John Proctor Is the Villain
by Kimberly Belflower

Name: John Proctor Is the Villain
Brand: Kimberly Belflower
SKU: 9780822244844
Rating: 4.64 (205 reviews)

BroadwayWest End

John Proctor Is the Villain Book Cover — John Proctor Is the Villain Cover

Highlights

Female

Male

105 minsPresent DayEnsemble CastExpandable CastingRole(s) for Teen(s)Flexible Cast SizeRoom for ExtrasUnit Set/Multiple SettingsContemporary Costumes/Street ClothesComedy

Awards & Recognition

Drama Desk AwardOuter Critics CircleTony Award

Nominee: Seven 2025 Tony Awards, including Best Play Nominee: Four 2025 Drama Desk Awards, including Outstanding Play Winner! Three 2025 Dorian Awards, including Outstanding Broadway Play and Outstanding Ensemble Winner! Two 2025 Outer Critics Circle Awards, including Outstanding New Broadway Play Finalist: 2026 Dramatists Guild Hull-Warriner Award

Synopsis

At a high school in a one-stoplight town in Georgia, a group of lively teens navigate young love, sex ed and a few school scandals while studying a canonical play in English class.

As the students delve into the American classic, they begin to question the play’s perspective and the validity of naming its hero.

With deep wells of passion and biting humor, this dramatic comedy captures a generation mid-transformation, running on pop music, optimism and fury.

Alternating between touching, unsettling and bitingly funny moments, these teens discover that their future is not bound by the past and that they have the power to change it all by writing their own coming-of-age story.

Press Reviews

"A heart-wrenching, guttural, cathartic masterpiece. This is a perfect play for our moment, an urgent response to a time of crisis and a battle cry in the face of a terrifying world."
— Variety

"John Proctor Is the Villain not only serves as a modern day recontextualization of the original play, but also a laugh-out-loud funny and deeply affecting examination of girlhood, feminism, the #MeToo movement, and the unstoppable power of female friendship. It is pure, heartbreaking perfection."
— Entertainment Weekly

"Full of zing, zest and heartbreak, this play hits as hard as it does because at its heart, fighting their way through one hell of a junior year, are the kind of heroes we actually need."
— New York Magazine

Characters

Character	Gender	Age	Description
Shelby Holcomb Student, 16, F. Her brain works faster than her mouth, but her mouth works pretty dang fast. People have always underestimated her.	female	—	Student, 16, F. Her brain works faster than her mouth, but her mouth works pretty dang fast. People have always underestimated her.
Beth Powell Student, 17, F. Nervous and ambitious and enthusiastic. Kind of like if Rory Gilmore and Paris Geller had a baby and raised her in the Deep South.	female	—	Student, 17, F. Nervous and ambitious and enthusiastic. Kind of like if Rory Gilmore and Paris Geller had a baby and raised her in the Deep South.
Nell Shaw Student, 16, F. from Atlanta. Grounded and sincere. Genuinely curious about things. A good judge of character, and a quick study.	—	—	Student, 16, F. from Atlanta. Grounded and sincere. Genuinely curious about things. A good judge of character, and a quick study.
Ivy Watkins Student, 17, F. Fiercely loyal and always well-intentioned. From money. Resist the urge to play her as a mean girl.	female	—	Student, 17, F. Fiercely loyal and always well-intentioned. From money. Resist the urge to play her as a mean girl.
Raelynn Nix Student, 16, F. A cheerleader type who’s always lived her life by other people’s standards. She was paying careful attention and keeping score the whole time.	female	—	Student, 16, F. A cheerleader type who’s always lived her life by other people’s standards. She was paying careful attention and keeping score the whole time.
Mason Adams Student, 17, M. He’s never really tried before, and he’s surprised by how good it feels. Earnest and affable.	—	—	Student, 17, M. He’s never really tried before, and he’s surprised by how good it feels. Earnest and affable.
Lee Turner Student, 16, M. A Carhartt-wearing good ol’ boy. Deeply insecure and without the tools to deal with it. He’s always been good at getting what he wants.	male	—	Student, 16, M. A Carhartt-wearing good ol’ boy. Deeply insecure and without the tools to deal with it. He’s always been good at getting what he wants.
Bailey Gallagher Counselor, 24, F. Sweet in all the ways Southern women are supposed to be. This is her first real job out of college. She’s trying her best. Notes on Casting:	female	—	Counselor, 24, F. Sweet in all the ways Southern women are supposed to be. This is her first real job out of college. She’s trying her best. Notes on Casting:
Carter Smith Teacher, mid-to-late 30s, M. A former golden boy, but one of those rare smart and sensitive ones. Now he’s a great teacher: charming, engaging, goofy.	—	30s	Teacher, mid-to-late 30s, M. A former golden boy, but one of those rare smart and sensitive ones. Now he’s a great teacher: charming, engaging, goofy.