Higher Drama
Set Text
The Crucible
Learning Intentions
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To understand how we use the 'set text' in
our Higher Drama course.
Your set text
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This is the first play you will study in Higher
Drama.
You should read it more than once!
You want to know this play inside out as it
will help you gain marks in your exams.
3 main outcomes:
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You will perform an ACTING piece from a
scene in your set text as part of your acting
exam.
You will write an ESSAY on your prescribed
text in the final written exam (from a
selection of 4 questions)
You will complete a DRAMATIC
COMMENTARY and GROUND PLAN on a
scene from your text in the final written
exam.
How do we do all this?
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With a lot of work!
By using your KNOWLEDGE of the play.
What Do I Need To Know
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All the CHARACTERS in the play and their
motivations.
Understand RELATIONSHIPS in the play
and how they develop.
Understand the THEMES and ISSUES
explored in the text.
Where and when each scene/act is SET.
How you would act, direct or stage the
play?
Study of a text in its Theatrical
Context
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You must understand when the play was
written and set.
The play which you are going to study is
'The Crucible' by Arthur Miller.
Here are some facts about Miller and when
and why he wrote the play.
'The Crucible' was written by the late
playwright Arthur Miller from New York in
1953.
Miller had already written successful plays
including 'All My Sons' and 'Death of a
Salesman'.
FACTS
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Miller was know for his success in writing
these plays and received the Pulitzer Prize
for Drama. He is also known for being
married to Marilyn Monroe from 1956-1961.
However, there is one more reason why
Miller has been in the public eye.
Miller was called to testify before the 'House
Un-American Activities Committee' (HUAC).
This committee was chaired by Senator
Joseph McCarthy.
FACTS
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The committee existed at a time when
FEAR was rife in America.
Context: The Second World War had only
just ended in 1945, leaving a strong
determination that no totalitarian forms of
government must ever be allowed to
develop as Hitler's regime developed.
Russia was now being watched uneasily
because of the totalitarian aspects of
international communism.
FACTS
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There was an exaggerated fear in America
that Communism might infiltrate the
government.
Communism (a system of social
organization in which all economic and
social activity is controlled by a totalitarian
state dominated by a single and selfperpetuating political party – everything
controlled by a government).
Investigations were vigorous and aimed to
seek out any person in any way
sympathetic to communism.
FACTS
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As it was led by Joseph McCarthy, the
process of routing out of Communists was
called 'McCarthyism'.
As many artists (who were forward-thinking)
became accused Miller became aware of
the manner in which suspected communists
were accused and questioned and didn't
like what he discovered.
If accused you were asked to name names
of others you know/suspected of
communism. Many people NAMED
NAMES out of fear of being blacklisted.
FACTS
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In this 'naming of names' Miller noticed a
parallel between the McCarthy trials and the
history of the Salem witch trials of 1692.
In puritan Salem, witchcraft was terribly
feared. If you were accused of witchcraft
you would be forced to say who else
bewitched you. If you did not NAME
NAMES you would be hung!
This resulted in the hanging of many
innocent people in Salem.
'The Crucible'
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Miller had found a way of commenting on
McCarthyism without directly commenting
on it. His vehicle was the Salem witch
trials.
Miller studied the facts of the time and used
it to create the fictional 'The Crucible', which
is loosely based on real people and real
events.
Summarise
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You should now understand how you will
use your set text.
You now know a little about the playwright
and context in which the play was written!
(by Arthur Miller, 1953, America, during
McCarthyism)
You are about to learn a little about the
context in which the play was set! (1692
Salem, Massachusetts, Salem witch trials).
Reading 'The Crucible'
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Before we begin reading The Crucible
choose a character from the play (any!).
As we read the play think about:
what the character's personality is
what their motivation is
what their relationships are
how the character develops throughout the
play.
Reading 'The Crucible'
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As we read the play make note of the
following:
Key characters
Relationships
Themes/issues
Important scenes/key moments
Important quotes
You should use your summary sheets after
each reading and complete your notes.
What else to look out for?
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Pay attention to the playwrights stage
directions as you can refer to these in an
exam.
Imagine you were going to direct this play,
how would you stage it? Or act in this play,
how would you play the characters?
What reaction would you be looking for from
the audience?
Before we begin!

ENJOY the play, it is a wonderfully
emotional and intense play with a powerful
message.
Character Map Aims
• To have a full understanding of who all the
characters are in the play and how they are
connected.
• To have a visual aid to use when studying
The Crucible
• Your character map might look a little like
this.
Character Map
Character Map
• What things do you think you could include
in your character map?
• Details on character’s personalities
• Details on character’s relationships
• Details on how relationships progress in the
play.
The Reduced Performance
The Crucible
Aims
• To strengthen our memories of the text.
• To discover all important moments in
the play.
• To communicate to an audience, all the
important aspects of the play.
• To have the chance to adopt the roles
of many characters in the play.
How do we perform a reduced
performance?
• Each group will present a shortened
version of each Act, which can be in
your own words and also use quotes
from the play.
• The idea is that if you presented this to
an audience who knew nothing about
the play, they would know almost
everything about it after viewing the
presentation.
The Reduced Performance
• Each group will be given a different Act to study.
• In groups you will discuss the Act in detail taking
note of all events that happen, and of key events.
• You can take notes of important quotes that you
want to include.
• You can plan and rehearse how you want to
present each Act.
• Costumes/Props can be provided to show
character changes. A narrator is also a good idea
to show the passing of time (etc), and other
conventions can be used, e.g. tableau to perhaps
show important relationships.
The Reduced Performance
Tips
• Do not spend too long planning your
performance.
• You can use your summary to help you
establish key moments as a starting point.
• Quickly establish what type of presentation
you want to do – will people play multiple
roles and show scenes? Or will you use still
images and a narrator? How will you use
the quotes to perform?
More Tips!
• You cannot communicate everything that happens
in the Act!
• You might decide to represent the present themes
in the Act.
• You don’t have long to create and rehearse this!
• Do not worry to much about the performance
being polished – this isn’t your acting exam.
• Experiment with new ideas of how to present
information about the play.
Success Criteria
• Have we strengthened our
memories of the play?
• What are the important/key
moments in the play?
• What have you learned about
characters in the play by adopting
their roles?
The Crucible Characters
Learning Intentions
• To study a character from the Crucible in
depth, in preparation for your written exam.
• To have a bank of quotes about that
character that you can use in the exam.
Tasks
• Choose your character.
• Write out a summary of what that character
experiences from the start of the play until the end.
• Complete a character description including
information about that character, e.g. background
info, personality, relationships.
• Look through the play for quotes that support any
information you have given about that character.
• Does Miller use the character to show any
themes? How does he do this? Use quotes to
support your argument.
Choosing a character
• You should only choose a main character to
write about. Here are some good
suggestions:
• John Proctor (tragic hero; represents the
theme of guilt/individual conscience)
• Elizabeth Proctor (virtuous wife; represents
the theme of honesty)
• Abigail Williams (manipulative female;
represents the theme of fear, adultery)
• Reverend John Hale (intelligent expert on
witchcraft; represents the theme of integrity)
Final Check!
• You should now have detailed knowledge
about at least one character which you can
comfortably write about in the exam.
• You could do the same activity again, but
this time with another character, or you could
highlight an important relationship in the
play.
No Fixed Stage
Learning Intentions
• To begin to realise how you would
breakdown exam questions.
• To do this with your ‘no fixed stage’ essay
question.
• To think about how YOU would direct ‘The
Crucible’.
Tasks
• Group discussion of question.
• Feedback and class discussion of question.
• Group/individual rough essay plan (i.e. what
topics you will cover in essay)
Question
IF YOU WERE ASKED TO DIRECT THE
CRUCIBLE IN A VENUE OF YOUR OWN
CHOICE WITH NO FIXED STAGE,
WHERE AND HOW WOULD YOU DO IT?
REMEMBER TO JUSTIFY FULLY ALL
YOUR DECISIONS.
Final Check!
• Do you understand the question?
• Do you feel you that you know how to
unpack an exam question? How would you
do this?
Learning Intentions
• To learn all theatre arts.
• To begin to think about what theatre arts you
would apply to the Crucible (there are
already clues in the play – look for them)
Tasks
• Powerpoint on theatre arts – take notes.
• Study the play to look for already existing
theatre arts e.g. sound, lighting, set, etc.
• Clue – Miller’s stage directions at the start of
each act will help you with this, but also think
of any other theatre arts throughout the play
that already exist.
• Your design concepts of the play – plan
what theatre arts you would use and why.
Would your set design be symbolic or
realistic?
The Magic Six!
Remember there are 6 types of theatre
arts.
Lights
Why would we use lights?
• Stage lighting is used for 3 reasons:
1. To see the actors and action.
2. To focus the audience’s attention on
particular areas or characters.
3. To create a mood or atmosphere.
What can we do with lights?
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Here are some basic functions with
abbreviations.
You can program lights to switch on/off.
You can fade lights up or down (F/U or
F/D).
You can fade them fast or slow (Q/F or
S/F).
You can CROSSFADE the lights (C/F).
You can snap to blackout (B/O).
What else can we do?
• You can change the colour of lights by using
GELS.
• You can choose to light separate areas of
the stage, e.g. USR, CS by ANGLING the
lights.
• You can have the lights brightly or dimly lit
by choosing the LEVEL.
• You can spotlight characters by SHAPING
the beam of light (e.g. narrow/wide).
Types of Lights
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There are 5 types of lights you should
know.
Profile Spot
Fresnel Spot
Floodlight
Spotlight
Follow Spot
A PROFILE SPOT gives you a HARD-EDGED BEAM OF LIGHT.
They are fitted with shutters, usually four, which can be pushed into the
light beam, shaping its appearance on stage. There is usually a slot cut
into the body of the lantern, which accepts Gobo’s – cut out metal
patterns whose image is projected onto the stage .
FRESNEL lanterns give a soft-edged beam of light. Used to
create large washes of light (like a flood), They have external
BARN DOORS, which shape the beam.
BARN DOORS
used to adjust the shape of the beam
FLOODS are used to provide large area washes of light. They come equipped with a
gel frame and are especially useful for lighting backcloths. The beam cannot be
shaped, so generally other lantern types are more flexible.
Spotlight
A profile lantern can be used to create a
SPOTLIGHT which is a beam of light
created by a lantern for a person or place on
the acting area.
Follow Spot
A follow spot is a powerful profile used to
follow actors around the acting area.
Gels
• Gels are film placed in front of a lantern to
change the colour of the beam, which can
create different moods or atmospheres and
symbolise themes in the drama.
Special Effects are achieved by using
such equipment as:
1. Disco Ball
2. Gobo (thin metal plate cut
out in a pattern and place in
a lantern to project pattern
or shape)
3. Strobe light
4. Pyrotechnics
5. Effects Projector
6. Smoke Machine
Props
Types of Props
•
There are two types of props: personal
props and set-props.
1. Personal Props – An item carried by, or
worn by a character, such as glasses,
handbag, wallet.
2. Set Props – An item placed on the set,
usually part of it e.g. a lamp, a clock, a
picture.
Remember!
• It is important to get the right stage prop for
any production because props will add the
final touch to the overall setting.
• Props should be in keeping with the period
or style of the production, e.g. mobile
phones would not be used in a play set at
the beginning of the 20th Century.
Costume
Why wear costume?
 Costumes help make the characters
believable.
 Costume helps the audience identify the
characters more easily and can help the
actor build up the character he is
portraying.
Make-up
Why
use
stage
make-up?
Make-up is used for to allow for actors to be seen
under bright stage lights.
Make-up is used to help create a believable
character or effect.
Let’s look at some make-up effects.
• Every make-up application starts with a
foundation base. FOUNDATION can be
either pale or dark.
• SHADING: use colours to make facial areas
look shrunken e.g. under the eyes.
• HIGHLIGHTING: use light colours to make
face areas stand out e.g. cheeks.
• You can create wrinkles and shades by using
LINERS.
• See the next slide and think about what has
been done to make this character look old or
ill.
• A STIPPLE SPONGE can be used to show
stubble on the head or chin or cracked veins.
• Latex is liquid rubber which can be used to
make SKULL CAP moulds to make people
look bald.
• WOUNDS and SCARS can be built up using
make-up. This is called SCARRING.
• See what you think has been used in this next
picture.
• Perhaps a character is injured and has to be
seen with a black eye, wound or cut.
• LINERS can be used to create bruises.
• LINERS sticks of make-up in different colours
which can create lines, bruises, shading or
highlighting.
• PENCILS can be used in different colours and
are easily smudged and blended.
• See what make-up you think the make-up artist
has used in the next picture.
NOSE PUTTY is a type of clay that can be used
for altering the shape of the nose or chin and
or/making warts and wounds. False noses can
also be made by LATEX.
Strong red lipstick can be used to show the
character is a powerful female boss. Whereas
softer lipsticks might be used for characters
such as princesses.
TOOTH VARNISH can be used to create the look
of a missing tooth by blacking out an existing
one, or by colouring teeth.
CREPE HAIR - Plaits of artificial hair can be cut
and trimmed to form eyebrows, moustaches and
beards. SPIRIT GUM is glue used to attach
hair to the face.
Fake Blood
Fake blood can be used in a variety of ways
(powder, liquid or capsules) to show that blood
has been shed.
Make-up can be used to create fantasy
characters.
Sound
Types of sound
• There are two types of sound.
1. Atmospheric sound e.g. music.
2. Sound effects.
Atmospheric Sound
• As it suggests atmospheric sound creates a
mood or atmosphere that directly affects the
audience e.g. sadness, happiness, romantic
mood, scary atmosphere.
• Atmospheric sound can also tell the
audience information about the production
e.g. the period or style (historic or ultra
modern)
• It could communicate information about a
theme from the lyrics.
• It could also be used to build tension.
Sound Effects
• Sound effects are noises used to signal
something e.g. a gunshot, an explosion, a
knock etc
• Sound effects can be pre-recorded or live.
Set
Set
• Set includes any furniture that is used in the
production.
• This can include tables, chairs, etc.
• It can also be theatre created set, like flats or
backcloths with scenery painted on them, or
door flats, window flats.
• Rostra are raised platforms used to
represent objects e.g. bed, platform,
counter, sink, fireplace, etc.
What is a design concept?
• When a Director has a design concept, they
have thought about the overall style of the
drama in terms of theatre arts.
• They have ideas about how to use theatre
arts to represent where and when the drama
takes place.
• They have thought about ideas to represent
the message of the drama or the overall
mood and atmosphere they wish to create.
Set Design
• There are two types of set design:
symbolic or realistic
• Realistic – where the set appears real and
life-like, exactly how it should appear.
Here is a realistic set design in a play
called ‘Proof’ by David Auburn
Symbolic Set Design
• Symbolic - where the set represents elements
of it’s location to symbolise where and when
the drama takes place, or represents the
drama’s message.
Here is a symbolic set design in
Shakespeare’s Julius Ceasar
Have a guess!
• Have a close look at the next picture of a
set.
• Think about what the Director is trying to
achieve by designing the set this way.
• Is it a symbolic or realistic set design?
• How do you know this?
• What is the Director trying to represent or
symbolise?
Staging
• Staging is not a theatre art but there are
many types of stages that you could perform
‘The Crucible’ in.
• However, you have to complete a ground
plan in your exam and it must correlate with
your essay. This means that you should
choose a stage type which you can
comfortably do a ground plan with, i.e. endon staging.
• End-on staging allows all the audience to
have the same view of the acting area, with
more space in the acting area for movement
and scenery – making it easier to direct, but
can distance the audience so it is good to
have the performers come close to the
audience for an intimate atmosphere when
using end-on staging.
What are the 6 theatre arts?
• Remember all of these when thinking about
your no fixed stage essay question, or any
other question involving set design, a
director or design concepts.
Learning Intentions
• To know how to structure your essay.
• To complete your essay plan.
Tasks
• Class discussion about structure.
• Your essay plan.
Structure
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What basic structure should any essay
have?
What structure would you divide your ‘no
fixed stage essay’ into?
Create your essay plan for your ‘no fixed
stage essay’.
No Fixed Stage Essay Structure
• Possible essay structure
1. Introduction – Historical background: who wrote
the play and why it was written.
2. Social background of the play - Puritanism.
3. State choice of venue, and the mood and
atmosphere you wish to create.
4. Act 1 – what theatre arts you would use and how
you would direct actors to create intended mood
and atmosphere. Take new paragraph for each
act.
5. Conclusion – state why your choices would be
effective.
Learning Intentions
• To think about how to open an essay.
• To create your opening paragraph of your
‘no fixed stage’ essay.
Tasks
• In pairs discuss what you would include in
your introduction.
• Class check – What do we not want?
• Individually create your opening paragraph
of your essay. You may use your
background notes to do this.
Ground Plans
Learning Intentions
• To know the ground plan for each act of the
Crucible.
• To have a copy of these ground plans to
keep and study.
Tasks
• Split into four groups, each with a different
act.
• Draw a ground plan for the act.
• Present the drawn ground plan and real set
design for each act.
The Crucible – Dramatic
Commentary
Learning Intentions
• Apply what we have learned about dramatic
commentary and use this information to help
us create a dramatic commentary for ‘The
Crucible’.
• Be able to apply what we learn from our
practical direction to our written dramatic
commentary.
Tasks
• Remember what a dramatic commentary
should include.
• Direction of a scene.
• Begin dramatic commentary.
Dramatic Commentary
• What do you remember that you have to
include in your dramatic commentary?
• Moves, Justification, Technical Effects
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1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Directors
Tell them WHERE to move (stage
positions)
Tell them HOW to move
Tell them HOW to speak
Tell them WHY they are acting this way
Their personality
Their motives
Their background
Their status
Their relationships
Directing
MOVES
In what manner are they moving?
Where are they facing?
• Facial expressions
• Gestures
• Body language
• Posture
• Eye contact
Directing
VOICE
1. Volume
2. Pitch
3. Pace
4. Tone
5. Emphasis
Moves Column
• The director should describe the moves of the actors
including:
• STAGE DIRECTIONS: To place the characters on
the ground plan, i.e. USC, DSR and include
entrances and exits.
• MOVEMENT: To describe how characters are
moving by using movement terminology, i.e. facial
expression, posture, body language.
• VOICE: To describe how the line should be delivered
using appropriate voice terminology, i.e. tone, pace,
volume, pitch.
• INTERACTION of characters: To describe how they
interact, e.g. stare, cuddle, etc.
Justify on two levels:
• Explain how your direction illustrates the
SHORT TERM objectives or
problems/issues that the character is
tackling.
• Explain how your direction illustrates the
LONG TERM objectives or problems/issues
that the character is tackling.
Technical Column
• This must be done on 2 levels:
• The physical effect you hope to achieve,
e.g. to create the impression of a warm day
in June and to light the faces of the actors.
• The mood or atmosphere you hope to
achieve, e.g. to communicate the warmth
and love between the characters.
Remember to:
• State opening position of actors in the first
move.
• Use adverbs is a very good way of
explaining what your intended directorial
interpretation is.
• Aim for roughly 12-15 moves per page of
script so pick the best moments!
• Try to make your moves and justification
detailed.
Character/Acting Essay
The Crucible
Learning Intentions
• To be able to discuss the characters of ‘The
Crucible’ play in detail for your essays.
• To have a bank of important quotes you can
use to support your argument about
characters in the Crucible.
• To be able to write the first part of your
second Crucible essay.
Tasks
• Look at 2010 question and discuss this as a
class.
• Discussion of ‘qualities and characteristics’
• Discussion of characters in groups and
presentation.
Question
Choose a character from your prescribed
text and describe their qualities and
characteristics. As an actor, how would you
perform this role?
Qualities: A personal trait, qualities that make
up one’s personality e.g. confident.
Characteristics: A feature that helps to
identify, or distinguish a person.
List of possible
qualities/characteristics
• Trusting, courageous, jealous, honest,
brave, manipulative, honourable, assertive,
resentful, individual, affectionate, forgiving,
caring, spiteful, unselfish, selfish, devoted,
envious, hard-working, spiteful, cold, warm,
loving, heroic, proud, strong, domineering,
loyal, evil, weak etc
Group Discussion
• Discuss any qualities or characteristics your
character may have.
• Go through the characters’ journey in the
play to discover where these ‘qualities and
characteristics’ emerge.
• Try and find quotes to support your answer!
• Prepare your presentation – the group with
the most suitable quotes wins!
Part 2 of the question
Choose a character from your prescribed text and
describe their qualities and characteristics. As an
actor, how would you perform this role?
• How would you start this answer?
As an actor I would want to portray many of these
qualities and characteristics. I would want to show
how John Proctor is an honest, proud and brave
man who loves and protects his wife. I would also
want to show how he is not afraid of authority and
is constrained by the guilt he feels over his affair. I
would portray Proctor as an individual who is
motivated by personal integrity. Ultimately, he is a
man who cares about the truth and hence, goes to
his death as a tragic hero. I would use various
performance skills to do this.
New Paragragh
• In the next few paragraphs go through each
act, pin-pointing various moments that are
important for this character’s journey and
discuss how would use the following acting
techniques to portray the character:
Acting Techniques
• Voice (volume, tone, pace, clarity, pitch,
accent, emphasis)
• Movement (Gesture, facial expression, body
language, eye contact, posture)
• Use of silences, pauses.
• Use of space (pacing)
• Stage positioning
• Character inter-relationships
Tips on improving character essay
• Introduction: introduce the play (info) then
introduce who the character is (brief description of
role in the play) then begin to answer the question.
• Part A: Answer part A of the question with quotes
(referring to the question).
• Quotes: Introduce them, indent them, explain the
quote and summarise the point you are making in
relation to the question.
• Explain what has happened in the play when
relevant.
• Part B: refer to A points and question (must link!)
• Point A, point B structure is possible, if you prefer.
Themes and Issues
The Crucible
Learning Intentions
• To have a sound understanding of all the
themes and issues in the play
• To be able to say how you would highlight
these through your ‘design concepts’.
Tasks
• ‘The Crucible’ basket game.
• Pair up and pick themes. Look to see where
the themes are present in the play, try and
find some quotes.
• Join pairs – share findings.
• Class discussion of themes.
• Read worksheets – Themes info booklet and
Question.
Themes/Issues: Pick a few!
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Honesty
Hysteria
Personal Integrity
Good and Evil
Witchcraft
Struggle Between Freedom and Oppression
Individual Conscience
Fear
Courage
Envy
Revenge
Themes Question
As a DIRECTOR, explain how your design
concepts would illuminate the themes and
issues of your prescribed text.
Opening or Closing Scene
Q. Explain the significance of the
opening scene in your prescribed
text. As a director, explain what
impact you would like this scene
to have on the audience and how
you would achieve this. (2005)
MOMENT of Dramatic Tension
• Can you think of any moments in The
Crucible with great dramatic tension?
• Please note moments are not Acts or
scenes they are shorter than this.
• Q. Describe what you consider to be a
moment of great dramatic tension in the
text you have studied. How, as a
Director would you realise this moment
in performance?