The Merchant of Venice
A BBC Radio Shakespeare Production
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The Merchant of Venice
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Narrated by:
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Warren Mitchell
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Martin Jarvis
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Samuel West
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Full Cast
About this listen
In this BBC full-cast production of The Merchant of Venice, love, bigotry, greed and justice are entwined.
Shakespeare's classic play explores the eternal themes of love and hate, mercy and justice, with parallel stories centred on the moneylender, Shylock, and the lovers, Portia and Bassanio. Shylock's angry insistence on the repayment of his debt from Bassanio ends in the Venetian courts, where he demands his pound of flesh. Portia meanwhile, a wealthy young Venetian woman, must marry one of her many suitors. Her late father's will has set the challenge by means of three caskets: one gold, one silver and one lead.
Warren Mitchell stars as Shylock, with Martin Jarvis as Antonio, Samuel West as Bassanio and Juliet Aubrey as Portia.
This superb production of Shakespeare's dramatic and complex play is directed by the award-winning Peter Kavanagh, and features specially-composed music by the renowned Barrington Pheloung.
BBC radio has a unique heritage when it comes to Shakespeare. Since 1923, when the newly-formed company broadcast its first full-length play, generations of actors and producers have honed and perfected the craft of making Shakespeare to be heard.
In this acclaimed BBC Radio Shakespeare series, each play is introduced by Richard Eyre, former Director of the Royal National Theatre. Revitalised, original and comprehensive, this is Shakespeare for the modern day.
©2000 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2000 BBC Studios Distribution LtdListeners also enjoyed...
What listeners say about The Merchant of Venice
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
- Philip
- 19-01-09
fast and charming
This is excellent stuff- light, fast, convincing and fun. Well done to the BBC for playing it as a comedy and sliding nimbly over the moral issues. No one would argue that the attitude of the young Venetian men to Jews was a nice one- but the play needs them to be amusing company- not over blessed with brain, certainly, but young, active, in love and full of joie de vivre.
Warren Mitchell gives a thoroughly Jewish and nuanced Shylock- a comic villian with just the right edge of pathos, he really lives and breathes and burns with a growing lust for revenge. He manages the feat of growing worse and becoming more poigiant at the same time
Martin Jarvis is nicely balanced and not too self-pitying as Antonio- he is possibly a little bit too benevelent to carry off the hating of Shylock.
Samuel West (that gift to Shakespeare audio) is, of course, an excellent Bassiano- though I thought him a bit too short tempered- as if, perhaps, afraid to make a jew-hater sound too nice. Bassiano, surely, as the centre of affection in the play should be the personification of charm.
But the highlight of the recording as to be Juliet Aubrey as Portia- her marvellous low voice glides through Shakespeare's lines in a gloriously measured way- equally excellent in comedy scenes as in the court room- Oh she's marvellous, buy it just for her.
The one drawback is that they have abridged the play- not drastically, just slimmed it down here and there and changed the odd word- but it is very quick and charming and at the end one almost believes that even Shylock might live happily ever after.
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3 people found this helpful
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- angela commons
- 03-12-21
This version is abridged.
such a shame that this version was abridged, as it was very well performed.
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
- kerrymay
- 29-11-08
The Merchant of Venice
Wasn't sure when purchasing whether this was 'abridged' as it wasn't stated but having listened to it am fairly sure that it was. Completely unfamiliar with the play and enjoyed this intro - would now long to see a stage version
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