For today's preview of "shows you'll want to watch this weekend," we have an interview with Debbie Haught, who's directing the Kanawha Players production of The Crucible. Here's our email interview with her:
Q: Tell us what The Crucible is about.
A: Literally, it is about a period in our America's history in the late 1600s. A documented outbreak of hysteria that ended in the execution of many members of the Salem Massachusetts community as witches. The essence is a group of young girls that were caught dancing in the woods (A huge NO NO) by the local minister Reverend Parris (Kevin Pauley) and rather than face the consequences of breaking strict Puritan rules they convinced a town they were bewitched. An expert (Reverend John Hale) is called in to assist in the matter. Once the children and the Barbados slave Tituba (Katonya Hart) call out names of neighbors as witches, the hunt begins. Central to the plot are John Proctor (Ryan Hardiman) our flawed protagonist and his wife Elizabeth (Kate Woestman) whose marriage has been strained to breaking by John's affair with Abigail (Mandy Petry) the key witness in the witch hunts. Greed, status, and position in the church and the community complicate the towns ability to sort out what is true. Those in power (Deputy Governor Danforth played by James Raywalt) trade life for confessions and the naming of names, decimating the town.
Allegorically, the play is Arthur Miller's take on the real historical event but viewed through the lens of McCarthyism and the House committee on UnAmerican Activities and Miller's experiences with them.
For me, the play is about fear and how humans deal with it. One of the most interesting things about directing my actors was helping each of them discover what they had at stake. Fear changes us and this play is a wonderful examination of how courage, faith and love can be powerful against overwhelming fear.
Q: Why did you want to tackle this show?
A: I think that Arthur Miller was an iconic playwright, and this piece has always interested me. Intellectually it has so much information based on historic research and so much that is highly relevant to us today.
Also this is the first play I saw that truly affected me. Stopped me in my tracks and made me want to understand why humans behave the way they do. I was fifteen and a sophomore at Ripley High School. I was so taken by the play that I went to the library and took out every book I could find on Miller, Salem, and the witch trials. Then I learned about allegory and McCarthy. The more I read the more I wanted to know... How could something communicate in such a powerful way to make me have to know? Theatre was magic, I decided, so I had to learn more about it. The Crucible started my love of theatre and the literature that feeds it.
This show is a great opportunity for actors. And it has drawn some really fine ones. Even though I am not a reality TV fan, I can see how a play like this might have some of the qualities that draw people to reality TV. Great drama, pain, conflicted characters, impossible odds, true courage and fear. Only The Crucible is based in real fact. It happened.
Q: Why does this story still have appeal for today's audience?
A: This is a great story!!!! All the excitement of the best late night soap/sitcom, a great love story, evil in the guise of innocence created with the intelligence of an amazing playwright using beautiful language!
I think we learn from history, so I love the historical perspective, but more than that it easily connects to reality in three identifiable times in America's history: 1692 Salem; 1950s McCarthyism and post 9/11 War on terror. They all deal with fear and trying to identify the evil among us. The following paragraph is actually from my Director's notes from the program, but I think it answers your question.
I think The Crucible has much to offer us today. 9/11 was a pivotal moment in our history and we understand fear in a new way. The same way that Arthur Miller viewed McCarthy and the House Committee trials and his fear of them through the lens of the Salem witchcraft trials I think we as a community, a global community, can view our fears and the unseen nature of terrorism. It takes courage for each new generation to look into the glass and see witches or communists or terrorists with clarity and not let our fear overwhelm our goodness.
Q: What were (are) the biggest challenges in staging this show?
A: ** The language...the same beautiful language that I love is also very different from our everyday speech. Luckily we have a speech pathologist in the cast (Kate Woestman) who was able to not only help us understand our own speech but help us understand how it is different from the dialect in the script and how to accommodate the change.
** costuming ... We were lucky enough to enter into a collaboration with an Asheville NC theatre company and use their hand built period costumes. All the women's costumes are raw silk and detailed.
** Demanding roles for actors... although I list this as a challenge, it was also what brought out auditioners from two states to participate in the show. Good actors like to have a chance at truly well written well-designed characters. I was very lucky to find such a talented cast. they amaze me nightly! Finding consistency in community production can be a struggle. After all, everyone of my actors are full-time students or hold day jobs, but they commit to huge amounts of time to be able to have this creative outlet.
** The complexity and depth of the writing... Each and every day I read the script and each time I find something new. That is the rewarding part of directing this show. I get to watch my actors discover and truly become the characters.
** common misconceptions about the show... it's something you HAVE to read in school, people die.....
Q: Why would you recommend The Crucible?
A: Excellent acting, a strong story and plot. The story is riveting! Ryan Hardiman as John Proctor and Kate Woestman as Elizabeth Proctor are two of the strongest actors I have known. Beautiful performances that will have you holding your breath and finding your tissues. Ryan most recently was the recipient of the title Symphony Idol with the WVSO and is a consummate performer.
A beautiful show to look at. Technical Director Greg Morris has done a beautiful job of balancing minimal set distractions with touches of details that take us to the proper time and place.
It's LIVE theatre. Nothing is so immediate, so engaging as live theatre. You can immerse yourself in the sounds and images and be transported to another time to understand what is at stake when fear consumes a community.
Q: When and where will the show be staged?
A: Kanawha Players production of The Crucible will be performed at The Civic Center Little Theater, 100 Civic Center Drive in downtown Charleston on April 11-12, 18-19. Box office opens at 7 p.m. house opens at 7:30 p.m. and curtain at 8 p.m. Tickets are $16/adults and $10/students. Tickets are available online at www.kanawhaplayers.org, at the Civic Center Box Office or at the door prior to each performance.
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