THE MERCHANT OF VENICE At Classic Stage Company

The Merchant of Venice, directed and adapted by Igor Golyak (Our Class; The Orchard), opens tonight, Monday, November 25 for a limited engagement at The Lynn F. Angelson Theater, Classic Stage Company (136 East 13th Street). Check out photos from the production.

In a nightclub environment akin to a late-night comedy show, this Merchant brings Shakespeare’s “festival” setting for the play into our modern world. Superheroes and their archenemies battle it out to protect good in the face of evil. Will love, justice and order prevail? Who defines love, justice and order? The audience and cast wrestle with these questions and their dead-serious consequences.

The Merchant of Venice is produced by Arlekin Players Theatre & MART Foundation in association with Jadow Productions.

T.R. Knight (Grey’s Anatomy, Parade, Noises Off, Tartuffe), will play Antonio, the ring-leader and emcee, who encourages the live audience to laugh, sing along, boo, and ultimately face the surprising, tragic twist of an ending.

Joining Knight are Richard Topol (Indecent, Our Class, Godfather of Harlem) as Shylock and Alexandra Silber (Fiddler on the Roof, Our Class, Carousel) as Portia along with Gus Birney (Jessica/Ensemble), Tess Goldwyn (Nerisa/Ensemble), José Espinosa (Bassanio/Ensemble), Stephen Ochsner (Launcelot Gobbo/Ensemble), Delilah Napier (Understudy), Noah Pacht (Lorenzo/Ensemble) and Elan Zafir (Understudy).

The Merchant of Venice has scenic design by Jan Pappelbaum of the Schaubuehne, costume and props design by Sasha Ageeva, lighting design by Seth Reiser, and sound design by Fedor Zhuravlev, who has also composed music for the production. Golyak is designing projections. Kyra Bowie is the production stage manager, John Lant /Write Act is production manager, general management is by Martin Platt/Perry Street Theatricals, and The Merchant of Venice is co-presented by Sofia Kapkova/MART Foundation, and executive produced by Sara Stackhouse/Arlekin Players Theatre.

This is the second of two Arlekin productions at Classic Stage this fall, part of Arlekin’s residency there through December 22. The first was the acclaimed Our Class, also directed by Golyak, which ran through November 3 after premiering at BAM in January. The show received Drama Desk, Drama League, and Outer Critics Circle nominations following the BAM production.

Photo Credit: Pavel Antonov

The Cast of THE MERCHANT OF VENICE