For students, reading and analysing a play for exams can become a bit of a chore, but the CBS Secondary students in Mitchelstown found that going to see a live adaptation of ‘The Merchant of Venice’ helped them to tackle the challenging aspects of the play.

The second year students saw the play in The Everyman Theatre in Cork, as produced by the company Cyclone. Student Conor Murray explained that with just four actors, the students got to look at the play from a different perspective and it helped them to understand aspects, which they had previously grappled with.

DIFFERENT METHOD

He said that they had already gone through the play thoroughly as part of their Junior Cert course, but that the characters, acting and unique adaptation, gave them a different perspective and an easy way to remember parts of the play.

“Two of the actors were wearing Hawaiian flower print shirts, and when asked why, they told us that it was to show the nature of some of the characters, such as Bassanio, who they thought was a carefree kind of person and to reflect on how not all of the play is in Venice, but also a small bit away in Belmont.

“I think for other English classes doing ‘The Merchant of Venice’, it is a good idea to see a production like the one we went to, especially if there are small elements you find tough to understand, as they put the play into words that are easier to understand,” Conor explained.