In the 1950s, Senator Joseph McCarthy set up the Un-American Activities Committee to combat the growing “threat” of communism in the U.S. Playwright Arthur Miller was one of many writers summoned to testify at this political witch-hunt. Miller, who was nearly ruined, said that until that time he had not understood the “inexplicable darkness” that prevented people from seeing evil and denouncing it—the central theme in The Crucible, based on the Salem witch trials. Interweaving rarely seen excerpts from the BBC production of the play with dramatizations of congressional hearing testimony, this powerful documentary highlights fundamental themes in common with both, and their influence on the playwright’s development. A BBC Production. (29 minutes)