Othello

CLF Arts Cafe, London SE15

3/5

BY JOVE Theatre Company’s version of Othello is as much an interrogation of the text as as a production of it. 

Director and “co-author” SJ Brady sets the play in the contemporary moment, with several scenes added at the beginning which explore the after-effects of Othello’s crimes. 

Shakespeare’s text thus functions as a flashback and placing the action in the contemporary period is not the only change. 

Brady also plays with gender and sexuality with  Othello (Rachel Hawkes) a lesbian and Bianca becomes Bianco, a closeted gay man. 

By making Othello a lesbian the production reframes the play, placing debates about sexuality at the forefront. 

Yet in the process the focus on the race element in Shakespeare’s tragedy is somewhat lost and the juxtaposition of new and old here prevents the full exploration of this reinterpretation. 

At the opening, Othello is interrogated about her crimes while, across the stage, Desdemona rehearses a “coming out” speech. The split stage is effectively used, though it’s sadly underemployed in later scenes.

Even so, the production effectively points out the possibilities of this gender reassignment. 

The newness of Desdemona’s sexual attraction to women and the surprise she expresses offer a fascinating motive for Othello’s jealousy, but when we move into Shakespeare’s text, this thread is lost.

While the acting overall is a little uneven, Kate Hunter’s Desdemona is lively and moving and her flirtatious and at times argumentative interaction with Hawkes’s Othello engage and disturb and the murder is truly difficult to watch. 

There is also good support from Tara Howard as Emilia. 

The production is worth seeing for the innovative questions it is asking of Shakespeare’s text but the answers to them require greater exploration than provided here.

Runs until August 21. Tickets: clfartcafe.org

Katherine M Graham