It was a modern dress production, which always makes things more interesting for me. I had never see Caesar live, and though I've read it a few times, the only version I'd seen was the old James Mason/Marlon Brando version, and I'd always read it just the way they performed it. I saw Antony as a big hero standing up against terrorists or power-hungry fanatics. I saw Cassius as a sleezy, smooth-talking creep who pulled the wool over poor, noble Brutus's eyes.This production was not the same old Julius Caesar.
This picture comes from the second act. Antony is the Italian-looking guy in green, Brutus is the one with the red beret, and Cassius is the one snarling.The way the characters were played contributed a lot of my new mental version of this play. Cassius was played more sympathetically than I had ever imagined him. I could actually understand why Brutus respected and followed him. Antony, on the other hand, was a crazy playboy who seemed out of touch with the political implications of Caesar taking the crown. Brutus's speech seemed completely legitimate, while Antony seemed to be working to incite the citizens to riot, which he did. The end result of his "Friends, Romans, Countrymen" speech was a lot of screaming and breaking glass and fire, and after intermission we had entered a military state that reminded me of some African countries and a documentary I saw about elections in Bolivia.
Although I still didn't think that Brutus and his buddies were in the right when they killed Caesar, it made more sense to me this way. They didn't seem to be after power, and Brutus in particular didn't seem to be lured by the idea that he should raise himself higher. They seemed genuine in their push for a better Rome, their desperate attempt to save their country from tyrants. When Cassius and Brutus killed themselves at the end, it didn't feel like they were doing it because they were feeling guilty; instead, it referred back to a speech Cassius had made about how all men are free from tyrants if they choose to be so (with the help of a knife). They seemed to have abandoned hope under the new Octavius/Antony administration and saw no other way out.
It was truly a fascinating production, and I am glad to say that not only do I have a Julius Caesar world now, but it has been rocked like crazy.
Although I still didn't think that Brutus and his buddies were in the right when they killed Caesar, it made more sense to me this way. They didn't seem to be after power, and Brutus in particular didn't seem to be lured by the idea that he should raise himself higher. They seemed genuine in their push for a better Rome, their desperate attempt to save their country from tyrants. When Cassius and Brutus killed themselves at the end, it didn't feel like they were doing it because they were feeling guilty; instead, it referred back to a speech Cassius had made about how all men are free from tyrants if they choose to be so (with the help of a knife). They seemed to have abandoned hope under the new Octavius/Antony administration and saw no other way out.
It was truly a fascinating production, and I am glad to say that not only do I have a Julius Caesar world now, but it has been rocked like crazy.
2 comments:
Wow that sounds really cool! Where did you see it?
I, too, have a Julius Caesar world. It consist of translating a chapter from "Caesar's Gallic Wars" into discernible English. This world is full of Caesar explaining where natural landmarks are and how the further Gauls decided to be mischievous and so Caesar had to put them in their place. Your Caesar world sounds much more fun than mine does.
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