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THE MERCHANT OF VENICE |
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Although modern stage productions reveal a more sympathetic approach to Shylock than the caricatured villainous Jew portrayed in the past, teachers still find this play difficult to teach. Indeed, many schools simply do not teach the play at all, because it seems to sanction abusive behavior toward Jews, and seems to feature a money-hungry, blood- thirsty stereotype. However, it is always a mistake to assume that Shakespeare is on the side of cruelty and racial prejudice. And it is only because of the presumed happy ending that audiences believe the gilded gentiles were right in treating Shylock as they did. |
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| Shylock (Brian Tree) remembers his late wife, Leah |
The Prince of Arragon (Eric Weinthal) tries to guess which box has Portia’s picture in it so he can marry her | |||
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| As a token of her love, Portia (Anne-Marie MacDonald) gives Bassanio (Stuart Hughes) a ring, warning him never to take it off. |
Bassanio, the Duke of Venice (Tyrone Benskin) and Gratiano (Daniel Kash) confront Shylock as he arrives for his trial of Antonio | |||
In our narrator-guided production of this difficult play, we give Shylock the role of narrator, so that he can comment on the action from his point of view as outsider. We also focus on how a particular group of insiders behave. In addition to her wit and charm, Portia is also thoughtlessly cruel, manipulative and controlling. The man she falls in love with is a fortune- hunter who goes to great lengths to hide his debts from her, and his friend has no ready money but borrows some more. These are the people who are judging Shylock. We demonstrate in the video, and emphasize in the teachers’ guide, that the ending of this comedy is not nearly so happy as romantic-minded audiences believe it to be. Shakespeare is famous for the ambiguity of his happy endings; and he has already warned us in the casket scene that appearances are not to be trusted. |
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