Country Life

An Othello for the times

SHAKESPEARE’S plays change with time, as proven by the current production of Othello at the Lyttelton Theatre. In 1964, when Laurence Olivier adopted black make-up to perform the title role, the play became about the tragic downfall of a self-dramatising hero. Now, in Clint Dyer’s new production, it is more about the racism and misogyny within society that dooms both Othello and Desdemona. The result is a compelling night at the theatre, even if Mr Dyer sometimes twists the text to prove his point.

Let me state my reservations. In the war-council scene, the Duke of Venice pointedly refuses to shake Othello by the hand, despite the text indicating his sympathy with the Moor (‘I think this tale would win my daughter too,’ he says after Othello’s account of his wooing of Desdemona).

Iago, when he alone plots Othello’s destruction, is accompanied by a silent chorus of Fascist sympathisers, which suggests the play is about communal, rather

You’re reading a preview, subscribe to read more.

More from Country Life

Country Life5 min read
Doing Things Differently
The walled garden at Knepp Castle, West Sussex The home of Charles Burrell and Isabella Tree I HAVE a tremendous sense of relief that Charlie Harpur is head gardener: there is a predator with teeth!’ I have just returned, as intoxicated as my fellow
Country Life7 min read
Imagining The Past
A reconstruction of Bury St Edmunds Abbey BURY ST EDMUNDS is a much-loved historic town, its parish church of St James elevated to the status of a cathedral in 1914. St James’s is a fine building, the body of it designed by the master mason John Wast
Country Life2 min read
Rob Houchen
‘I have loved the work of Egon Schiele since studying him during my GCSE in Fine Art. I was drawn to the unashamed expression in his art and how unafraid he was to look vulnerable, sexual and ugly. It moved me to know someone could express themself s

Related Books & Audiobooks