Director Demetra Tseckares instructs Ensemble member Emily Grove during rehearsals for Third Citizen Theatre Company’s Othello, onstage Feb. 7–15 in Salem’s Ames Hall.
The Third Citizen, from Shakespeare’s play Richard III, warns friends about the dangers of bad leadership: “Woe to the land that’s govern’d by a child.”
Those words remain a cautionary tale for our times, and also serve as the motto for the newly formed Third Citizen Theatre Company, a welcome addition to Salem’s community performance scene.
Managing director Casey Lynn Roland says that Third Citizen “tells stories about our audience’s world, using Shakespeare’s text.” The troupe makes its debut performance Feb. 7–15 at Ames Hall in downtown Salem, with Shakespeare’s “Othello.” The run of performances gets complemented by a free staged reading of Paula Vogel’s alternate take on the Othello story, “Desdemona: A Play About a Handkerchief,” on Feb. 9.
Demetra Tseckares directs “Othello.” “We want to present these classic works in new ways,” Roland says. “A lot of what Shakespeare says is relevant. The themes, the politics, the gender equality—these things have not gone away.”
The troupe has been rehearsing five days a week since the first of the year. “The other night I was sitting with Demetra in rehearsal, and she looked at me and said, ‘Wow, we have a show.’ That’s a good feeling,” Roland says.
“It’s great to hear audience reactions when you stage Shakespeare,” Roland says. “So many people’s experience with Shakespeare comes from sitting in a classroom reading ‘Romeo & Juliet.’ Shakespeare was meant to be seen and heard.
“If you’re just reading off the page, it’s not up on its feet,” she says. “People get a better sense of Shakespeare when they get exposed to it live. Nobody ever explains how funny the text is. Sometimes I think, ‘I can’t believe he just said that.’ He sneaks in all these taboo things, he’s funny in his satire and social commentary.”
The staged reading of Vogel’s drama, which casts Desdemona in a different light—in Vogel’s version she participates willingly in all the lies that Iago accuses her of in “Othello”—will serve as a counterpoint to the run of performances. It’s also as a fundraiser for HWAC, which supplies free help and emergency services for victims of domestic abuse.
“It will be a staged reading, with no set,” Roland says. “It’s fascinating to watch our Desdemona in Paula’s play. For a lot of women, it’s a reality. Like Desdemona, they can’t get out of a lie that was told about them, and don’t know what to do about those emotional reactions. We want to let them know it’s okay to reach out for help.”
Another of Shakespeare’s plays will be staged by Third Citizen in the summer—“we’re still trying to figure out our schedule,” Roland says. “Right now, our cast is so immersed in that world. It’s great to be working with people who adore Shakespeare, and who want to present him, and find out what his work was about.
Third Citizen Theatre Company presents Shakespeare’s “Othello” at Salem’s Ames Hall, Feb. 7 through 15th. A performance on Feb. 13 is free to students. The troupe also gives a free reading of Paula Vogel’s “Desdemona: A Play About a Handkerchief,” on Sunday, Feb. 9 at 3:00 p.m. Visit Third Citizen Theatre Company’s Instagram (@thirdcitizen.theatreco) or Facebook page (@Third Citizen Theatre Co.).