Don’t miss it: The Crucible plays its final weekend

Witches? Dreams? Possessed? John Proctor (Daniel Finn) tries to calm Betty (Fiona Small)….photo by Duvie Dow.

I got a chance to see The Crucible at the Community Theatre this past weekend, and I can tell you: Wow.

(Here’s the writeup from before, as well as the Theatre’s remarks & times & prices.)

This is not the version you saw or read in high school….this is a brilliant & alive version that helps you see why Arthur Miller won a Tony award for it, and why the poetry & brilliant script are used as examples of good story telling, at so many levels.

But more than that – it’s a parable of the way people are when mass hysteria kicks in. At times riveting, sometimes ironic, and often bone-chilling, this show covers the emotions that are behind what happens when the crowd takes over. It’s scary to think it happened then, and scary to see parallels in our own recent history. Some folks who have told me they miss the play told me it was “depressing,” but I think it would be more depressing to miss it, as well as the conversations it will start in your head & with the folks you see it with.

Eric Concord turns in one of his finest performances on a San Juan stage as Judge Danforth, presenting the judge with both power & nuance. Daniel Finn returns to the theatre as the noble John Proctor, with Deb Langhans as his wife, and they both turn in performances that humanize this show – they aren’t the rigid Puritans from your high school class version. They are your easy-going next-door neighbors, likable & approachable, but caught in the web of the story. The entire cast weaves the story in a strong performance that moves the story forward…this is a well-told tale, that will stick with you long after the final curtain.

Let me know after you see the show if you agree.

You’ll be glad you saw it, and felt it.

Saturday night is “Talk Back” night – the cast comes out after the show to take questions & discuss the show with audience folks who stay after (they did that last Saturday, and it was cool to hear more about what went into the show, and to hear what the players got out of it.)

This Thursday’s performance is “Bargain Night.” Tickets are $15 for adults and $8 for student reserved. Tickets for all other performances are $22 for adults and $11 for students reserved. Plus, Student RUSH tickets for the remaining performances are FREE! (Student RUSH is available starting one hour before each performance).

Judge Danforth (Eric Concord) reads the charges to John Proctor (Daniel Finn, far right) as Giles (John Davis, next to Daniel), Rev. Hale (Scott Mapstead), and Mr. Cheever (Frank Mulcahy) look on. Photo by Duvie Dow.

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