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The Merchant of Venice

Bossanio asks the Jewish moneylender, Shylock, for a loan to help him court the wealthy Portia, and does so on behalf of the antisemetic merchant, Antonio. Shylock agrees to the loan, but if within three months the loan hasn’t been paid, Shylock demands a pound of Antonio’s flesh. A story about love, wealth, and revenge, can Bossanio and Portia save Antonio from his fate?

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At a Glance

Tragicomedy • Classical Setting • Disguise

Productions, Readings & Workshops

Merchant of Venice Workshop

July 2021 | Workshop | Cara Mia Theatre

This translation has not yet been produced!

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Paperback & eBooks

The Merchant of Venice

By William Shakespeare
Translation by Elise Thoron

An updated version of The Merchant of Venice that speaks to our contemporary reckoning with racism and injustice. 

Elise Thoron’s translation of Shakespeare’s searing The Merchant of Venice cuts straight to the heart of today’s fraught issues of social justice and systemic racism. Thoron’s clear, compelling contemporary verse translation retains the power of the original iambic pentameter while allowing readers and audiences to fully comprehend and directly experience the brutal dilemmas of Shakespeare’s Venice, where prejudice and privilege reign unchallenged. As the author of three acclaimed music-theater works on the Jewish experience and informed by her work directing cross-cultural projects in locations as different as Russia, Japan, Cuba, and New York City, Thoron brings to her Merchant an immediacy that speaks directly to the present reckoning with race in America.

Production History

Jan 17, 2017

Translation Workshop

Workshop with full cast in NYC.

June 5, 2019

Play On! Festival NYC

Rehearsal and Staged Reading directed by Estefania Fadul with full cast as part of the Play On! Translation Festival in NYC.

Produced by:
Play On! / Classic Stage / Oregon Shakespeare Festival

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