OTHELLO - Stratford Festival

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Sources and OriginsShakespeare wrote Othello in either 1603 or 1604, about four years after writing hismasterpiece Hamlet. It was performed soon after at the court of King James on November 1,1604. It was performed many times and was considered the most popular of Shakespeare’splays in his own time.Othello was based on a novella by the Italian Giovanni Battista Giraldi, who wrote under thename of Cynthius. A hundred of his stories were published in Venice in a book called GliHecatommithi (The Hundred Tales), in 1565.OTHELLO IN PERFORMANCERichard Burbage appeared as Othello in the first known production sometime between1603 and 1618. Subsequent early productions featured such notable actors in the title roleas J.P. Kemble in 1785, Edmund Kean in 1814, Henry Irving in 1876 (and again in 1881),Edwin Booth in 1881 and Laurence Olivier and Ralph Richardson both in 1938 (directed bythe Stratford Festival’s founding artistic director, Tyrone Guthrie). The most noted of theearly Desdemonas was Ellen Terry, who played the part in 1881 and again in1898.The first great black Shakespearean actor, Ira Aldridge, also played Othello, as did PaulRobeson in 1943 with José Ferrer as Iago and Stratford alumna Uta Hagen as Desdemonaat the Schubert Theatre in New York.In 1956, Richard Burton and former Stratford Festival artistic director John Nevillealternated the roles of Othello and Iago at the Old Vic.In 1964, Laurence Olivier and Frank Finlay starred with Maggie Smith as Desdemona in aproduction at the Old Vic directed by John Dexter. The production was filmed the followingyear with Stratford alumnus Stuart Burge directing. Stratford alumnus Paul Scofield andMichael Bryant, along with Felicity Kendal as Desdemona, played at the National Theatre ina production directed by Peter Hall.In the last 25 years, notable productions of the play have included such actors as JamesEarl Jones and Christopher Plummer at the Winter Garden in New York (1982), Ben Kingsleyand David Suchet for the RSC in Stratford-upon-Avon and in London (1985/6), Willard White,Ian McKellen and Imogen Stubbs in a 1989 production (which was then filmed for the BBC)in Stratford-Upon-Avon, and Patrick Stewart, Ron Canada and Patrice Johnson in aproduction at the Shakespeare Theatre in Washington, D.C. in 1997.OthelloStudy GuideStratford Festival 2013 8
Stratford Production HistoryThis is the seventh production of the play at Stratford. There have been four productionsstaged at the Festival Theatre (1959, 1973, 1979, 1987), one at the Avon (1994) and oneat the Tom Patterson Theatre (2007).1959 (Festival Theatre): Jean Gascon and George McCowan were the directors and RobertPrévost was the designer. The cast included Douglas Campbell as Othello, Frances Highlandas Desdemona, John Horton as Roderigo, William Needles as Brabantio, Douglas Rain asIago, Kate Reid as Emilia and William Sylvester as Cassio.1973 (Festival Theatre): David William was the director and Annena Stubbs was thedesigner. The cast included Edward Atienza as Brabantio, Nachum Buchman as Othello,Scot Denton as Cassio, Amelia Hall as Emilia, Martha Henry as Desdemona, RichardMonette as Montano, William Needles as the Duke, Douglas Rain as Iago and Alan Scarfe asRoderigo.1979 (Festival Theatre): Frances Hyland was the director and Robin Fraser Paye was thedesigner. The cast included Domini Blythe as Desdemona, Barbara Budd as Emilia, PeterDonaldson as Roderigo, Barbara Maczka as Bianca, William Needles as Brabantio, NicholasPennell as Iago, Stephen Russell as Cassio and Alan Scarfe as Othello.1987 (Festival Theatre): John Neville was the director and Astrid Janson was the designer.The cast included Derek Boyes as Cassio, Douglas Campbell as Brabantio, Keith Dinicol asMontano, Colm Feore as Iago, Howard Rollins as Othello, Goldie Semple as Emilia, WennaShaw as Desdemona and Scott Wentworth as Roderigo.1994 (Avon Theatre): Brian Bedford was the director and Ming Cho Lee and Ann Curtis werethe designers. The cast included Lewis Gordon as Brabantio, Paul Essiembre as an Officer,Tim MacDonald as Roderigo, Paul Miller as Cassio, William Needles as Gratiano, Ron O’Nealas Othello, Lucy Peacock as Desdemona, Dixie Seatle as Emilia, Scott Wentworth as Iago,and David William as Lodovico.2007 (Tom Patterson Theatre): Directed by David Latham and designed by Carolyn M. Smith.The cast included Philip Akin as Othello, Jonathan Goad as Iago, Claire Jullien asDesdemona, Lucy Peacock as Emilia, Stephen Russell as Brabantio and Jeffrey Wetsch asCassio.OthelloStudy GuideStratford Festival 2013 9
Page 1 and 2: STUDY GUIDETools forTeacherssponsor
Page 3 and 4: TheStratfordStoryThat Stratford, On
Page 5 and 6: The Playwright:William ShakespeareB
Page 7 and 8: 1601 Shakespeare’s patron arreste
Page 9: Plot SynopsisThere is commotion in
Page 13 and 14: Imaginative Ways to Approach the Te
Page 19 and 20: ResourcesSHAKESPEARE: HISTORY, CRIT

OTHELLO - Stratford Festival

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