''The Merchant'' is a 1976 play in two acts by the English dramatist

Arnold Wesker Sir Arnold Wesker (24 May 1932 – 12 April 2016) was an English dramatist. He was the author of 50 plays, four volumes of short stories, two volumes of essays, much journalism and a book on the subject, a children's book, some poetry, and oth ...

. It is based on

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

's ''

The Merchant of Venice ''The Merchant of Venice'' is a play by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1596 and 1598. A merchant in Venice named Antonio defaults on a large loan provided by a Jewish moneylender, Shylock. Although classified as ...

'', and focus on the Jewish Shylock character, that play's principal antagonist. Wesker began writing the play after seeing a 1973 performance by Laurence Olivier. It premiered in Stockholm in 1976 and was later renamed ''Shylock''. The play was meant to premiere on Broadway in 1977, but the Broadway production was cancelled due to the death of the plays' lead, multiple

Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ce ...

winner Zero Mostel. Wesker had high hopes that the play would make a big profit, but this did not happen. He wrote a book about the play in 1999, ''The Birth of Shylock and the Death of Zero Mostel''. In this play, Shylock is a good man and the good friend of Antonio, the title character in Shakespeare's play. They bond in their love of knowledge and mutual dislike of the antisemitism in their community. Shylock's demand for a pound of flesh is meant as a jest, but he can not retract it. Both Shylock and Antonio are relieved when the demand is denied in court. Reviewing ''The Merchant'', critic Michael Billington wrote "Wesker’s point comes across clearly: that anti-Jewish prejudice is ingrained in English life."

John Gross John Gross FRSL (12 March 1935 – 10 January 2011) was an eminent English man of letters. A leading intellectual, writer, anthologist, and critic, ''The Guardian'' (in a tribute titled "My Hero") and ''The Spectator'' were among several pu ...

, another critic, stated that "As a humanistic sermon, ''The Merchant'' has much to recommend it. As a play, it lacks bite".

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Merchant Plays by Arnold Wesker Plays set in the 16th century Plays set in Italy Works based on The Merchant of Venice 1976 plays

See also

References