The Theatre and Performance program presents Portia’s Julius Caesar by Kaitlyn Riordan in Theatre of the Arts, March 22 – 25. Co-directed by professors Sorouja Moll and Andy Houston, the play is a radical adaption of William Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar and focuses on the voices and perspectives of its female characters.
Student Emily Radcliffe plays Portia.
The play follows the stories of Portia and Calpurnia, two powerful women married to Rome's most influential men, Brutus and Caesar. While Calpurnia makes sacrifices to the gods to conceive for the first time, Portia is battling to understand her experience as a mother within a politically influential family.
Portia’s Julius Caesar is a provocative work of theatre that explores historical as well as contemporary ideas of fertility, female empowerment, and familial ties alongside the historical reality of political uprisings. The play delves into familiar dramatical themes as it is an adaptation of Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar, but it juxtaposes the essence of the original text with all that has happened in the world since 1599, when Shakespeare adapted this story from 44 B.C.
Doors will open 30 minutes prior to the performance so audience members can engage with the installation that reflects Portia’s Julius Caesar theatrical points of emphasis. In the theatre gallery, spectators are invited to immerse themselves in a thematic display meant to extend the world of the play to the world right in front of us.
Portia’s Julius Caesar is on stage March 22, 23, 24, and 25 at 7:30 p.m. and March 24 at 2:00 p.m.
Visit the production website to learn much more and buy tickets.