A MOVBotswana production, The Merchant of Venice promises to be a thriller, with a multi-talented African cast, puppets, dance, video, animation, and music by international hip-hop artist Socalled.The director of the production, Alastair Hagger, told Showbiz that it is a unique opportunity to see Shakespeare brought to life with a gripping contemporary edge.The Merchant of Venice is a thought-provoking and engaging tale about debt and its aftermaths.
Antonio, a Venetian merchant, complains to his friends of a melancholy that he cannot explain. His friend Bassanio is desperately in need of money to court Portia, a wealthy heiress who lives in the city of Belmont. Bassanio asks Antonio for a loan in order to travel in style to Portia's estate. Antonio agrees, but is unable to make the loan himself because his own money is all invested in a number of trade ships that are still at sea. Antonio suggests that Bassanio secure the loan from one of the city's moneylenders and name Antonio as the loan's guarantor. In Belmont, Portia expresses sadness over the terms of her father's will, which stipulates that she must marry the man who correctly chooses one of three caskets. None of Portia's current suitors is to her liking, and she and her lady-in-waiting, Nerissa, fondly remember a visit paid some time before by Bassanio.In Venice, Antonio and Bassanio approach Shylock, a Jewish moneylender, for a loan. Shylock nurses a long-standing grudge against Antonio, who has made a habit of berating Shylock and other Jews for their usury, the practice of loaning money at exorbitant rates of interest, and who undermines their business by offering interest-free loans. Although Antonio refuses to apologise for his behaviour, Shylock acts agreeably and offers to lend Bassanio 3,000 ducats interest-free. Shylock adds, however, that should the loan go unpaid, he (Shylock) would be entitled to a pound of Antonio's own flesh. Despite Bassanio's warnings, Antonio agrees.
