How to go
What: "Julius Caesar"
When: 8 p.m. Aug. 5-7 and 11-14
Where: Ernest Nature Theatre at Miami University
Cost: Free
By Eric Robinette
Staff Writer
OXFORD — Shakespeare has gone back to the past and back to the future at the same time with a new version of “Julius Caesar.”
The free show runs Aug. 5-7 and 11-14 at the Ernest Nature Theatre on the western campus of Miami University, near Peabody Hall.
“The amphitheater is unbelievably gorgeous, filled with nature. It’s almost like Shakespeare in the Woods,” said Justin Baldwin, director of the show.
Despite the setting that’s sort of in the wild, this won’t be your garden variety production of “Julius Caesar.” Although the players are young, “you’re not going to be seeing 20-somethings in togas,” Baldwin said.
This production, by the Cinicinnati-based A.R.T. (Ain’t Real Theatre) company, updates the time period to an undetermined, but more contemporary setting. Aside from that, however, the play itself will remain unchanged, with Shakespeare’s original text intact.
And while it may be strange to have young adults playing Roman officials, that’s actually historically correct. Many of the main characters were in their late teens or early 20s.
That’s quite different from most movies or televised plays of “Julius Caesar,” which typically feature much older actors.
“The best movie stars are at the top of their popularity when they’re older. But you were lucky to live past 35 in ancient Rome,” Baldwin said.
The updating of the setting also makes the production emotionally true.
“This version of ‘Julius Caesar’ stands out by appealing to 21- to 30-year-olds. That’s quite appropriate because that’s the age of people in the military,” Baldwin said.
This company is the same production that staged “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” in Oxford last year, and that production was successful enough that “Caesar” was able to get sponsors.
A future production has yet to be determined,
“A lot of us will be doing ‘A Christmas Carol’ with Playhouse in the Park. We’ll kick around ideas and decide what we’re going to do,” Baldwin said.
Contact this reporter at (513) 705-2836 or erobinette@coxohio.com.