This wonderful adaptation re-imagines Othello as a world-renowned rapper, and the action takes place in the high-flying world of hip-hop performers.They acknowledge their debt to Shakespeare, opening the show with the lyrics ‘good storytellers borrow, but great ones steal’, and this lyrical thievery pays off in a highly entertaining and often hilarious musical.
The setting is both believable and effective: Othello (Postell Pringle) is the star attraction in a hip-hop crew, with Cassio (Jackson Doran) just embarking on a promising solo career. Iago (GQ) feels he should have had more chance to shine and that is his initial reason for wanting to destroy Othello. As the characters tour together they are forced to interact, and this is a handy way of driving the action forward.
Desdemona is a talented backing singer who steals Othello’s heart with her angelic voice. Not appearing on stage, she is represented by a recorded voice that hums and has no lyrics - this is where you start seeing the problem coming from a mile away. For a tragedy to work, the possibility has to exist for things to be okay in the end. In the original the audience can believe there is a chance that Desdemona will convince Othello of her innocence, even though we know she won’t; that is what allows us to empathise with the tragedy. Take away Desdemona’s words and it is clear that Iago will win, because he is the only one arguing a case. The dialogue between Othello and Desdemona does take place, but she is a humming voice, so the conversation sounds a bit like ‘What’s that, Lassie? Timmy fell down a well?’
It is a pity that this issue spoils the climax of the play, since the rest of it is so delicious. Because most of it is rapped, it is very densely packed with words. The lyrics are full of clever pop-culture references as well as nods to Shakespeare, such as the music label ‘First Folio Records’. The characters are also given fun quirks: Loco Vito, the CEO, has a strange obsession with tennis, while Roderigo is a caricature geek. There are also tongue-in-cheek references to hip-hop slang: Iago wants Othello to kick Cassio out of the crew and says ‘You’ve got to axe him’ to which Othello replies ‘Ax him what?’
The music, the dancing, and the rapping can’t be faulted. The DJ and four actors deliver polished performances full of energy and humour. The creativity of Othello – The Remix should be applauded and this would have been an overall brilliant show, had it not been for the startling absence of one of the main characters. As it stands it is witty, energetic, and lots of fun, but it falls flat at the climax.
