The Performance Series

Patient & Impatient Griselda

Margaret Atwood, Bryan Doerries, Jesse Eisenberg, Maev Beaty and Araya Mengesha

5:00pm

Saturday, September 30, 2023

120 mins

Margaret Atwood and Theater of War Productions return to TIFA with an exciting new collaboration exploring power and control, domestic violence and family dynamics by way of two versions of the same story: one written by Giovanni Boccaccio in 1348 during the bubonic plague, and the other by Atwood in 2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic. In Bocaccio’s version, a woman named Griselda remains in an abusive and controlling relationship, showing great patience and forbearance in the face of her husband’s sadism and cruelty. In Atwood’s version, Griselda takes matters in her own hands and, with the help of her sister, turns the tables on her husband.

This free, public event will feature a live, dramatic reading of the “Patient Griselda” story from Boccaccio’s Decameron by Jesse Eisenberg (The Social Network, Fleishman is in Trouble), Maev Beaty (Beau is Afraid, Mouthpiece) and Araya Mengesha (Tiny Pretty Things, Nobody). Then, in response, Atwood will perform “Impatient Grisleda,” a story that is narrated to a group of humans in quarantine by an alien that looks like an octopus. The readings of both texts will be followed by immediate responses by community panelists and will culminate in a guided audience discussion, facilitated by Bryan Doerries (Artistic Director, Theater of War Productions).

This event will take place in person at Harbourfront Centre Theatre and online via Zoom. Registration is required for in person and virtual attendance.

Admission into the theatre is subject to room capacity. Please arrive at least 10 minutes prior to start time and have your e-ticket ready for scanning to assure entry.

Free

Performance

Reading

Virtual

Watch the Recording Here

This event will take place in person at Harbourfront Centre Theatre and online via Zoom. Registration is required for in person and virtual attendance.

Admission into the theatre is subject to room capacity. Please arrive at least 10 minutes prior to start time and have your e-ticket ready for scanning to assure entry.

Free

Performance

Reading

Virtual

Featured Authors

Margaret Atwood

Margaret Atwood, whose work has been published in more than forty-five countries, is the author of more than fifty books of fiction, poetry, critical essays, and graphic novels. In addition to The Handmaid’s Tale, now an award-winning TV series, her novels include Cat’s Eye, short-listed for the 1989 Booker Prize; Alias Grace, which won the Giller Prize in Canada and the Premio Mondello in Italy; The Blind Assassin, winner of the 2000 Booker Prize; Oryx and Crake, short-listed for the 2003 Man Booker Prize; The Year of the Flood, MaddAddam; and Hag-Seed. She is the recipient of numerous awards, including the Peace Prize of the German Book Trade, the Franz Kafka Prize, the PEN Center USA Lifetime Achievement Award, and the Los Angeles Times Innovator’s Award. In 2019, she was made a member of the Order of the Companions of Honour for services to literature.