Antonio and Shylock at Stage Left Studio

Riveting performer Dikran Tulaine (G.I. Joe: Retaliation) stars in this one-hour adaptation of one of Shakespeare's most controversial plays. Scholars throughout the centuries have fiercely debated Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice due to its anti-Semitic portrayal of the villainous Shylock and the ambiguous sexual preference of Antonio, who's willing to trade a pound of his own flesh to the money lender to save his friend Bassanio. As the deal for Antonio's flesh unfolds in Antonio & Shylock: Monsters and the trial ensues, the actors -- performing in the round, some even situated in the audience -- zoom in on the drama's anti-Jewish bigotry, reinforcing the timeless relevancy of this centuries-old tale with crackling new urgency.