“Shame is something you feel; humiliation is something that happens to you. It’s our own fault if we feel ashamed. I used to feel ashamed: of not being like my brother; of being a Jew. Early in my life, I vowed that never again would I let myself feel ashamed. But it took years for me to make a vow that was much harder … harder because it means taking control of something over which one has so little control. I vowed that I would never let myself be humiliated.”
2m, 2f
available for production
About the play:
In 1858 New Orleans, theatre manager and playwright George Washington Lazarus has two problems on his hands, and both of them involve trial scenes: an actor in his own company has chosen to play Shylock for a benefit performance; and his trial for first-degree murder begins the next day. Lazarus refuses to defend himself; but his wife and daughter may have other plans.
Readings:
- Tufts University, March, 2019.
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Poster by Jordan Semprevivo
Cary Mazer 