This play was the Shakespeare I wanted to direct for a very long time because I love Isabella's journey from religious ideals to discovering how to maintain faith in the everyday world. The Duke has his own journey as he keeps trying to control/manipulate the situation only to discover that without the power vested in him as a ruler, life gets pretty damn messy. Angelo also gets a lesson in discovering that he is also susceptible to the temptations of the flesh - through his mind. There's serious growth and discovery in the piece that the attempt at creating a traditional comedy ending cannot erase or make to fit. That's why it's so compelling. ( )

تو همه کمدی‌های شکسپیر شخصیت‌هایی هستند که به جای یه نفر دیگه ظاهر می‌شن و کسی نمی‌فهمه که همیشه برای من عجیب بود... اما تو این نمایشنامه یک نفر به قصد مجامعت با دختری با دختر دیگه‌ای همبستر می‌شه و متوجه نمی‌شه! این دیگه خیلی عجیب بود. ( )

When Claudio is condemned to hang for getting his fiancee Juliet pregnant before their wedding, the Duke of Vienna’s deputy, Angelo, offer’s Claudio’s sister, Isabella, a way to save her brother’s life. Angelo will spare Claudio’s life if Isabella, a novitiate preparing to become a nun, will sleep with him. Isabella would rather see her brother die than lose her virtue, but nevertheless she tells her brother of Angelo’s offer. It seems Claudio would rather live than allow his sister to keep her virtue, so Isabella steels herself to do what she must to save her brother’s life. Fortunately, the Duke of Vienna hasn’t actually gone away. He’s disguised himself as a friar, and in this disguise he is able to come up with a solution that will make everyone happy.

In a way, the issue still feels contemporary in these days of MeToo. However, I didn’t find much comedy in this plot, nor many sympathetic characters. ( )

A man accused of fornication faces the death penalty. His cloistered sister and the Duke scheme to save him. Shakespeare explores justice in this play. ( )

My favorite Shakespeare, though this is a dangerous label to give to any of Bill's work since they adapt themselves to my moods as much as I adapt to them. I've always found the phrase "problem play" amusing, as if an inability to label something a "comedy" or "tragedy" makes it any more problematic than those we have labeled. Personally, I have no problems with this play.

"To sue to live, I find I seek to die / And seeking death, find life. Let it come on." ( )