Jonathan Church: John and Elizabeth Proctor’s relationship

There is tension between John and Elizabeth Proctor in their first scene together in the play. Director Jonathan Church says that the performance of Patricia Kerrigan, who plays Elizabeth (Goody) Proctor, had a big influence on how the couple’s relationship was portrayed. In the script, Elizabeth is represented as a character who doesn’t express much emotion, but Patricia challenged that and brought out the passion that existed between John and Elizabeth before we first meet them in the play.