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Production Tips for The Canterbury Tales

adapted by Lindsay Price from Chaucer

Chaucer's classic collection of tales comes to life in a brilliant full-length adaptation.

A group of travelers set out for Canterbury on a pilgrimage. To pass the time they entertain each other with a storytelling contest. Best story wins a prize.

Each and every performer gets a chance to shine in this spirited, charming script.

Great characters, lots of humour, and strong ensemble work. Text uses modern English.

Comedy Classical Adaptation

Average Producer Rating:

Tips from the Author

The play is based on a collection of Old-English stories, but the adaptation is decidedly contemporary.

Many productions have dressed the cast in period dress, which is fine, but feel free to bring the characters into modern times. What modern connections can you make in the play?

Tips from past Producers

The Canterbury Tales is an excellent opportunity for minimal set options as they travel so often. The costumes were the most complicated part, as we focused on creating the historical atmosphere, but with simple costume piece changes (hats, large shirts, fake beards, etc.) it is easy to double-cast certain roles. In a middle school setting, double-casting is a better bet if you have very strong and responsible cast members. The amount of lines can be overwhelming to them, but it also allows for students to be in more than just one scene. Overall, this is an excellent show for the middle school setting with minimal set requirements.

Break up the storytelling, especially with younger groups: we had puppet for the prioress's tale and sang/danced the miller's tale. We had great success with the puppets.