“If to do were as easy as to know what were good to do, chapels had been churches, and poor men’s cottages princes’ palaces. It is a good divine that follows his own instructions: I can easier teach twenty what were good to be done, than be one of the twenty to follow mine own teaching.”

Shakespeare's “The Merchant of Venice” explores many themes: justice, mercy, revenge, self-interest, love, intolerance and hypocrisy. Shakespeare gives us two very different societies: Venice is a cosmopolitan center of trade, rife with capitalism and religious intolerance. It represents wealth and greed and is controlled almost entirely by men. Belmont represents an almost fairytale-like land of wealth, beauty and peace. In Belmont, the women seem to hold sway. But what makes this play so interesting is the incongruity between what these places seem to be and what they really are: just as the characters espouse one virtue but enact another. What happens when these two worlds collide? Is it indeed, easier to know what 'were good to be done' than to do it?  Michelle Shupe will make her Shakespeare Project directing debut.

Performances:

Friday, October 18, 2013 at 7:00PM, The Niles Public Library*, 6960 W. Oakton Street, Niles
Saturday, October 19, 2013 at 10:00AM, The Newberry Library, 60 W. Walton Street, Chicago
Saturday, October 19, 2013 at 2:00PM, The Wilmette Public Library, 1242 Wilmette Avenue, Wilmette
Sunday, October 20, 2013 at 2:00PM, The Highland Park Public Library, 494 Laurel Avenue, Highland Park

An introduction to the play commences 15 minutes prior to curtain. Admission is free, seating is limited.