Scottish Ballet: The Crucible with Ten Poems Review

This literary text-inspired double bill combines an evocative dramatisation of Ten Poems by Dylan Thomas and a timely re-imagining of Arthur Miller’s classic masterpiece, “The Crucible.”

As an indictment of religious fundamentalism, this is clearly a political play for today, with two revivals being staged in Leeds and London.

The Salem witch-hunt of 1692, when the Puritan community is stirred by rumour and superstition with the persecution of the innocent, was used by Miller as a parallel to McCarthy’s anti-communist purges in 1950s America.

But how can a 4 act play, running to around 3 hours, be adapted into a 40 minute ballet?. In short, it can’t be done to its full emotional, dramatic potential.

For this World Premiere, choreographer Helen Pickett has taken the essential themes of the play: the rebellious pursuit of human desire in contrast to the fear of evil in religious doctrine.

An intimate duet shows the dangerous liaison between John Proctor and the seductive young Abigail. The scene of Abigail, Betty and friends dancing in the woods is imaginatively re-enacted as a modern Club Rave to invoke the spirits with ritualistic, electronic beat.

When accusations of witchcraft spread, the Congregation gather in their neat line of chairs, kneeling, praying, hysterically wailing in despair in stylised rhythm. The Reverend in his Pulpit is wheeled around the church like a Dodgem car.

This is a wild, whirlwind of a performance, showing off the synchronised precision and dynamic energy of the dancers.

The cast play no less than twenty characters but apart from the leading roles it’s difficult to know who’s who and follow the fast paced plot. The subtle, sensual language of choreography cannot translate such a multi-layered literary text through movement alone.

What does enhance the mood is the film score soundtrack – such as Hermann’s music from Psycho and The Devil and Daniel Webster, to create the chilling, thrilling tone of a horror movie.

The evening begins with the welcome UK Premiere of Christopher Bruce’s Ten Poems, to mark the centenary of the birth of Dylan Thomas. A chance purchase of a CD of Thomas’s poetry recited by Richard Burton was the kick start to this enchanting work.

Thomas has been described as “a Welsh rock god of lyric poetry.” His artful use of alliteration and iambic meter of each line spoken in the deep drawl of Burton’s cigarette and whisky-toned voice is pure music.

"Now I was young and easy under the apple boughs
About the lilting house and happy as the grass was green …"

In Fern Hill, the poet recalls his happy childhood, portrayed on stage in playful games, the two lads oblivious that youth will soon pass them by.

Here, and in “I see the Boys of Summer”, the skipping sound of the words leads the free flowing movement and mime; lighting is extremely effective to capture the outdoors scene of meadow and farmland.

The poems range from “In my Craft and Sullen Art”, about the role of the writer, to the profound vision of grief in “Do Not Go Gentle into that Goodnight”.

The language and imagery of “And death shall have no Dominion” is simply, beautifully expressed by five dancers in shadowy stillness.

Thomas’s keen, often dark, observations of life and growing old, nature through the seasons, offers a complete dance narrative of wistful stories and heartfelt emotion. Utterly breathtaking.

Dylan Thomas + Richard Burton + Scottish Ballet = Performance Poetry par excellence.

Showtimes:

Theatre Royal Glasgow
25 – 27 September, 2014

His Majesty’s Theatre, Aberdeen
7 – 8 October