THE METAMORPHOSIS OF WINE WITHIN IAGO’S VILLAINY - SHAKESPEARE IN VERDI’S OTHELLO
THE METAMORPHOSIS OF WINE WITHIN IAGO’S VILLAINY - SHAKESPEARE IN VERDI’S OTHELLO

Summary/Abstract: The drinking scene in the second act of the Shakespearean play Othello and the corresponding passage in Verdi’s opera Otello illustrate one of Iago’s cunning ways of directing people his own way. In this case, wine, which has spiritual dimensions, becomes an agent of the devil leading to Cassio’s ruin. In a mock-religious Mass, Iago, the anti-priest, serves Cassio the wine which is no longer a sacred source of life, but a means of destruction.

• Details
• Contents