The Crucible

by Arthur Miller

5 JUL - 28 JUL 2007 — Drama

About.

Company

Auckland Theatre Company

Venue

Maidment Theatre

Duration

2 hours and 45 minutes, including a 15 minute interval

Advisory

None

Programme

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Without a doubt one of the greatest plays of the twentieth century, Arthur Miller’s The Crucible, takes on an unnerving air of topicality in our terrorist age.


When the young girls of a closed religious sect are discovered experimenting with devil-worship in the woods they try to save themselves by denouncing neighbours as witches and satanists. A chain of events is set in place in which the innocent are implicated by the hysteria and fear that permeate their whole community.


Originally conceived as a response to the McCarthy anti-communist trials of the 1950’s the play now reads as a stark warning about the dangers of irrational belief. A rare opportunity to see an ensemble of twenty superb actors bring to life this feverishly exciting moral thriller that pits personal responsibility against public good.


“The Crucible suddenly seems like a play whose time has come again… with its portrayal of religious extremism and its impact on the state.” Daily Telegraph


“A deeply illuminating dramatisation of the unending battle between reason and madness.” The Spectator

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...the power of the play is found in the thrilling dynamics of the historical story, which is delineated with great clarity in artistic director Colin McColl's sensitive and precise staging.
Paul Simei-Barton, NZ Herald
The Crucible is an eye-opening story, and this production has captured the heart and guts of Arthur Miller's controversial play and brought it to life.
Sian Robertson, Theatreview