Arthur Miller’s The Crucible – familiar to nigh on every secondary school literature student across the UK – recounts the tragedy of the Salem witch trials, presenting the story of feuding communities, honour, litigation, betrayal and hysteria as an allegory for McCarthy’s notorious witch hunt in mid-century America, which aimed to wheedle out ‘un-American’ (read: communist) activities.

Lyndsey Turner’s latest production presents the frilly, pastel-pink clad girls of Salem village as visibly young and frightened. Even the dissembling Abigail Williams, played with quivering, snotty panic by Erin Doherty, doesn’t seem to have calculated her next move. The fragility and instability of this central ensemble makes the overblown and gruesome consequences of their lies all the more shocking.

Although in the first act, his fraught relationship with his wife Elizabeth (Eileen Walsh) and his sordid past with Abigail never exactly hits the mark, Brendan Cowell’s John Proctor truly begins to shine in the second act when our swaggering anti-hero hits rock bottom. Cowell performs this man’s breaking so poignantly it feels like a stone on your chest.

Speaking of the crushing weight of morality, Karl Johnson is a particular highlight of this performance as Giles Corey – the cheerily litigious but generally harmless and ultimately heroic neighbour. Corey may be the most obvious example of comic relief in The Crucible but this production does well to draw out the flashes of bitter humour in Miller’s script.

Whilst loath to complain about running time, there are moments of this near-three-hour court-based drama which drag a little. With the right direction, this hefty play positively flies by and to give Turner and her cast their credit, there are moments of hysteria and dizzyingly high stakes which have the audience on the edge of their seats, almost feeling the ‘cold wind’ sweeping across the accusers onstage. During the interval, an audience member was heard professing that she wouldn’t be able to sleep tonight. 

The daunting running time is not helped by the inclusion of Miller’s prologue as well as a conclusionary excerpt from his essay Echoes Down The Corridor, which somewhat takes away the power from Elizabeth Proctor’s final line and wraps up the performance like a true crime documentary.

The real talking point of this production is the design, particularly Es Devlin’s jaw-dropping set, complete with biblical water effects. Tim Lutkin’s shadowy lighting design is equally spectacular, playing with the depth of the enormous Olivier stage. Emerging from these shadows, ensemble members sing dissonant choral melodies arranged and composed by Caroline Shaw and directed by Osnat Schmool to complete the unsettling atmosphere that frames this performance.

A visually striking production of Arthur Miller’s enduring classic – a good opportunity to see an example of a perfect play onstage.

*** Three stars

Reviewed by: Livvy Perrett

The Crucible plays at the National Theatre until 5 November, with tickets available here.

If you can’t make it to the National Theatre, a National Theatre Live broadcast of The Crucible will be released in cinemas in the UK/Ireland from 26 January and internationally from 2 March 2023.