THE MERCHANT OF VENICE

MAY 2011, DIRECTED BY DR. MARY SNOW

“The quality of mercy is not strain’d,
It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven
Upon the place beneath.”
— William Shakespeare, THE MERCHANT OF VENICE

The exquisite Lady Portia is successfully wooed by the young merchant named Bassanio.  When the Jewish moneylender Shylock requires Bassanio’s good friend to pay up on a defaulted payment, Portia does everything in her power to stop a racially charged quest for vengeance.