Most Memorable Othello Adaptations (PHOTOS)

Originally entitled "The Moor of Venice," "Othello" was first performed by Shakespeare's theatre group, the King's Men on November 1, 1604, in the Banqueting House of London's Whitehall Palace. Today, over four hundred years later, it remains as popular as ever. Its central themes of racism, love, jealousy and betrayal are as relevant to life now as they were back then. But scholars disagree on the Moor's origins. Some argue that he is black, others that he is Arab. Despite this, traditionally he has been played by white actors in various shades of make-up. Nowadays, black actors have mostly re-appropriated the role, and the white Othello's that are occasionally cast have thankfully abandoned their blackface masks.

Today, re-evaluating the play's dialogue, settings and costume has become part of a creative boundary pushing exercise amongst young directors eager to distinguish their productions from those of the past, and to appeal to contemporary audiences. This was also part of the thinking behind my current eBook, "The Shakespeare Mash-up."

The last four centuries has seen a rich diversity of interpretations of Othello, both classic and modern. Here are eighteen of the most memorable.

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RICHARD BURBAGE -- OTHELLO NUMBER 1

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First to perform the role of the Moor was Richard Burbage, star actor in the King's Men, who played all of Shakespeare's most celebrated parts. He was recognised as the foremost actor of his day, the Elizabethan equivalent of Tom Cruise or George Clooney. It was almost certainly Burbage that starred in Othello's 1604 London debut, although nothing is known of whether or not he appeared in blackface, or what costume he would have worn. Burbage's appointment as Othello number one was important, as he set the racial blueprint for the casting of the Moor as a white actor -- a convention that would last for two centuries, and beyond.

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First to perform the role of the Moor was Richard Burbage, star actor in the King's Men, who played all of Shakespeare's most celebrated parts. He was recognised as the foremost actor of his day, the Elizabethan equivalent of Tom Cruise or George Clooney. It was almost certainly Burbage that starred in Othello's 1604 London debut, although nothing is known of whether or not he appeared in blackface, or what costume he would have worn. Burbage's appointment as Othello number one was important, as he set the racial blueprint for the casting of the Moor as a white actor -- a convention that would last for two centuries, and beyond.

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This Othello

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THIS person played Othello?! Perfect for the role!

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Comments

[andylo]

06:31 PM on 08/26/2011

laurence fishburne is Othello!

[Rhonda Harvey]

10:18 AM on 08/26/2011

Othello is "black" in at least Shakespeare's mind, as the line, "...an old black ram is tupping your white ewe" (Act I, scene 1, line 90). This line is delivered by the evil Iago in attempting to rile Desdemona's father, Brabantio. There are many other references within the play to Othello's blackness, and it is NOT metaphorical.

[reressler]

03:11 PM on 08/25/2011

Thanks for this interesting, well-written, fact-filled history. What a treat to read a Huff Post article that is neither angry nor partisan!

[BArogundade]

12:18 PM on 08/26/2011

Thanks for you comment, I really appreciate it. I'll try and maintain that quality.

[onionboy]

04:04 PM on 08/23/2011

I think the most memorable involved the aliens from Cheron in the Star Trek episode 'Let That Be Your Last Battlefield'. Their faces were half-black and half-white, but racial enemies due to the fact that one was black on the left and the other black on the right. I know I've seen a clip online of a production.

[BArogundade]

06:15 PM on 08/24/2011

This is great writing, I have never seen that episode. It would be interesting if a theatre company adopted that aesthetic for a production.

[onionboy]

07:07 PM on 08/24/2011

It's kind of a natural idea, given that there have been productions that used that black-face/white-face thing with Iago before.

[deepintheheartoftejas]

11:12 PM on 09/02/2011

Man, I always thought that was one of the most painful, so bog-obviously metaphorical episodes of Star Trek. None of the characters have a trace of genuine, individual character about them--they're just stand-ins for the concept. It's the complete opposite of Othello.

[kingstonjabwoy]

12:07 AM on 08/23/2011

Othello was a black africans just like all the moors in his time.

[Wookiee1972]

10:34 PM on 08/20/2011

I think that considering the politics of the last ten years, there should really be an Othello with an Arabic or Pakistani actor.

Interestingly, in a picture of Stanislavski on Wikipedia, he is playing Othello with a distinctly Arabic headdress.

[egaeus]

02:57 AM on 08/21/2011

Considering that Middle Eastern individuals are also considered "black" by English (especially Elizabethan English) standards, I'm surprised that choice isn't made by more theater companies.

[Wookiee1972]

12:04 PM on 08/21/2011

I've looked it up, and nobody knows for sure whether Othello was supposed to be black or Arabic. "Moor" was a term that applied to North Africans, Sub-Saharan Africans, and even East Indians. (I'd love to see Naveen Andrews take on the role). But the Moors that took over Spain were definitely Arabs.

Catherine of Aragon had some "Moorish blood" but is shown in portraits as clearly fair-haired and pale-skinned.

[BonzaSheila]

10:00 PM on 08/20/2011

Also check out the 1962 film "All Night Long" it's based on Othello, and set in the British jazz world:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0054614/
it's quite good.

[colonelsun68]

08:55 PM on 08/21/2011

A very good film!

[Wookiee1972]

09:34 AM on 08/23/2011

Is that the one with Patrick McGoohan in the Iaqo analogue?

[Rogozhin]

09:51 PM on 08/20/2011

"as he set the racial blueprint for the casting of the Moor as a white actor -- a convention that would last for two centuries, and beyond." Um, really? No, the general racial discrimination of the societies that performed Othello set the racial blueprint for casting the Moor as a white actor, not the idea that "Hey, if Burbage did it then a white actor must be the way to go."

[BArogundade]

05:30 PM on 08/24/2011

Good point, except in Elizabethan England there were no professional black actors to be racist against. Ira Aldridge was the first, and he was definitely held back by racism in the way you suggest.

[USHistoryMan]

07:38 PM on 08/20/2011

John Douglas Thompson as the Moor, NYC's Duke Theatre, 2009, with Ned Eisenberg (Iago), Juliet Rylance (Desdemona) and Kate Forbes (Amelia). Stunning beyond words. Done on a nearly bare stage (one long table, couple of chairs, a bed for Act V). Thompson is this country's premier Shakespearean. (Brilliant a year or so ago in the Scottish Play.) Unbelievable power, humanity, and technique that ascends the brightest heaven of invention.

[BArogundade]

05:11 PM on 08/24/2011

Great words from you. When I wrote the blog post, it was hard to narrow down the list, as there are so many good ones, which is testimony to the quality and diversity of the work. 400 years later, and it's still giving stuff.

[eric14]

06:55 PM on 08/20/2011

Chiwetelu Umeadi "Chiwetel" Ejiofor is great.
Dump all this racial typecasting for classics. He should be doing Caesar and Hamlet and Henry V. He is a seriously great actor.

I mean black guys for Othello is so passed its sell-by date.

[USHistoryMan]

07:40 PM on 08/20/2011

Not so; see above.

[eric14]

07:53 PM on 08/20/2011

I should have said:
Black guys only for Othello etc

that limitation has to be abandoned completely.

[BonzaSheila]

10:03 PM on 08/20/2011

I've loved Chiwetel Ejiofor ever since I first saw him in Kinky Boots.

[Skyhawk]

06:20 PM on 08/20/2011

Wish there were DVDs of Patrick Stewart and Susanne Wolff presentations. That's the beauty of public domain work. No pesky licenses or copyright issues, just art given chance to expand.

[BArogundade]

05:08 PM on 08/24/2011

A compilation DVD of all the best Othello's would be good for a lock out Xmas session!

[HekmagaJuximaxx]

05:58 PM on 08/20/2011

Rouse him, make after him, poison his delight,
Proclaim him in the streets. Incense her kinsmen,
And though he in a fertile Climate dwell,
Plague him with Flies; though that his joy be joy,
Yet throw such chances of vexation on it,
As it may loose some color.

[MaliceCooper]

05:29 PM on 08/20/2011

Othello was a pool player ???

[MikeDu]

03:26 PM on 08/20/2011

I've got to say the 1981 BBC Othello mentioned featured the best Iago performance I've ever seen with Bob Hoskins. To this day whenever I think of the "He who steals my purse steals trash" speech I hear it in my head in Hoskins' cockey accent.

[BArogundade]

05:04 PM on 08/24/2011

Agree, Hoskins performance is strong, as is Hopkins', especially when you view a bunch of different ones back-to-back on You Tube. Then you really get a sense of who interprets characters the best.