JULIUS CAESAR
MAY 2016, DIRECTED BY WILLIAM WOLFGANG
Collins Wilson as the apparition of Julius Caesar.
Check out clips of the production on OrangeMite's YouTube Channel!
“Men at sometime were masters of their fates.
The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars,
But in ourselves, that we are underlings.”
One of Shakespeare's most celebrated plays, Julius Caesar, took on new life at The Barn in May 2016. This iconic story took audiences back 2,000 years into a surprisingly familiar world. Conspirators executed a sinister plot to save their republic from what they saw as unavoidable doom, plunging the world’s greatest empire into civil war. The OrangeMite Shakespeare Company provided this fast-paced political thriller to sold-out audiences like never before, complete with armor-clad legions, epic battles, rousing speeches, angry mobs, and a monstrous apparition.
Read the review from Broadway World on this production.
DIRECTOR'S NOTES
Unlike the production I directed last year at this time, this play is so full of famous quotations that one can easily become overwhelmed just trying to pick a favorite. Fortunately, I came into this production with my eye on a line spoken by Cassius, “Men at sometime were masters of their fates. / The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars, / But in ourselves, that we are underlings.” This powerful line has spoken to me ever since I read the play in 10th grade, and has proved inspirational for me artistically.
The Cast of OrangeMite's production of Julius Caesar.
This autonomy, the control of one’s own destiny, Cassius argues is the secret to the success of the conspirator’s enterprise, however, Shakespeare rarely leaves something so cut and dry. Destiny gets in the way of this autonomy. Brutus chooses to act upon Cassius’ entreaties, changing not only their lives but the future of Rome itself. “Beware the Ides of March” trumpets Caesar’s ultimate destiny to all in theatre. As it turns out, not all men are masters of their fate, Caesar certainly wasn’t; fate was his master. But what of Brutus and Cassius?
The senator Cicero, who appears to during the violent and ominous storm to chat with Caska, appears incredibly apathetic to the supernatural events, parts this wisdom to us all, “Indeed it is a strange-disposed time; / But men may construe things after their fashion, / Clean from the purpose of the things themselves.”
The conspirators escort julius Caesar to the capitol.
As we produce Shakespeare together, we all enjoy dialogues about themes like fate and destiny. We strive to discuss these large over-arching motifs that comprise Shakespeare’s work. There’s nothing quite like musing about fate and free will while swinging a sword and wearing metal armor. As we wrap up our seventeenth Shakespeare play here in The Barn, I graciously thank the participants and volunteers for constantly taking OrangeMite’s destiny in exciting new directions. I look forward to many more of these experiences to come!
- William Wolfgang, Artistic Director
