Show Plot Wife of Bath/Wife of Willesden

Authors: Geoffrey Chaucer (Wife of Bath), Zadie Smith (Wife of Willesden)

Time Period: 14th century (Wife of Bath); 2020's London and 18th century Jamaica (Wife of Willesden)

Setting: traveling along the road from London to Canterbury, England and internal story in mythic Britain (Wife of Bath); A vibrant, crowded pub called the Sir Colin Campbell on the Kilburn High Road in Brent, Northwest London. The internal story she spins jumps to 18th-century colonial Jamaica.

Summary: "The Wife of Bath's Tale" explores the themes of female empowerment, bodily agency, and marriage. The narrative centers on an Arthurian knight forced to find out "what women most desire" to save his life.

The Wife of Willesden is a vibrant, modern theatrical adaptation of Geoffrey Chaucer's "The Wife of Bath". Written by acclaimed author Zadie Smith, it transforms a medieval pilgrimage into an immersive, bawdy pub crawl in North West London. Alvita, a Jamaican-born British woman in her mid-50s replaces Alyson of Bath as protagonist, Queen Nanny replaces Queen Guinevere.