The emotional, empowering role of music in 'John Proctor Is the Villain’ on Broadway
The songs of Lorde, Taylor Swift, and more pop stars strike a crucial chord in Kimberly Belflower’s play that pushes back on The Crucible, starring Sadie Sink.
Music is mighty. It calms and soothes, but it also mirrors and magnifies raw, unruly emotions. Playwright Kimberly Belflower gets that, and she threads this notion into her smart and tangy dark comedy John Proctor Is the Villain on Broadway.
Set in a rural Georgia classroom in 2018, during the peak of #MeToo, the play, directed by The Outsiders Tony Award winner Danya Taymor, follows high school girls who turn a conventional teaching of The Crucible on its head in response to disquieting events in their own lives. Hint: Belflower’s title tells all.
“Everyone’s going to find a character that [resonates],” said Sadie Sink (Stranger Things). She shoulders the production as Shelby, a brainy and blunt student who unapologetically shakes things up. “It’s a love letter to girlhood.”
The play is an ode to the power of music, too. According to Morgan Scott, who plays down-to-earth student Nell, the wordy but quick-witted script has a "rhythm." Plus, the girls' conversations are peppered with talk of pop artists and their hit songs: Belflower name-checks Taylor Swift (whose “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together” gets a sly mention), Selena Gomez, Beyoncé, Harry Styles, Lizzo, and, most significantly, Lorde.
“The music in the show is so important. It’s so much more than just pop culture references,” said Maggie Kuntz, who plays Ivy, a student dealing with a family crisis. Music, she added, “especially if you’re a teenager, can put words to your experience before you have words for what you’re going through.”
“I was a hardcore Swiftie,” vouched Scott. “I learned how to play guitar because of Taylor Swift.”
A curated playlist featuring Swift, Gomez, Lorde, Florence + the Machine, Rihanna, and more gets pumped into the Booth Theatre before the show begins. The ear-candy appetizer is designed to complement the feelings of ache, joy, anger, empowerment, and more that the characters experience.
“Kimberly and Danya and our sound designer, Palmer [Hefferan], picked an incredible pre-show and post-show mix of all-female singer-songwriters and pop stars,” said Gabriel Ebert, who plays the popular teacher Mr. Smith.
Molly Gallagher, who plays school counselor Bailey, applauded the pre-show mini-concert for lending context: “It really puts you in 2018,” she said.
By then, Lorde’s single “Green Light” had been a hit for about a year. The dance-pop song about heartbreak, healing, and freedom is the soundtrack to a Crucible-themed class project performed by Shelby and one-time bestie Raelynn (Amalia Yoo).
“The music is one of my favorite parts about getting to do this play,” said Yoo, who’s making her Broadway debut. She recalled reading the script and coming to a stage direction that reads “‘Green Light’ starts to play.”
“I was, like, ‘Perfect. This is my dream,” she said. “I loved that song in high school. I love it now. You would think we would get sick of listening to ‘Green Light,’ but, really, how could you? It’s such a good song. It feels like such a huge release.”
Ebert marveled at Belflower’s canny use of the song to bridge past and present. “The song ‘Green Light’ meant so much to Kimberly when she was young that she was able to put that passion into some of her characters,” he said. “Having the song grow into something bigger than itself and be in conversation with The Crucible is a really deft bit of playwriting.”
Echoed Fina Strazza, who plays the anxious overachiever Beth, “We grow up on these songs and we have these moments in our room and we’re dancing with our friends at night.
“This play captures the magic of hearing your favorite song for the first time. Music is everything to these girls.”
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Gillian Russo contributed reporting to this story.
Photo credit: John Proctor Is the Villain on Broadway. (Photos by Julieta Cervantes)
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