Shakespeare's domestic tragedy is one of his most human. Insecurity, self-doubt and jealousy all consort to reduce the noble world of Othello to a place where beauty is a whore and love blown wretchedly into a handkerchief. 
      This production by the Southwark Playhouse is, on first look, a straight interpretation : set in Venice and Cyprus; true to the text and lacking any 'angle.' However, as the night progresses each characters' style becomes so strong and individual that it is unclear whether the play is a 1940's black comedy or a modern soap opera. Desdemona and Cassio are so wholesome and innocent they would not be out of place in The Brady Bunch. Emilia with her pursed lips and disapproving eyes is reminiscent of EastEnders' Dot Cotton. Christopher Hunter manages to give Iago real humour, which makes him likeable and gives his poison credibility. However, his inner and outer selves are constant and we do not see, in his monologues, the base evil of his Machiavellian soul. 
      This jars with Othello as played by Leo Ringer, who gives a magnificent performance. He reveals the Moor's many colours of eloquence, innocence, fear and rage with a seamless depth and charisma. But, as he crumbles at the thought of his wife with Cassio, Hunter's light touch has the audience tittering. 
      It appears that Spencer Hinton has directed the actors in isolation and as such the play works scene by scene, rather than as a whole. Nevertheless, the story is one that we can all relate to, as who has not 'loved not wisely but too well?' 
Loma-Ann Bonner