Thy Woman's Weeds

By Erin Shields

"Frailty, thy name is man."

Lady Capulet wants to look younger, while Goneril longs to play Lear. Viola is weary of her "woman's weeds," and Desdemona needs an intimacy coach. As a director tells Lady Macbeth to sexualize her unsexing, Ophelia stages her death to escape Denmark--all while a chorus of actresses get candid about what's happening behind the scenes.

Daringly irreverent and innovative, Erin Shields doesn't hold back in this fierce feminist examination of Shakespeare's canon, exposing how his representation of women plays out in rehearsal halls, dressing rooms, and social dynamics behind the scenes. Neither a love letter nor a breakup text, Thy Woman's Weeds is a collective scream giving voice to the unwritten verses of Shakespeare's iconic characters and the women who play them.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0369106687
• ISBN13: 9780369106681
• Release Date: July 2027
• Publisher: Playwrights Canada Press
• Length: 96 Pages