onto the stage at the beginning of the second act. He only had about a minute of stage time but managed to elicit many gasps throughout the sold-out house. Much like his direction of A View From a Bridge, van Hove’s emphasis is stronger on the themes of the play and the performances of the actors than it is on the text or the literal world of the play. In A View From a Bridge this was shown through the stark, all-white set. He frequently isolated actors in the different corners of the set. This blocking tactic was used again in The Crucible. The large chalkboard that covers most of the upstage wall is used by the actors to write poignant words, draw pictures, and by the end it was used frequently for frantic scribbling. It was also used as a screen for subtle video projections, designed by Tal Yarden. Overall, van Hove’s stylistic direction was specific and original in terms of choices, very clear in helping his vision but not clear in helping the story necessarily.
Even more intimidating than the witches of this play is the taking-on of the role of John Proctor. Ben Whishaw had an instantly vulnerable take on the iconic role, entering for his first scene appearing as a defeated man. His performance, although convincing, lacked the typical John Proctor force, making the audience quicker to pity him than to route for him. This feeling of pity finally finds an appropriate place in his final scene with Sophie Okonedo. In this scene, he brings a welcomed helplessness that empowers the connection between the husband and wife they are portraying.
Sophie Okenedo, on the other hand, played Elizabeth Proctor as grounded and optimistic, which makes her ending all the more heart wrenching. Okonedo brought out the full arc of the character, ending the show broken and numb. Perhaps the most memorable performance was given the charming, Saoirse Ronan who played the devilish Abigail Williams. Her’s was the most wonderfully unsettling part of the play. Her seduction seemed to burn holes through the delicate Ben Whishaw. Her intensity in scenes in which she was silent was so potent the audience was always disturbingly aware of her presence, even from the far back corner of the stage. Another notable performance was given by Tavi Gevinsen. Her impressive authenticity in her portrayal of Mary Warren made her the most relatable character in the show and brought needed emotion to the dry trial scenes. The other savior for the lengthy scenes of trial was Ciaran Hinds who played Deputy Governor Danforth. Other notable performances were Bill Camp who played Reverend John Hale, opening the show with a raw urgency, setting the tone for the rest of the show. Ivo van Hove has succeeded for the second time at bringing raw, new life to Arthur Miller’s plays this season. This production had the essential materials to captivate the modern audience. Walter Kerr Theatre 219 West 48th Street New York, NY 10036 (877) 250-2929 
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