PLAYSHOP THEATRE TO PRESENT "THE CRUCIBLE"

MEADVILLE, Pa. – Oct. 28, 2007 – The Playshop Theatre continues its 2007-2008 season with a production of Arthur Miller's classic “The Crucible,” under the direction of Associate Professor of Theatre Dan Crozier.

“The Crucible” will be performed at 8 p.m. on Thursday through Saturday, Nov. 1-3, and at 2:30 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 4, in the Playshop Theatre, which is located in Arter Hall on the Allegheny College campus.

“The Crucible” is Arthur Miller's brilliant retelling of the storm of suspicion and mass hysteria wrought in the Salem witch trials. The play mirrors the irrational fear of communism raised by Joseph McCarthy and the House Committee on Un-American Activities in the early 1950s.

“I think one of the important themes in the play is the idea of fear and how it alters behavior in communities on local, regional and national levels,” Crozier said. “Miller writes about fear in 1692 Salem and about fear in America in the early 1950s. We don't have to look far to see fear in our day. As Donald Rumsfeld said, ‘We live in a world that's a dangerous world.'

“As we've worked on the play, I've learned how wonderfully stage-worthy the play is. You can get a lot out of reading the play, but so much more comes out by simply putting it on the stage. You need to see the play.”

In “The Crucible” Arthur Miller depicts the effect on a community of an oppressive ideology and the fear and mistrust that it breeds. Miller presents the Salem witch trials as a result of repressed feelings of guilt, jealousy, revenge, resentment and sexual attraction among the Salem people. In the end, John Proctor must decide whether to make a false confession of witchcraft in order to save himself and preserve his farm for his sons or deny the charge, losing his life but maintaining his integrity and his name as a legacy for his children.

The Playshop Theatre production features James C. Jackson (Millerburg, Ohio) as John Proctor, Lizzy Pecora (Pittsburgh, Pa.) as Elizabeth Proctor, Kat Murphy (Lutherville, Md.) as Abigail Williams, Sam Moodey (Erie, Pa.) as Reverend John Hale, and James Hollerman (Meadville, Pa.) as Deputy Governor Dan Forth. Angela Nitchman (Lancaster, Pa.) serves as the production's stage manager. Visiting Assistant Professor of Theatre Ellen Jones designed sets and lights. The costume designer is guest artist Susan O'Neil.

Tickets for “The Crucible” are $7.50 for adults, $5 for non-Allegheny students, senior citizens and Allegheny employees. Admission is free for Allegheny students with identification. For more information or to order tickets, contact the Playshop Theatre Box Office at (814) 332-3414.

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