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Othello (1989)
Director: Janet Suzman
The Othello presented here is a controversial and powerful interpretation of Shakespeares tragedy by South African-born actress Janet Suzman. The production was a first in many respects: it marked Janet Suzman's debut as a director for both the stage and television; and it saw the first time an African actor has been cast in the title role, opposite a white actress as Desdemona, in a major production of the play, performed in front of a multi-racial audience in South Africa.
Suzman's Othello proved an enormous success from its first performance at The Market Theatre in Johannesburg one of the few multi-racial venues in South Africa in 1987, provoking strong reactions from the audiences and the community at large. The performance features Tony Award-winner John Kani as Othello and Joanna Weinberg as Desdemona, in a production that was fresh, raw and all the more powerful for the context in which it was performed.
COUNTRIES UK/South Africa Co-Production
LOGLINE William Shakespeare's political drama about love, betrayal, rage and jealousy, filmed in South Africa during the dying days of Apartheid.
BUDGET $1 million
DIRECTOR Janet Suzman (The Ghost in the Darkness, Sarafina, A Dry White Season)
PRODUCER David Pupkewitz
CAST John Kani, Joanna Weinberg, Richard Haddon Haines, Dorothy Ann Gould
DISTRIBUTORS Channel 4, Kinowelt/Arthouse Theater, Digital Classics
IMDB LINK
"...remarkable. A powerful production "Daily Mail
"...refreshingly clear and gripping "The Independent
"...a production that made you rethink Othello - and marvel once again at how Shakespeare can never be out of fashion "The Listener
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