Review: THE MERCHANT OF VENICE, The Royal Lyceum Edinburgh

Arin Arbus's bold reimagining of The Merchant of Venice trades Venetian canals for tech bro skyscrapers in a near-future America dominated by corporate giants. Presented by New York-based TFANA (Theatre For A New Audience), the production’s corrosive bigotry and blinding vengeance feel eerily familiar - in a world shaped by Silicon Valley billionaires, power and prejudice still reign supreme. 

John Douglas Thompson's Shylock is the standout heart of the piece. His calm, jovial front soon cracks, exposing a darker side shaped by his prejudiced society. It is impossible to fault this fourteen-strong cast, delivering humour and heart in equal measure—from Isabel Arraiza’s commanding Portia to Varin Ayala’s delightfully pompous Prince of Arragon. Matthew Saldivar’s janitor-turned-jester Lancelot hilariously mops up laughs, while Danaya Esperenza's Jessica delivers a heartbreaking finale.

The production offers many interesting interpretive choices beyond its corporate setting. Without giving too much away, it explores themes of domestic abuse, toxic relationships, racism and an intriguing same-sex relationship. Despite its dark undertones, the play strikes a strong comedic balance, with sharp wordplay and playful inflections that spark plenty of laughter. The pacing lags slightly towards the end, but Shakespeare did write five acts.

Riccardo Hernandez (scenic designer) and Marcus Doshi (lights) deliver a stark, minimalistic grey concrete set. As Arbus points out, concrete is a material used to build a wall dividing people—yet it’s also a fashionable choice, often found in the floors of rich upscale kitchens. While the three tiers of steps occasionally make actor movement feel clunky, they cleverly evoke the rigid structure of a dystopian bureaucracy, bringing to mind Big Brother's oppressive presence in Orwell's 1984.

Arbus’s reimagining of The Merchant of Venice is a timely reminder that Shakespeare’s themes of power, prejudice and justice remain as relevant as ever. Provocative, poignant, powerful.

The Merchant of Venice is at the Royal Lyceum Edinburgh until 15 February

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