John Proctor is the Villain to have UK premiere
The Tony-nominated production is UK-bound!
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London
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28 October 2025
John Proctor is the Villain will have its UK premiere in 2026.
The hit play by Kimberly Belflower reimagines the legacy of The Crucible within a modern American high school, and will now be staged at the Royal Court – the very venue where The Crucible had its London premiere in the Court’s first-ever season in 1956.
Set in a present-day English class studying Arthur Miller’s classic, the story follows a group of students and their young teacher as they grapple with questions about morality, power, and who gets to control the narrative. When a controversy erupts over whether John Proctor should be seen as a tragic hero or a predator who abused his position, tensions between students, teachers, and the community spiral.
The play had its world premiere at the Studio Theatre in Washington, DC in 2022. It had its Broadway debut in the Spring of 2025, starring Sadie Sink (known from Stranger Things) as the character Shelby Holcomb. A new UK cast will be formed for the transfer, which is also directed by Danya Taymor.
Taymor and Belflower said today: “We are thrilled and honored to bring John Proctor is the Villain to the iconic Royal Court Theatre where so many brilliant and audacious artists have created. It feels like special witchcraft that Arthur Miller’s The Crucible also made its English debut at the Royal Court exactly 70 years ago, and we can’t wait to present our production on the very same stage.”
The show runs from 20 March to 25 April 2026.
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