Review: The Crucible

The Crucible
MTC
27 June 2013
Southbank Theatre, The Sumner
to 3 August
mtc.com.au1

Arthur Miller's The Crucible was my favourite play when I was 17 and, along with Lillian Hellman, Miller was my favourite playwright. This play made me read the rest of his work and so many more by mid-twentieth-century American writers. It opened the door to an astonishing and powerful library. But it's been over a quarter of a century since I read it, so, yesterday, I grabbed my high school copy (which tells me I wrote an essay about its fire symbolism) and read it again.

It's definitely a product of his time. First performed in 1954, Miller wrote a play about the seventeenth century witch trials in Salem, Massachusetts, as a response to US Senator Mcarthy's communist trials in the 1950s, which were especially devastating to writers, performers and anyone connected to the evil liberal arts. In high school, we learnt that this was an allegory, a damn fine one.

Still, as I read it, I was struck by just how relevant and powerful a production could be today in Australia. It's a world where women (and their supporters) are attacked, trialled and killed for no reason other than their gender. They are trialled by middle-aged men who base their findings on a belief in a big male god and on their certain belief that young women must be possessed by the big male devil because they surely couldn't be behaving like scared children. The Crucible or Ditch the Witch or Grow up Lindsay. Or, it's a world where women – especially young women – are harlots or angels; a world where a middle-aged man possibly rapes his teenage servant (subtextually, it can go rape or consent) in a barn, who is then fired by the man's wife (ensuring she can't get work) and later declared a whore by the man who certainly took her virginity and treated her like crap.  Maybe the MTC's production isn't just a star vehicle for Diver Dan from Seachange?

With the text still very fresh in my mind, I was excited about this production.

My excitement lasted seconds.

I think director Sam Strong made a bad sit com about the Salem witch hunts (as a star vehicle for Diver Dan in the worst wig ever put on a stage) by ensuring that any faith, belief or hope is a joke.

But that's just me hazarding a guess. So, what about some facts? Well, there were a lot of giggles on opening night – and some guffaws. There are some jokes in the play, but it's not funny. On the page, the scene where Diver Dan declares "whore" and the teenage girls ensure his arrest are chilling; they got the biggest laughs of the night.

Why?

No one in that stage world believes in the god they profess to believe in. Every character in The Crucible acts from their belief in God AND Satan and their fear of eternal suffering. Even the non-believers believe to some extent; belief is the rule that governs this world. They believe in the same way that Senator McCarthy believed that communists were real and could destroy America. They believe it like we believe the sun will set tonight and that Myki is a force of evil.

A play about god and belief can never make sense in a stage world that's godless. I think that's why we laughed so much.

Or it could be the odd acting choices. Act 1 takes place in a girl's bedroom. Depending on the charaters' knowledge, this child is either very ill, terrified or possessed by the devil, but the unconscious child is ignored by everyone around her, unless she's being spoken to or examined. Eleven people pass through the room and 10 of them treat the child – who is either very ill, terrified or possessed by the devil – like she's a beige rug on the bed. No wonder we laughed when the good Reverend Hale asked for help in case she flew away. The eleventh character, Rebecca Nurse, was the only one who looked at the child with any semblance of care and tried to cover the girl's naked legs.

But would I have liked this production when I was 17? Maybe.

After all, Dale Ferguson's design of a pure white building in a hostile black world is stunning and made more so with Paul Jackson's lighting that creates a parallel shadow play. And Julia Blake (Rebecca Nurse), Sarah Ogden (Mary Warren), Anita Hegh (Elizabeth Proctor), John McTernan (Giles Corey) and Grant Cartwright (Reverand Hale and only after the interval) get close to overcoming their direction and bringing real life and pain to their characters. And Diver Dan? David Wenham's as authentic and engaging as his wig.

If this were part of an education season, I would have said it's a dull and oddly literal interpretation of a play that deserves better, but this is a $59 for under 30s and a $99 tickets for students on Saturday night ($115 for people not continuing or having completed their education) and you can see the kick-arse dancing monkey for that or take your family to Circus Oz or see the MTC's other work, Solomon and Marion. If I'd spent $59 to see this as a 17-year-old (or around $100 as a grown up), I would have hated the MTC for letting me down so much.

Photo by Jeff Busby.

This was on AussieTheatre.com.

Chat: Tim Ross, Red Stitch

4000 Miles

Red Stitch Theatre

6 February – 9 March 2013       

redstitch.net 

Red Stitch’s first show for 2013 is 4000 Miles by Amy Herzog. It explores the relationship between a grandson who can’t face his life and a grandmother who struggles to remember hers and starts Julia Blake and Red Stitch ensemble members Ngaire Dawn and Tim Ross.

Before moving to Melbourne, Tim Ross did stand-up comedy in his home town of Adelaide and performed in shows for the Adelaide Theatre Guild. Then he came to the Victorian College of the Arts to do Drama. Tim made his MTC in Hamlet; has been seen on tv in Neighbours, Rush, Underbelly and Mrs Biggs; and his Red Stitch shows include On Ego, Oh Well Never Mind Bye, Howie the Rookie and The Kitchen Sink. He chats  about his grandparents, Pav and what to do when an audience member vomits. 

What three words best describe your show?
Grandma, whadayacallit, freedom.

What do you love most about this show?
The relationship and dynamic between the characters, especially with Leo and his Grandma, Vera. I could sit in that world for days on end.

There’s something about the way Amy Herzog writes – it’s so real and close to home. She based some of the characters on those in her own life and they therefore have an incredible history and depth to them. Nothing is forced; it’s very natural and subtle, yet still manages to pack a huge amount of punch. It’s real and full of life.

What is one of your favourite shows you've seen at Red Stitch?
The Aliens by Annie Baker. Made me laugh, made me cry. I still think about that one from time to time.

What do you love about working with Red Stitch?
It’s intimate, raw; it’s in your face. I also love the fact that we can take on roles we wouldn’t necessarily be cast in. You can afford to take risks, which challenges you and allows you to grow as an actor.

What’s been the biggest challenge you’ve faced preparing for this show?
Diving in to the headspace of my character, Leo. It’s a dark and messy place and it’s hard to create what he’s been through. He is keeping his emotions bottled up inside and it can be quite discomforting when you feel it. It sounds like a load of wank but it can alter who you are as a person and that can sometimes be distressing. It’s important to wind down after a big day of rehearsals.

What was your reaction when you first read this play?
I’ve got to play this role. I’ve always been close to my grandparents. When I was younger I used to drive up on my own to stay with them. Now that is no longer an option, this was a chance to relive that experience in a different light.

Who would you love to see in the audience one night?
My grandparents.

Is there anyone you don't want to see in the audience?
My grandparents. That would be fucking scary.

When did you know you wanted to be an actor?
I remember when I was very young my sister had a friend over who was really upset about something. I put on a Janis Joplin song and mimed the lyrics to her in a microphone. The feeling it gave me when her tears dissolved in to those of laughter was one I knew I wanted to explore. Since then I’ve always had a thing for moving people and activating their emotions. There’s an unexplainable satisfaction about bringing someone into the world you are creating and convincing them that it’s real.

Do you believe in any theatre superstitions? What are they?
Not at all. If Macbeth had a theme song I would whistle it in the theatre.

What's some great theatre advice you've used? Who was it from?
“Sometimes, you’ve just got to put your blinkers on and not worry about what anyone else thinks.” Kim Gyngell.

What’s something else red that you like?
Mars. You’ll have to take my word for it that I’ve been there.

What punishment is fit for audience members who don't turn their phones off during a performance?
A curse: Any phone they own will continue to ring 24/7. Full volume. Theme song from Mash.

What role/character do you really want to play one day?
I’d like to give King Lear a go when I’m 80.

You have one trip in the TARDIS; what performance do you see?
The Big Bang. Does that count? How do I claim my prize?

What director has taught you the most?
Simon Phillips taught me that nothing needs to be taken too seriously. Even if it’s Hamlet at the MTC.

What’s your favourite cake?
I’m not really a dessert/cake man but my arm is pretty easily twisted if there’s a decent looking Pavlova on the table. And I mean decent. I’d also try any cake that Charlize Theron was climbing out of.

In your wildest dreams, who would you love to work with on a show?
Sir Ian McKellen. I think he would have some advice worth listening to.

Do you read your reviews?
Only the 5 star ones. So, very rarely.

What’s something odd that you’ve seen an audience member do during a show?
Vomit over about six chairs. That was at Red Stitch, so needless to say we stopped that one. I generally prefer written reviews.

Convince a stubborn north-sider to head over the river to St Kilda.
The chairs have all been steam-cleaned and sprayed with “new car” scent.

Tell us about your fellow cast and director?
Director Mark Pritchard will be one to watch out for. He’s got a great eye and is incredibly sharp. He’s not bad at directing either.

Julia Blake is one of the most dedicated actors I’ve had the privilege of working with. An absolute inspiration’ full of beans and full of stories. We clicked instantly and she actually feels like my grandmother. It will be a sad day when this production ends.

This was on AussieTheatre.com