However, “John Proctor” is not an anti-'crucible' area. (The substantial excerpt from “The Crucible” is approved by the Arthur Miller Trust.) Bellflower claims that Bellflower is easy and successful, but she essentially acknowledges dramatic power through imitation. Her own character and situation takes more than a mirror page. She borrows, but reconstructs the idea of a crucible as a greenhouse that you can find in any high school. And in a way that feels completely natural, her girl falls into laughter, screams, wild dance bouts, and can look like a witch if seen sympathetic.
The production of Taymor is totally sympathetic to the characters and text. Thrilling in refusing to suppress the show's sometimes disorderly spirit, but that doesn't ignore the dangers of abandonment. The Shelby in the sink is beautifully placed in a place where you don't know the difference between impulses and illness. The other girls stratify at altitudes in the middle, from Scott's tightly grounded nell to Straza's high-pitched Beth.
However, the overall tone, expressed by Natasha Katz's spasm lighting in the classroom, set by Teresa L. Williams (working for AMP Collective), embraces the extremes. The ominous sound design and original music by Palmer Hefferan are particularly vivid. At the climax of the play, when Shelby and Lelinn announce the “Junior Honors Light Interpretation Project,” a homemade version of Salem Garb (Salaloo costume) – everything about the touchstones of Bellflower, Taymall's skills all come together in a wild scene where the girls recover as they look back at their emotions.
A close twist in the theme – Lorde can be argued that in “green light” mode it is a bit overdetermined that it turns out to be a point-four point antidote for Proctor. Girls are universally wonderful. Male characters can get small shots red with the exception of the dim boy. The script sticks to the topic. This is a common feature of early work. (This is Belflower's New York debut.) One of the features of “crucibles” that it ignores is the way Miller plays become a success as an all-talk.
it doesn't matter. “John Proctor is the Villain” is too urgent about that one thing, in order to hope it's a little different. All that is better when urgency comes in a often cheerful, often ecological, and very accessible package. I hope a lot of school girls and boys see it. Both need to understand that the lawsuit against John Proctor is only just beginning.
John Proctor is the villain
At the Manhattan booth theatre until July 6th. johnproctoristhevillain.com. Running time: 1 hour 45 minutes.
