The fledgling Doña Ana Repertory Theatre (DART), founded in June by Algernon D’Ammassa, Darin Cabot and Joseph Lopez – actors, directors and theater teachers all – in hopes of establishing a local professional theatre in Las Cruces, will mark its debut with a production of one of William Shakespeare’s “The Merchant of Venice,” one of the so-called “problem plays” and among the Bard’s most controversial works.
The Merchant of Venice is set in 16th century Venice, a segregated cosmopolitan society in which slavery is commonplace and Jewish residents are forced to live in a ghetto. Antonio, a wealthy merchant, borrows a sum of money to help a friend, Bassanio, woo his love Portia, and signs a contract with a much-abused moneylender named Shylock. When Antonio cannot repay the loan, Shylock uses the court to seek a terrible revenge – far more than justice – for years of anti-Semitic abuse.
Director Lopez said of the controversial nature of the play, which has inspired heated debate over its central themes, which can seem anti-Semitic, “Lopez comments, “We’ve decided to set Merchant in a contemporary setting because we wanted to show that the issues that arise here are not historical issues; they exist today. To me, Shylock represents the perpetual foreigner. He lives among the Venetians, and yet will never be considered one of them. Today, I believe groups like Muslims and Latinos share the same plight, and it’s something I wanted to highlight. Now, that’s not to say that Shylock is the hero; he definitely isn’t. It’s saying that a society that alienates its newest members creates Shylocks every day, and that’s the tragedy.”
D’Ammassa added, “The ‘good guys’ in this play are blind to the injustice on which their world is based. This is also true of our world. ‘Black Lives Matter’ and similar movements are trying to expose what has been invisible to the dominant culture.”
The DART company includes professional and community actors along with students from New Mexico State University and Las Cruces Public Schools. The company consists of Julian Alexander, Darin Cabot, Victoria Castillo, Nicholas Check, Algernon D’Ammassa, David Edwards, Victoria Ehly, Joseph Lopez, Francesca Pérez-Wright, Richard Rundell, Mark Steffen, Jacob Tellez and Erin Wendorf.
“The Merchant of Venice” opens in Las Cruces Thursday, July 9, at Las Cruces Community Theatre, 313 N. Main St. Showtimes are 8 p.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday, July 9-11, and 2 p.m. Sunday, July 12. Tickets are $12. Visit DART on Facebook, check out the event page or call 575-545-7612 for more tickets and more information.
DART presents “The Merchant of Venice”
Thursday through Sunday, July 9-12
Las Cruces Community Theatre, 313 N. Main St.
Doors at 7:30 p.m.
Tickets $12
Additional shows are scheduled around the region through the end of the month. They are:
- 8 p.m. Thursday and Friday, July 23-24: The Rynerson House, 266 W. Court Ave.
- 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. Saturday, July 25: Deming Depot Theatre, 217 N. Country Club Road
- 8 p.m. Thursday, July 30: The Rynerson House, 266 W. Court Ave. Las Cruces
- 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, July 31-Aug. 1: Glasbox, 210 Poplar St. El Paso
ZAK HANSEN
The Truant 