Venue: New College Theatre, 12 Holyoke St. Cambridge MA 02138 Performance Dates: 10/27, 10/28, 10/29, 10/30, 11/4, 11/5, 11/6 @ 8 PM; 10/30 & 11/5 @ 2 PM Director: Nathan Hilgartner Producers: Sasha Mironov, Madeleine Bersin, Cirvy Melvin
How do we know what other people are thinking?
We are defined by our relationships to one another -- marriage, friendship, servitude, military hierarchy. These types of close connections thrive on trust, honesty and perfect communication, yet our capacity for these is limited. Try as we might, we simply cannot see inside other people's heads, understand their motivations, or even be certain who they are. The person we love might actually be a stranger to us.
Othello is the story of a man infected by that terrifying, dizzying thought, devastated and driven mad by the cold shock of betrayal. An outsider in an apparently homogenous society, the general Othello becomes ensnared in the veils and deceptions of a false friend. Iago, Othello's trusted subordinate, seems honest, loyal, selfless and kind; but under this veneer he is nothing less than psychotic, twisted and corroded by jealousy and hate. Through a carefully crafted plan of manipulation and trickery, Iago convinces his master that Desdemona, Othello's wife, has been unfaithful, propelling the characters toward tragedy. Hyperion Shakespeare Company presents a highly stylized, visually engaging production of the Bard's harrowing meditation on race, gender, jealousy, and the nature of human interaction.
