“Adding a little bit of the modern aspect really helped me understand it. ![]() When Stanford COLLEGE students discussed the play in their seminars the following week, the contemporariness of the production, particularly this digital component, was one of the first things they brought up. The two commoners filmed their exchange, evocative of how members of the public turn to their mobile devices to capture interaction with people in positions of power. Smartphones featured throughout, starting with the opening scene when two, rowdy members of the public – “commoners,” as Shakespeare called them – were confronted by officials, who in the TAPS production were dressed as authority figures. In an event for COLLEGE students, Stanford scholars Condoleezza Rice and Pamela Karlan, and Rutgers University President Jonathan Holloway, ’89, spoke about actions students can take to strengthen democracy and make the most of their undergraduate studies. Panel Discussion Panel advises students on strengthening democracy Staging the play in 2023 also meant thinking through how the characters would behave if they lived in today’s society, particularly in a world dominated by social media. “The audience may see a world that is similar to theirs or in stark contrast to it.” Staging Julius Caesar in the social media age ![]() “We have these troubled people attempting to avert a constitutional crisis – which eventually topples the entire state – in ways that can resonate with contemporary politics,” said Washington. What makes Shakespeare an enduring text to stage today are its universal themes, said Marlon Washington II, a coterm pursuing a major in human biology and a master’s in community health, who played Caesar’s friend and ally, Marc Antony. “It says something to have two female politicians so sick of the way things have been, so sick of the way the systems have treated them, and so sick of the way men in this world have trampled over them and not heard them, that they’ve decided to take action into their own hands,” Michelle said. Michelle was also struck by what was implied by having women, instead of men, plotting to assassinate Caesar. “The world of this play is a world that looks like our own, but isn’t ours exactly,” said Rau.Īnother change was casting student actors from different backgrounds, races, and genders. Attire, too, was cosmopolitan, and at times edgy, with actors wearing leather jackets over loose-fitting, neutral styles. The stage’s backdrop of sleek, white marble could have been any metropolitan city center its columns were more brutalist than Doric. In staging Julius Caesar for Stanford students, Rau wanted to give the production a modern look and feel, but without referencing a particular time or place. “I think what is tremendously exciting about this partnership between TAPS and COLLEGE is that we use art to try to think about these issues.” Situating Julius Caesar in the present day “It’s hard to find a single document, object, or historical source that says, ‘This will allow us to think through the responsibilities, the rights, the ways in which we should consider what citizenship means,’” said Rau. Julius Caesar approaches these themes in ways more traditional media cannot, said Rau. There are questions about justice and what is the right thing amidst uncertainty. But their actions bring about what they fear most: chaos, civil war, and the demise of the Republic itself.įor students taking Citizenship in the 21st Century, the play invites them to consider the emotional messiness that comes with politics and power: It touches on ambition, loyalty, and greed. ![]() ![]() They believe that to save Rome, Caesar must be taken down before he becomes tyrannical in his reign. The play centers around Brutus and Cassius, two Roman senators who fear the Republic will become despotic under Caesar’s rule. “ Julius Caesar can be read as a play about a single decision and that is: What should we do if we think someone is going to become a tyrant?” said Michael Rau, director and an assistant professor in TAPS. The production was produced in collaboration with the COLLEGE program. Julius Caesar, one of Shakespeare’s most notable tragedies, is infused with fresh life in the Department of Theater & Performance Studies’ Winter Main Stage.
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