Carrying on from this, another interesting part of playing Abigail would be the sheer power that she has over the audience during the play. She is almost always the centre of attention whenever she possibly can be and the audience are never completely sure whether they should be pitying her or being very suspicious of her. From the start we can see through the stage directions that Abby is meant to have ‘a remarkable skill for dissembling’, however the audience do not see this and so they go through the play wondering what to really think of her. She acts very sweet and innocent at the beginning and it would be enjoyable for the actress to play this knowing that she is in fact deceiving the audience. Later on in the play she could be played showing more twistedness, for example when she is playing the yellow bird scene and making remarks at Mary Warren whom we trust and believe isn’t a witch, so by then the audience’s sympathies will have moved and the actress playing Abigail can really show them how bitter her character is.
Another way in which Miller has made Abigail an interesting character to play is that you would be able to show both her cruel and merciless features and those which suggest there may be a slightly softer side to her personality. I think that Miller predominantly wants us to see her darker side as she is often portrayed in this way. An example of this happening is where she turns on Tituba when they are questioning her and does not seem to mind handing her former friend over to be trialled and possibly killed as long as it can get her out of trouble. As soon as Tituba comes into the room and Abigail sees a chance to get herself out of trouble she shouts, “She made me do it! She made Betty do it!” without the slightest worry for keeping other people safe. The way in which she does this so easily I find interesting as it can seem almost as if she is completely heartless and cold, but you could also see it in different ways. If I were playing Abby it would be interesting to show a slightly less cruel Abigail, perhaps by saying these lines with a little more panic and showing it as a desperate cry for help rather than just shifting the blame callously. This could be backed up by the fact that we do see Abigail in a much more human light when she reveals to her friends that she “saw Indians smash [her] dear parents’ heads on the pillow next to [her],” and she has “seen some reddish work done at night”. This gives some background on Abby’s life as not very easy and gives us some compassion towards her as she does have a reason for acting like she does. Her use of the word ‘dear’ to describe her parents suggests that they were very special to her and the event must have been quite traumatic. Some may suggest that this is just a ploy which Abigail uses to get her way, but I believe that it would make a more interesting performance if it was played for sympathy rather than malice.
Another way in which I believe Miller has made Abigail an interesting character is by using her as a character representing real people who really did things like this to each other and takes events and views from that past to build up a frightening picture of how things were during the time of McCarthyism. This would make her interesting to play as you could think about the real motivations behind why they would turn on so many people in their village and even condemn people to death. I think the way in which she suddenly admits to witchery, something she has been denying and condemning; to save herself is very similar to how people would admit to being Communists in order to save themselves from the harshest punishments. She shouts out that she wants to “open [herself]” as soon as she sees those who do so and ‘convert’ are treated with mercy and kindliness. Miller has probably used this to make the audience unconsciously think about how quickly you can lie if you know it will make things easier for you. I think that it would be interesting to play this part as it is so true to life about how things could be that it would not be difficult to put real human emotion into her because, although she has a cruel exterior, there is some real depth which could be put into the performance.
Overall I believe Abigail would be the most interesting character to play as there are so many different sides to her which you could show in one performance. If I were playing her I would like to show the changes in the way she acts over time and the depth of her inner fear of being hurt.
Extra Scene
(Abigail finds the needle in her stomach)
Parris, Abigail and Betty sit around a dinner table after a day at court
Parris: You hear Goody Nurse be charged now?
Abigail: Aye indeed, I were there myself.
Parris: It seem we are living in a town of witches! It pains me to see my county losing itself to the grip of Satan. Who can I trust anymore when even there was a time when my own kin bowed to the doing of the black arts?
Abigail: [with a tinge of anger] Oh uncle have we not already admitted to that? I am with God now! I sinned but now I am clean and I worship him and I name Satan’s witches for him. Should you not be proud rather than doubting? Have you not seen the things these people are capable of?
Parris: Aye, but… [he is cut off as Abigail screams]
Abigail: [staring into a corner of the ceiling] No! No! You cannot do this to me! What evil has taken you that you should use this black art?
Betty: Who is it Abby?
Parris: Who is it Abby? Who do you see?
Abigail: A needle, a needle! [begins to weep] Oh you will be hanged for this, Goody Proctor!
Parris: Elizabeth? Why it cannot be!
[Abigail collapses off her chair. Parris goes to her and is amazed to see a needle sticking out of her stomach and out through her dress. He pulls it out and Abigail starts to breathe heavily]
Abigail: [with bitterness] That witch! She wants me dead I tell you! Next time that needle shall be sticking in my heart and there will be no mercy. We must alert the courts at once!
Parris: Are you not too hasty with this decision? Goody Proctor has never been ungodly before and although her husband may be a different matter entirely…
Abigail: You dare think me so base as to not know my attacker? Did you not see the needle lodged in my flesh? Did you not pull it out with your own hands? I have seen Elizabeth Proctor with the devil and she seeks to kill me for exposing so many of his accomplices! We must report her to the courts as soon as we can!
Betty: [sensing Abigail’s rise in power] It is true father! I have seen Goody Proctor with the devil! I have seen her sign his book!
Parris: [overwhelmed by the entire experience] Very well, I shall call on Ezekiel Cheever immediately. He will be busy with his warrants tonight I should say.
Abigail: Yes uncle, but you shall see this is for a worthy cause. Think, a parish full of only the godly, worshipping and praising in your church. That is now our future.
Apologia
I chose to write this scene as I found that there could be a little more background on the family life between Parris and Abigail and how she convinced him that her attack was genuine. I found that this could really be conveyed to the audience by adding in the scene where Abigail ‘finds’ the needle sticking out of her stomach and blames it on Elizabeth Proctor.
I thought this would be an interesting scene to write for Abigail as she is at one of her strongest points in the play and can persuade almost anyone to fall for her deceiving lies and performances. To show this underhand side of her in the script I made sure that she used such tactics as making Parris feel guilty for doubting her and tempting him into helping her accuse Elizabeth by giving him a glimpse of what the future may be like, playing on his wish for an obedient and faithful parish.
This scene is also meant to show her power, as Betty senses this and joins in with the attack to make it even stronger. For this scene I believe Abigail should really be holding the stage, gaining in power right until the end.
Finally, this scene is to reinforce the audience’s knowledge of Abigail’s astonishing acting skills. Having already discovered her ‘skill for dissembling’ earlier on in the play, they will probably already be relatively suspicious of anything that she does and therefore will be prepared for the fact that it is a lie when they hear the others’ side of the story later on. They will find out that it was Mary Warren who made the poppet and will therefore be assured that Abby must have done this to herself, which not only shows what she is willing to do to get someone into trouble but also shows us that she must be a very good actress to get everyone to believe that what seemed to have happened really did happen.
Taken as a whole, this scene is meant to let us see more of the malicious and scheming side of Abigail, which balanced with the softer and more scared side of her seen elsewhere in the book gives her more depth than just a plainly black and evil villain.
