The “Merchant of Venice” will take stage in February when Shakespeare Chattanooga presents one of Shakespeare’s most challenging and controversial plays. “I have been fascinated by this play for years,” says SC founder and producing director Janis Hashe.
“However it may have played for an Elizabethan audience, modern audiences will see it through the prism of an additional 400 years of history. This will be a modern-dress production, and we will present the characters through modern eyes.”
“No one in ‘Merchant’ is a completely likeable character,” says Hashe. “There’s comedy, but it’s bitter, and we will use that element as well. The power of this play is undeniable.”
The cast currently includes Steven Disbrow as Shylock, Tenika Dye as Portia, Daniel Pound as Bassanio, Amy Christine Smith as Jessica, R. Clay Johnson as Launcelot Gobbo, Herb Snowman as Antonio, Stephanie Smith as Nerissa, Ward Fleissner as Solanio, Paula Berard as Saleria, Jeff Hill as Tubal, Jake Waters as Lorenzo, Rodney Strong as Old Gobbo and Nate Garth as both princes. Smith will also serve as musical director, which she has done on several previous SC shows.