A panel discussion about the impact of Arthur Miller’s classic The Crucible on political discussions at the time of its writing and today will take place in the Carousel Theatre following the Sunday, October 16 matinee. The discussion is free and open to the public.
Discussing the play and its effect on recent and current psycho-political issues will be Richard L. Pacelle Jr., head of the Department of Political Science; Mike Nash, a retired professor from the Department of Psychology; and, Calvin MacLean, UT Theatre department head and director of the Clarence Brown Theatre’s production of The Crucible.
“Arthur Miller’s The Crucible was written under personal and political distress, with artists forced to name names of suspected fellow sympathizers in opposition parties. Whether party members or not, these suspected artists were banned from working, their reputations ruined, and their livelihood stripped. His play about a similar event in our young nation’s history dramatizes the fear generated by the Red Scare of the fifties. Are we past such behavior, or are we still vulnerable to political fear? This question and others like it are the subject of the discussion,” said MacLean.
The Crucible runs until October 16. For tickets, call the Clarence Brown Theatre box office at 865-974-5161 or Tickets Unlimited at 865-656-4444, or order online 24/7 at clarencebrowntheatre.com.