{"id":18579,"date":"2019-11-08T11:25:10","date_gmt":"2019-11-08T19:25:10","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.nexusnewspaper.com\/?p=18579"},"modified":"2019-11-12T14:09:54","modified_gmt":"2019-11-12T22:09:54","slug":"othello-a-passionate-lesson-in-how-not-to-love","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nexusnewspaper.com\/newsite\/2019\/11\/08\/othello-a-passionate-lesson-in-how-not-to-love\/","title":{"rendered":"Othello<\/em> a passionate lesson in how not to love"},"content":{"rendered":"

I\u2019ve been an appreciator of the theatrical arts for as long as I can remember, and I have a habit of picking apart and analyzing shows even when I\u2019m not reviewing them (much to the chagrin of those near and dear to me). Yet, after seeing Shakespeare\u2019s Othello<\/em>\u00a0at the Phoenix Theatre last night, I have come to terms that because this play is such a wild card, an analysis of it is a task that would leave Sigmund Freud curled up in a ball on his couch.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Othello<\/em> tackles themes still relevant today (photo by Dean Kalyan).<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The play is a tragedy, and the plot is vengeful. The characters of Othello<\/em>\u00a0are wonderfully imperfect, as human beings are. Tallas Munro is a convincing Othello: in love, easily swayed, insecure. Ciaran Volke plays a scheming Iago; Una Rekic is Michael Cassio, a \u201ccry into my beer\u201d character. Grace Fedorchuk needs a mention as Emelia\u2014she sports so much feeling and fervour in her Shakespearean dialogue that I wanted to take her out and have her fend off my enemies.<\/p>\n

The performance itself is a work of beauty. The costumes (designed by Emily Friesen) are black and white, symbolizing the play\u2019s themes of racism. The actors are draped in silk and leather; the clothes move and ripple in whichever direction the actors do\u2014in short, they\u2019re stunning. The set (co-designed by Conor Farrell and Logan Swain) is symbolic as well, using a gigantic white silk veil that is periodically turned, twirled, and folded\u2014revealing new sets underneath as if by magic. I take the meaning behind the veil to represent innocence, which is alive and thriving at the beginning of the performance when Othello and his new bride are in love and full of hope. But as the story progresses, a revenge-seeking Iago does everything he can to spoil their happiness, and he succeeds.<\/p>\n

Othello<\/em>\u00a0is fascinating, and is full of issues still relevant today\u2014it tackles subjects relating to racism, sexism, and classism\u2014yet underneath it all is an underlying message: we as human beings may be passionate, but we are also stupid, and if we let common petty feelings like jealousy control us, then we\u2019ll screw up what\u2019s really important. I don\u2019t think I need to tell you what that is.<\/p>\n

Othello
\n<\/em>Various times, until Saturday, November 23
\nVarious prices, Phoenix Theatre, UVic
\n($16 student rush tickets 30 minutes before every show)
\nfinearts.uvic.ca\/theatre\/mainstage<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I\u2019ve been an appreciator of the theatrical arts for as long as I can remember, and I have a habit of picking apart and analyzing shows even when I\u2019m not reviewing them (much to the chagrin of those near and dear to me). Yet, after seeing Shakespeare\u2019s Othello\u00a0at the Phoenix Theatre last night, I have […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":18582,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-18579","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-webexclusive"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t