AFTER working with pupils on a scene from Arthur Miller’s powerful play, The Crucible, drama teacher, Diana Wilson, was so impressed with their efforts she started to think about staging the full play at Epworth School in Pietermaritzburg.

“They did the scene so well and I was so excited about what I was seeing that I thought their would definitely be something in it if we did the play,” Wilson said.

The Epworth girls will be performing alongside a talented group of Hilton College boys in The Crucible, which is being staged in The Haley Hall, from Monday, March 14 to Thursday, March 17 at 7pm.

Set during the Salem witch trials of the 1690s, The Crucible is a timeless parable of morality, a scorching indictment of intolerance, and is a central work in the canon of American drama.

Since it’s first performance in 1953, the emotional and thought-provoking masterpiece has caught the imagination of audiences all over the world.

“It’s a very exciting project,” said Wilson, “and when you’re working on it [the play] in this kind of depth and detail you realise just how brilliant it is. There are few plays which engage in the personal like The Crucible does and then put it in a place where so many ideas are placed and discussed.”

Miller wrote the Tony Award-winning play, set during 1692 and 1693 in Massachusetts, as an allegory of McCarthyism – the time when the American government blacklisted accused communists.

Miller himself was questioned by the House of Representatives’ Committee on Un-American Activities in 1956 and convicted of contempt of Congress for refusing to identify others present at meetings he had attended.

With a starry revival of The Crucible playing at the Walter Kerr Theatre on Broadway and starring Olivier Ward nominee Ben Whishaw, Tony winner Sophie Okonedo, Oscar nominee Saoirse Ronan, Ciaran Hindsand Tony winner Jim Norton; and the film Trumbo examining the issue of McCarthyism – Epworth’s production is a timely tribute to the playwright whose 100th birthday is being celebrated this year.

Speaking about how the pupils have reacted to the play, Wilson said: “They have all worked extremely hard.. I mean these kids are also doing their matric but they are here Monday to Thursday evenings and are absolutely engaged in the play and so enthusiastic. I am astounded by their bravery.

“They especially see the pivotal triangular relationship fascinating especially seen in the setting of a deeply religious community; a patriarchal community where the treatment of women is based on repression – and what happens when people rebel against that kind of repression. I think it is very important to examine and discuss these issues.”

The production will be staged at Epworth High School, in the Haley Hall, and with the audience surrounding the action on specially constructed scaffold seating, it is likely to be a memorable theatrical experience.

Tickets for the play are R60 and can be booked via email at cmcdonald@epworth.co.za Please note that this play is not suitable for pupils in Grade 7 or below.