Pitt Stages production ‘John Proctor is the Villain’ questions classroom narratives with feminism and friendship

Some students might remember witch trials and hysteria from their high school English class discussions about Arthur Miller’s play “The Crucible.” But Pitt Stages’ production “John Proctor is the Villain” offers a new narrative — one filled with feminism, female friendship and pop music, casting the familiar tale in a new light.

From Wednesday Oct. 25 to Sunday Oct. 29, audiences can come to the Charity Randall Theater next to the Cathedral of Learning to watch the Pitt Stages production. From writer Kimberly Belflower, “John Proctor is the Villain” follows the lives of four high school girls in a small rural town in Georgia in 2019 who read “The Crucible” in their high school English class. As the girls grapple with relationships, sex education, abuse and feminism, they begin to question what they learn in the classroom about men in power — both in literary classics and in their own lives. 

Kelly Trumbull, the director of the play, said she chose the play because of her love for coming-of-age stories and relevant social themes. In touching on sensitive topics like sexual assault, relationship abuse and power dynamics, Trumbull said she feels the play gives a voice to her skepticism about the protagonist of “The Crucible,” John Proctor — a skepticism she hopes audiences will share after seeing the play. 

“Historically, ‘The Crucible’ is taught in a very specific way that empowers certain characters and villainizes certain characters,” Trumbull said. “I think anyone who’s read ‘The Crucible’ will leave the play questioning what they were taught and how they were taught.” 

For Trumbull, audiences do not need to be familiar with “The Crucible” to enjoy the play — in fact, she thinks the play’s themes can compel audiences to reexamine the popular narrative in other literary classics about highly praised men.

“I think that this play is exciting because it challenges people to rethink not just “The Crucible,” but other, other stories that we have been taught,” Trumbull said. “This play really has the power to invite people to look at things they have examined in high school and college where they’re taught a certain narrative is the narrative.” 

Miya Gaines, a senior linguistics and theater arts major and Pitt Stages actor who plays Nell, one of the four protagonists, said the lessons the characters learn can help students in the audience reflect on their growth.

“I think the show is important because it speaks to a very recent time that a lot of us, especially in our age group, are so familiar with — it’s not some distant past,” Gaines said. “When it comes to growth in this show in particular, I feel like we don’t acknowledge enough how, even within a short time span, your opinions and your thoughts about things can change, especially when you’re in high school.”

Hannah Graziani, a sophomore biological sciences major who saw the play on Sunday afternoon, said it reflected her own experience attending high school in a small town in Ohio, where she said her community did not properly discuss sexual assault or support victims.

“I’m from more of a conservative town in Ohio, and you just don’t talk about it,” Graziani said. “There would be rumors, and it was never discussed. It was always ‘he’s innocent,’ which I saw a lot of that in the play, which is just like what I experienced in my time in high school.”

“Not believing the victim, defending the man, and the man is always the one who gets away with it — it’s a pattern in society that I feel like a lot of people, especially men, do not talk about,” Graziani said. “So I think it’s a really good thing that they perform a play that really discusses issues women go through that they feel like they have to be silent about.”

While the characters of “John Proctor is the Villain” navigate sensitive subjects related to sexual assault and abuse, audience member Lena Ruther, a senior english literature major, said she appreciated how the play dealt with these topics in a responsible and effective way.

“The playwright did a really good job presenting stuff that might be super triggering to an audience,” Ruther said. “There were things left unsaid, which I think was good because we don’t need to know the details, but they also didn’t stray from saying straight up: ‘This is sexual assault. This is rape.’ But it was done very carefully, and I appreciated that.”

The young female characters in the play pore over their love for pop culture and music, using it to guide their discussions on feminism and express themselves despite their difficult circumstances. Pop songs from artists like Taylor Swift and Megan Thee Stallion filled the transitions between scenes, and the play closed with a final dance number to Lorde’s “Green Light.” Graziani said the play tastefully addressed issues that young women face without discounting their joy.

“I really like how they put it in more of a theatrical form through song and dance. It’s a really unique thing because it’s not just them sitting down discussing it — it’s like women showing they’re almost free through each other,” Graziani said. “It’s women seeing each other and seeing themselves and realizing there’s more to life than being scared.”