Cry Innocent at Ingersoll’s Ordinary

We at History Alive, Inc. have developed a classroom length (50-minute) version of an interactive, multimedia Cry Innocent: the People Versus Bridget Bishop to students, whether they are learning at home or learning in a physical classroom with their teachers. This version of Cry Innocent brings the participant into Salem Village as a guest at Ingersoll’s Ordinary (the tavern) where the pre-trial examination of Bridget Bishop is happening in the back room. The Ingersolls, who host the experience, run the tavern and hear all the gossip. They are hungry for more detail and it’s the audience’s job to spy on the proceedings and tell them what they’re missing. The Ingersolls can also answer all kinds of questions about the characters, since barkeeps know pretty much everything about a small community.

Our interactive experience is $350 per session. Program can be booked by requesting your date by emailing query@historyalivesalem.com.

By good fortune, we were able to film Cry Innocent in the authentic reproduction setting of Salem 1630: Pioneer Village, when we celebrated the show’s 21st birthday a few years back. Through Vimeo and live-hosting on Zoom we offer you this special online version of the show, with real-time, interactive hosting by a costumed character. Our distant audiences can be part of the experience from a location of their choice. It’s not the same as seeing the show in Salem, where audiences examining Bridget’s property with their hands, sketch the live court scene, and absorb the feeling of the live actors with the crowd in the room, but we’ve realized that what we have in this filmed version are qualities the audience could not have experienced live in the Old Town Hall—vibrant images of 17th century material culture and architecture, a feeling of being in an intimate room, and more opportunity to enter into a conversation than can be done in a large crowd, and more opportunity to think about the backstory of the testimonies. We can also do talk backs with your students about the differences between Salem in 1692 and the way Salem is now, and/or the way Salem has been portrayed in popular culture, including the perennially popular play, The Crucible by Arthur Miller. Depending on how detailed you’d like to get, we can also talk with your teachers about how to make the experience feel more immersive right in your own school with recipes, primary sources to reference, costume ideas, and more!

This virtual program is available for your group by request throughout the year. (Availability in our very busy October season is limited, though.) To inquire about availability for specific dates, please email query@historyalivesalem.com.