After seeing Arthur Miller’s classic drama “The Crucible” at the Central Square Theater, I was hunting in my mind for an image which would summarize and elucidate its frenetic action when I found myself standing under a study, old Poplar tree in a local park. A breeze suddenly swept through the park, not only swaying the tree’s long sturdy branches, but also setting every leaf on the Poplar shifting from its light to its dark side. I remember reading once that the stem of each Poplar leaf is so peculiarly attached to the main body of the leaf as to enable this unique and striking shiver or trembling in the wind. William Bradford, fresh off the Mayflower, described Massachusetts in 1620 as “a hideous and desolate wilderness full of wild beasts and wild men.” Not a promising prospect. And yet, Bradford tackled his fears head-on. After a reportedly terrible first winter, Bradford was … [Read more...] about THE CRUCIBLE AT CENTRAL SQUARE THEATER
