Review: The Merchant of Venice at The Cambridge Union

Last night the Cambridge Union’s renowned chamber hosted an event quite unlike its weekly debates or speakers’ interviews: a production of Shakespeare’s gripping but highly controversial play, The Merchant of Venice. The performance eloquently captured the issues of prejudice, justice, and pity at work in the play. It is certainly an impressive and optimistic start to hopefully more theatre being hosted at the Union in the future, but the ambitious claim of “turning [Shakespeare’s] satire on The Union itself,” within its own debating chamber, seemed to fall short.

Image credits: Libby Styles

Memorable performances included Sol Alberman’s capable handling of Shylock – dexterously balancing his character as both villain and victim throughout the play. Alberman’s delivery was impeccable and key lines held their potent poignancy. Gwynn Horbury as Portia was also notable for a powerful stage presence, and Louis Hadfield as Launcelot must be appreciated also. Launcelot’s first appearance on stage was one of the most engaging points of the play, successfully utilising the architecture of the debating chamber to dramatize a battle of consciousness. The acting across the rest of this large cast was varied, but all handled the tricky Shakespearean syntax adeptly with only a couple of minor slippages.

The Union’s chamber was transformed into a unique stage, with the two rows of benches parallel to a central stage. The architecture and layout were utilised effectively, especially during the fitting court scenes later in the play. The creative decisions of the directors (Ben Phillips, Tom Runciman and Georgia Adams) should be celebrated, as the use of the chamber as a stage was unknown territory. It enabled fruitful experimentation producing a distinctive theatrical experience. The minimalist set-design, including Annie Ma’s costume decisions, worked well. The lighting was smooth and atmospheric.

Image credits: Libby Styles

The minimalistic set leaves the chamber largely untouched, but the location could not be more fitting to tackling such a provocative and challenging play. Shakespeare sets The Merchant of Venice in sixteenth century Venice, a highly antisemitic and intolerant environment. Though the Union is a far cry from Rialto, it represents and embodies a set of power structures that continue to taint British History – and reflect those that ultimately oppress Shylock emotionally and socio-economically. The chamber has hosted divisive and controversial debates since its founding, including the historic Civil Rights Baldwin vs Buckley clash of 1965. It remains a politically charged environment today.

Image credits: Libby Styles

The top level of the chamber formed an upper stage which forged a powerful, memorable ending to the performance. The ending indeed captured the generic nuances of Shakespeare’s comedy – this performance was certainly alert to the tragic energies underlying Shylock’s narrative. Though classified as a comedy in the First Folio, Sol Alberman’s moving performance of Shylock’s – the Jewish merchant’s – most dramatic scenes could certainly question this characterisation. The audience sat immobile during the most well-known monologue of the play that summons a panoply of, often conflicting, emotional responses:

“If you prick us, do we not bleed? If you tickle us, do we not laugh? If you poison us, do we not die? And if you wrong us do we not revenge?”

The string of rhetorical questions reverberated around the chamber, eliciting both sympathy for the character, a victim of brutal antisemitism, and reprehension for his obsession with revenge. The audience clearly juggled between these incompatible emotions up to, and including, the contentious ending – watch the play in all its complexity this weekend to judge the protagonist’s multifaceted persona for yourself.

Image credits: Libby Styles

The production had excellent music backing it, from violins to clarinets. Those credited are Matthew Mayes, Elizabeth Vogel, Elizabeth Bratton, Oliver Anderson-Shah, Jonathan Whiting, James Hough, Tom Murray and Anna Fenton-Smith, under the direction of James Rosser. From start to finish, and in between acts, they crafted a musical atmosphere which complemented, and gave momentum to, the stage action.

The Union’s production promised to “turn [Shakespeare’s] satire on The Union itself”, challenging “hypocrisy, privilege and prejudice”. But apart from a few nods to various portraits of past presidents around the chamber, this ambitious message seemed underdeveloped and inexplicit.

The Union’s Merchant of Venice was an interesting and experimental rendition of the play, effectively utilising the architecture of the chamber to powerful ends. Its ambitious intentions caused it to fall off slightly, but otherwise, for a rendition of some classic Shakespearean theatre, in an interesting and unique location, it is well worth a watch.

3.5/5

The Merchant of Venice is running again on the 19^th and the 21^st of February. You can get your tickets here.

Feature image credits: Libby Styles