His Othello was called by Harold Hobson of the London Sunday Times "the best Othello of our time,"[53] continuing: ...nobler than Tearle, more martial than Gielgud, more poetic than Valk. Click here for a short PDF summary of the sources relating to Othello from 'Discovering Literature: Shakespeare'. Michael Gambon also took the role in 1980 and 1991; their performances were critically acclaimed. Two of the most notable examples of this role swap were William Charles Macready and Samuel Phelps at Drury Lane (1837) and Richard Burton and John Neville at The Old Vic (1955). The text is also among the few to have page numbers. [33][34] The interpretation of the role is broadening, with theatre companies casting Othello as a woman or inverting the gender of the whole cast to explore gender questions in Shakespeare's text. Iago convinces Roderigo to wake Brabantio and tell him about his daughter's elopement. Othellois the first of the ‘good’ quartos of Shakespeare’s plays to divide the text into acts. For a discussion of this play within the context of Shakespeare’s life and works, see William Shakespeare: The tragedies. Olivier was among the last white actors to be greatly acclaimed as Othello, although the role continued to be played by such performers as Donald Sinden at the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1979–1980, Paul Scofield at the Royal National Theatre in 1980, Anthony Hopkins in the BBC Television Shakespeare production (1981), and Michael Gambon in a stage production at Scarborough directed by Alan Ayckbourn in 1990. "Damn her, lewd minx! Lodovico appoints Cassio as Othello's successor and exhorts him to punish Iago justly. Ejiofor, Hiddleston and Fairley all received nominations for Laurence Olivier Awards, with Ejiofor winning. Believed to have been printed from a scribal transcript (probably by Ralph Crane) of Shakespeare’s fair copy of the play. full title The Tragedy of Othello, the Moor of Venice. JSTOR 4135111. • It is seen as a Jacobean play yet clearly the context in which it was conceived was Elizabethan. Desdemona's physical whiteness is otherwise presented in opposition to Othello's dark skin: 5.2 "that whiter skin of hers than snow". I stuck a pony tail on with a bell on the end of it. The play was not published in Shakespeare's lifetime but appeared in a Quarto in 1622, the First Folio in 1623, and a second Quarto in 1630. In Shakespeare, Othello suffocates Desdemona, but in Cinthio, the "Moor" commissions the "Ensign" to bludgeon his wife to death with a sand-filled stocking. The work is attributed to "Shaxberd." Making use of a handkerchief belonging to Desdemona and found by Emilia when Othello has unwittingly dropped it, Iago persuades Othello that Desdemona has given the handkerchief to Cassio as a love token. Leavis describes Othello as "egotistical". In between reads, try this novel idea: a quiz on all things literature. [55] His Othello was captured on record in 1964 with Jay Robinson as Iago and on video in 1981 with Ron Moody as Iago. Later, Bianca accuses Cassio of giving her a second-hand gift which he had received from another lover. Iago tells Brabantio that "an old black ram / is tupping your white ewe" (1.1.88). The two depart Cyprus for Venice, and denounce the "Moor" to the Venetian Seigniory; he is arrested, taken to Venice, and tortured. The party arrives in Cyprus to find that a storm has destroyed the Turkish fleet. The idea of comes from Italian writer’s play The Moorish Captain, published in 1565. [32] Ground-breaking black American actor Paul Robeson played the role in three different productions between 1930 and 1959. Although it was never filmed, it was the first lengthy performance of a Shakespeare play released on records, first on a multi-record 78 RPM set and then on a 3-LP one. Othello (Paperback) Published October 24th 1996 by Bloomsbury Arden Shakespeare. "Leo Africanus's Descrittione dell'Africa and its sixteenth-century translations". [16] This is not incompatible with the suggestion that the Quarto is based on an early version of the play, whilst the Folio represents Shakespeare's revised version. The senate is satisfied once Desdemona confirms that she loves Othello, but Brabantio leaves saying that Desdemona will betray Othello: "Look to her, Moor, if thou hast eyes to see. Brabantio has no option but to accompany Othello to the Duke's residence, where he accuses Othello of seducing Desdemona by witchcraft. With the unwitting aid of Emilia, his wife, and the willing help of Roderigo, a fellow malcontent, Iago carries out his plan. [11][12], The earliest mention of the play is found in a 1604 Revels Office account, which records that on "Hallamas Day, being the first of Nouembar ... the Kings Maiesties plaiers" performed "A Play in the Banketinghouse at Whit Hall Called The Moor of Venis." [67], In 2017, Ben Naylor directed the play for the Pop-up Globe in Auckland, New Zealand, with Māori actor Te Kohe Tuhaka in the title role, Jasmine Blackborow as Desdemona and Haakon Smestad as Iago. When Iago uses the word Barbary or Barbarian to refer to Othello, he seemingly refers to the Barbary coast inhabited by Berbers. Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. Iago kills his wife, and Othello kills himself. The first certainly known performance occurred on 1 November 1604, at Whitehall Palace in London, being mentioned in a Revels account on "Hallamas Day, being the first of Nouembar", 1604, when "the Kings Maiesties plaiers" performed "A Play in the Banketinge house at Whit Hall Called The Moor of Venis". The "Moor" then misses Desdemona greatly, and comes to loathe the sight of the "Ensign". The play Othello comprises 5 acts each playing a significant part in the development of the plot. As Shakespeare regained popularity among nineteenth-century French Romantics, poet, playwright, and novelist Alfred de Vigny created a French translation of Othello, titled Le More de Venise, which premiered at the Comédie-Française on 24 October 1829. 492–507 from, Roy Proctor, "’Othello’ is Honest on Bare Stage,", Note also the character of Aaron the Moor in Shakespeare's play, http:/www.theculturenews.com/#!DAVID-SERERO-starring-as-OTHELLO-in-a-Moroccan-Style-this-June-in-New-York/cmbz/57282b750cf2051007a270c2, Abd el-Ouahed ben Messaoud ben Mohammed Anoun, Goodnight Desdemona (Good Morning Juliet), "Cinthioʹs Tale: The Source of Shakespeareʹs Othello", "Othello by William Shakespeare directed by Jude Kelly", "The Times 9 February 2004 "Black and white more show, "Independent article 25 August 1993. OTHELLO It is the cause, it is the cause, my soul,--Let me not name it to you, you chaste stars!--It is the cause. Cinthio drew a moral (which he placed in the mouth of Desdemona) that it is unwise for European women to marry the temperamental men of other nations. Arden Shakespeare: Third Series, Paperback, 442 pages. He then denounces Iago for his actions and leaves to tell the others what has happened. time and place written Between 1601 and 1604, England. Historical Context Othello is one of William Shakespeare’s 10 tragedies, written around 1604 and often described by critics as one of his best. Othello blames Cassio for the disturbance and strips him of his rank. The casting of the role comes with a political subtext. Othello was also one of the twenty plays performed by the King's Men during the winter of 1612, in celebration of the wedding of Princess Elizabeth and Frederick V, Elector Palatine.[47]. For the board game, see, Bevington, David and Bevington, Kate (translators). Meanwhile, Iago sneaks away to find Othello and warns him that Brabantio is coming for him. Omissions? Nicholas Burt played the lead, with Charles Hart as Cassio; Walter Clun won fame for his Iago. [15] Scholars differ in their explanation of these differences, and no consensus has emerged. Iago, still in the room, takes note of Brabantio's remark. Enter OTHELLO. The story revolves around two characters, Othello and Iago. Scholars date the composition of Othello at 1603. He stayed with his retinue in London for several months and occasioned much discussion. The play is set in motion when Othello, a heroic black general in the service of Venice, appoints Cassio and not Iago as his chief lieutenant. It was entered into the Stationers’ Company Register on October 6, 1621 by Thomas Walkley, who then had it printed by Nicholas Okes. 2. He used to paint the big negro lips on. The 1982 Broadway staging starred James Earl Jones as Othello and Christopher Plummer as Iago, who became the only actor to receive a Tony Award nomination for a performance in the play. The play was first staged on November 1st, 1604 and 1st published in 1622 by Thomas Walkley. Be on the lookout for your Britannica newsletter to get trusted stories delivered right to your inbox. [27], Othello was frequently performed as an Arab Moor during the 19th century. Iago goads Cassio on to talk about his affair with Bianca, a local courtesan, but whispers her name so quietly that Othello believes the two men are talking about Desdemona. The play Othello by William Shakespeare was written in 1604 during the Elizabeth era. [15] It may also be that the Quarto was cut in the printing house to meet a fixed number of pages. Except I had a pony tail. Othello is an adaptation of the Italian writer Cinthio's tale "Un Capitano Moro" ("A Moorish Captain") from his Gli Hecatommithi (1565), a collection of one hundred tales in the style of Boccaccio's Decameron. • Othello was written after 1601 and before 1604 and was therefore created in the last years of Queen Elizabeth I’s reign. [30] Given this view of Othello, the play became especially controversial in apartheid-era South Africa where interracial marriages were banned and performances of Othello were discouraged.[31]. He refuses to admit his guilt and is condemned to exile. In 1979, Keith Fowler’s production of Othello mixed the races throughout the company. She has deceived her father, and may thee," (Act I, Sc 3). These slender “proofs” confirm what Othello has been all too inclined to believe—that, as an older black man, he is no longer attractive to his young white Venetian wife. He says men are in control of their own fates, ‘'tis in ourselves that we are thus or thus’ (I.3.320). The play was entered into the Register of the Stationers Company on 6 October 1621, by Thomas Walkley, and was first published in quarto format by him in 1622: One year later, the play was included among the plays in the First Folio of Shakespeare's collected plays. I played him as an Arab. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. And then I went and played Othello myself at Birmingham Rep I was 27. When Cassio identifies Roderigo as one of his attackers, Iago secretly stabs Roderigo to stop him revealing the plot. This fact allows scholars to believe that the famous play was written in 1603-1604. Roderigo, a wealthy and dissolute gentleman, complains to his friend Iago, an ensign, that Iago has not told him about the secret marriage between Desdemona, the daughter of a senator named Brabantio, and Othello, a Moorish general in the Venetian army. The Folio also lacks a scattering of about a dozen lines or part-lines that are to be found in the Quarto. Roderigo calls Othello "the thicklips", which seems to refer to Sub-Saharan African physiognomy, but Honigmann counters that, as these comments are all intended as insults by the characters, they need not be taken literally. Act III, scene iii is considered to be the turning point of the play as it is the scene in which Iago successfully sows the seeds of doubt in Othello's mind, inevitably sealing Othello's fate. Some of these cluster together in quite extensive passages. [69], In September 2013, a Tamil adaptation titled Othello, the Fall of a Warrior was directed and produced in Singapore by Subramanian Ganesh.[70].
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