Gathering Strangers

Abstract

In this conversation with her dramaturg Davina Moss, director Karin Coonrod lays out her vision for directing The Merchant of Venice in the Ghetto. She discusses production strategies, casting choices – including her decision to cast five actors as Shylock – and how her own personal aesthetic influenced the production. The script was adapted for this site-specific production, and Moss explores the decisions made to edit and rearrange the text to tell the story that more interested Coonrod. Finally, the two reflect on how this work experience affected them personally, as Shakespeareans, as Jews (by birth or marriage), and as artists.