By Allison Mesh ’13, Contributor
“The Crucible,” the fall play which opened last night, is filled with drama and violence, and is great for people who enjoy mysteries. Arthur Miller’s story about the Salem witch trials during the 1690’s won the “Best Play” Tony Award in 1953. For this fall’s production, Drama Director Mark Femia has created a seating structure that puts the audience on stage, and the actors handle it very well.
The all around seating structure is a challenge for all actors, but these students pull it off. They are all aware that their backs are going to face a part of the audience and that they have to act towards “all” of the different sides of people who are watching them. The actors have learned to perform in such a small space and have done a stunning job at doing so. Josh Motley, a junior, has a great sense of where to stand on the stage and how to deliver his lines in so that everybody in the audience can sense the emotion that he is expressing. Audience members will be amazed with how developed his movements and acting is.
In addition to great acting, the vocal projection of the students is amazing. It’s harder for students to project when the play has the audience on the stage, because their voices go up instead of out, meaning instead of having your voice reach the farthest wall their voices travel up towards the ceiling, because the play takes place right below the lighting. Ali Breneman, a senior, does a great job at vocal projection. She speaks very clearly and pronounces all her words so everybody can understand what she is saying. She also finds a way to put emotion into every word she says and the audience finds it outstanding.
This play is a must see for any type of viewer, whether you’re into what happened during the Salem witch trials or just enjoy play, you should see this! Because of the nature of the story, the play is not appropriate for children.
The Crucible will be shown on Oct. 29that 7 p.m. and October 30th, at 1 p.m. and 7 p.m.