Becky Nurse of Salem: A Contemporary Comedy About a Historical Tragedy

A wry, innovative reckoning with the legacy of the Salem witch trials, from one of America's foremost playwrights.

Becky Nurse is an outspoken, sharp-witted tour guide at the Salem Museum of Witchcraft. She's just trying to get by in post-Obama America. She's also the descendant of Rebecca Nurse, who was infamously executed for witchcraft in 1692 - but things have changed for women since then… haven't they?

After losing her job for calling out The Crucible in front of schoolkids, Becky visits a local witch for help. One spell leads to another, and then everything really goes off the rails.

Sarah Ruhl's Becky Nurse of Salem is a darkly comic play about a woman coming to terms with her family's legacy and finding her voice in the 'lock her up' era. It was first staged at Lincoln Center Theater, New York, in 2022.