Reviewed by James Karas
Othello, along with The Tempest and A Midsummer Night’s Dream is the third and final play by Shakespeare produced by the Stratford Festival this year. One cannot fault the choice of three major plays and appreciate that all three receive astounding productions. I do complain that they have only three plays at a festival that used to be called the Stratford Shakespeare Festival.
The production, brilliantly directed by Haysam Kadri, shows some powerful performances that make it difficult to recall anything that approaches its effect. Start with Andre Sills as Othello. We start with the self-assured general, a black man in a white Venice, who has a commanding presence and fearless disposition. He has married Desdemona, the beautiful daughter of Senator Brabantia (Chick Reid) and racist slanders follow. He is not concerned because he is honorable and Venice needs him more than he needs Venice.
This commanding presence will be subverted and lowered and Othello changed into a jealous, murderous man, an ugly being, a hideous man by the exercise of pure evil or what one scholar called motiveless malignity. He will try to reclaim his stature and regain his dignity only momentarily near the end. Sills gives us both Othellos in an unforgettable performance that rates with the best we have ever seen.
The source of Othello’s destruction is the malignity of Iago played masterfully by Evan Buliung. Iago is evil to the core but he is intelligent and knows human nature to the extent that he manipulates and destroys a man who seems indestructible. He is a consummate and brilliant actor who sounds believable and dependable. Moreover, he enjoys his evil and adds some humour to the character. Iago may have reached the apogee of his evil and Othello the depth of his depravity when convinces Othello that Cassio, another black man, has cuckolded him. He goes yet further by suggesting that Othello strangle Desdemona and he does it. A bravura performance by Buliung.
and Evan Buliung as Iago. Stratford Festival 2026.
Photo: Dariane Sanche.
The lovely Desdemona of Krystin Pellerin is a faithful daughter of Venetian nobility but a woman who falls in love with a mensch, a noble and decent man, a famous and capable general. She wants to help Cassio (Jordin Hall) a man who may have been unjustly punished. But her act of decency is noticed by the archdevil Iago who knows how to twist everything to punish the Moor. We love her and cry for her. as we applaud Pellerin
Rylan Wilkie plays Roderigo perfectly as the dense, gullible and well-off junior officer who is reaching for the stars by wanting Desdemona. He is putty in Iago’s hands who makes him lose his fortune and his life.
Cassio (Jordin Hall) is the man who gets the position that Iago coveted and he becomes a victim of Iago as well. Iago sees his weakness, alcohol, and uses it to have him humiliated and demoted and then arranges for his death. Cassio tries to regain his position believing that his punishment was much greater than his misconduct called for. In the end he is rehabilitated and gets Othello’s office. Superb work by Wilkie.
The lesser roles are done well and I give kudos to Jessica B. Hill as Emilia, the seriously abused wife of Iago and Vivien Endicott-Douglas as Bianca, the woman for hire. Chick Reid plays Brabantia, Desdemona’s mother instead of Brabantio, the father in the original play. She does not miss a beat and does a superb job.
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Othello by William Shakespeare opened on June 18 and will run in repertory until September 27, 2026, at the Tom Patterson Theatre, Stratford, Ont.
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