Demanding A Pound of Flesh

This interpretation of Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice is a solid rendition of the oft-performed favorite. While the production does not overwhelm, it does feature several good acting performances and excellent direction by Elijah Siegler. Siegler utilizes the unique design of the Leverett Old Library to his advantage--he has actors enter and exit from five different doors, located above and below the main stage and behind the audience.

The story concerns the attempt of Basanio (Steve Petersen), a young man of Venice, to court Portia (Cori Lynn Peterson), one of the most beautiful ladies in Italy. Because Bassanio has not yet come into his fortune, he must rely on the credit of his friend Antonio, the Merchant of Venice (David Gray).

Antonio secures a bond for 3000 ducats from the Jew Shylock, his nemesis, (David Javerbaum), and promises as collateral a pound of his own flesh if he should forfeit the bond. When Antonio's ships sink at sea, Antonio must forfeit the bond and lose his pound of flesh by Shylock's hand.

Siegler sets this play in modern-day Venice. The actors wear contemporary dress, and cordless telephones replace the messengers in Shakespeare's script. The set is simple, with a table and three chairs serving as a cafe, a chair set aside as part of Shylock's house and a table upon which sit three treasure chests.

The chests are the result of Portia's father's dying instructions as to how his daughter must choose a husband. Each suitor must choose a chest--one is made of gold, one of silver and one of lead. To aid the suitors, each chest has inscribed on it a cryptic clue--the suitor who is able to decipher the clues will win Portia's hand.

The audience is treated to humorous performances by both the Prince of Aragon (Jeremy Nye) and the Prince of Morocco (Danny Shivakumar), as they fail to win Portia's hand. Shivakumar displays a wonderfully cheesy attitude--he's self-confident to the point of parody. Nye is effective in the role of the Prince and plays the part with more than a touch of contempt for Portia, essentially telling her that she would be lucky to have him. Nye is actually more memorable in his other role as Launcelot Gobbo, Shylock's Falstaffian servant.

Petersen renders his part with power and conviction. His scenes with Portia are t0ender, but never hokey, and the audience feels the love that the two have for each other. As Portia, Peterson is the highlight of the show. Her role is difficult--she must move from a state of disillusion with her many uninspiring suitors to a state of elation upon seeing Bassanio as a new suitor. Peterson exhibits her acting ability most notably during her plea for Antonio--"The quality of mercy is not strained. It droppeth as the gentle rain from Heaven upon the place beneath." Peterson delivers this resonant monologue beautifully.

The hatred between Antonio and Shylock is the conflict which fuels the plot of The Merchant of Venice. Consumed by revenge, Shylock demands that he receive Antonio's flesh for his bond. Javerbaum delivers one of Shakespeare's most famous speeches--"If you prick us, do we not bleed? If you tickle us, do we not laugh?". Unfortunately, this monologue, while spoken adequately enough by Javerbaum, lacks the emotion and disgust for Antonio and the Christian world which such a powerful speech requires.

Javerbaum redeems himself during those scenes in which Shylock is left humiliated by Portia and Antonio, forced to yield all of his possessions, and made to renounce his religion. In these moments Javerbaum raises his performance to the level of Shakespeare's writing, evoking intense pity as he leaves the stage a broken man.

While this production, as a whole, fails to bring Shakespeare's script to new levels of theatrical excellence, it is worth seeing for several good performances and solid direction. Shakespeare's story is a timeless commentary on prejudice and hatred, and Siegler's interpretation, though not exceptional, deserves attention.