[Dixielandjazz] Re: White Othello

[G. William Oakley]

Hi Leslie:
The only reference I can find to Anthony Hopkins playing Othello is the 1982
BBC production directed by Jonathan Miller.  In this production he was in
blackface.  Perhaps you saw the Patrick Stewart production.
Best,
Bill
----- Original Message ----- 
From: <LeslieMRag at aol.com>
To: <dixielandjazz at ml.islandnet.com>
Sent: Monday, November 17, 2003 2:38 PM
Subject: [Dixielandjazz] Re: White Othello


> Hi, Listmates:
>
> I caught a PBS broadcast of "Othello," my favorite play by Shakespeare,
some
> years ago wherein Anthony Hopkins played Othello without "blacking
> up"--instead playing Othello as a great leader who was an outsider due to
psychological
> reasons rather than ethnicity. It was a fabulous portrayal and the final
scene
> was as powerful as any I've ever seen in any production of this great
play. I
> can still see that scene in my mind's eye--that's how memorable it was. As
I
> understand it, it was Hopkins' choice to play Othello as a white man, not
the
> director's.
>
> Leslie Johnson
> editor at mississippirag.com OR
> lesliemrag at aol.com
>
> In a message dated 11/17/2003 11:11:10 AM Central Standard Time,
> dixielandjazz-request at ml.islandnet.com writes:
>
>
> > "I dont think we have had a white Othello..."
> > Until very recently Othello has always been portrayed by "blacked up"
white
> > actors, e.g. Olivier, Anthony Hopkins, and Orson Welles. I would bet
that it
> > at some point in early traveling shows the Moor was portrayed without
the
> > customary makeup.  More recently (1998) Patrick Stewart played the part
in
> > white-face, so to speak. The Lawrence Fishburn Othello is the only one
that
> > I know of that has portrayed the character as an African.
> > Best,
> > Bill
> >
>
>
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