Previews: JULIUS CAESAR at The Studio@620

Running March 12–22 at The Studio@620, the all‑women Julius Caesar offers a sharp, contemporary take on Shakespeare’s political tragedy, placing the story inside the modern corporate world to expose how ambition, persuasion, and fear still shape the pursuit of power.

Adapted by Roxanne Fay and directed by Kristin Clippard, the production examines what happens when women inhabit roles historically written for men, allowing familiar scenes to land with new immediacy.

Clippard sees the corporate setting as today’s true empire. “We are taking this story out of government politics and putting it into the corporate world of business and industry, but all of the themes still apply,” she says. “I was thinking about what modern empires and female leadership look like today, and corporations are the entities holding influence and power over our lives.”

She is especially drawn to the memorial scene in which Mark Antony turns public sentiment with strategic rhetoric. “No one is immune to that kind of stealthy and manipulative power. Not then, not now.”

Fay approaches the adaptation by digging beneath the surface of political action. “It has long been my feeling that the most basic motivator in the lives of homosapiens is fear,” she says. “What fears are driving these characters toward envy, ambition and aggression? Without the inner lives of the characters being thus explored, the play becomes more of an action movie entertaining, to be sure but a bit hollow.”

The ensemble includes Fay, Robin Gordon, Sara Nower, Jenna Jane, Michaela Dougherty, Jada Griffin, Jemier Jenkins, and Jennifer Casler.

Gordon describes Cassius as “a passionate catalyst for change when change is desperately needed,” driven by conviction even when his methods falter.

Nower, shaping Caesar, focuses on the tension between public confidence and private uncertainty. “His lines are bold and confident… At the same time the language sometimes shifts, revealing his insecurities and vulnerabilities.”

Jane reflects on the moral justifications characters cling to, noting, “It’s easy for people to convince themselves that they are choosing the greater good over personal allegiance… when in reality they may be making that choice for entirely selfish reasons.”

Griffin embraces the chance to redefine roles written for men, saying, “Ambition, hunger, and passion aren’t confined to one gender. They’re human qualities.”

Jenkins explores how ambition shifts under pressure, while Casler hopes the modern setting helps audiences connect the play’s volatility to the present, especially the ease with which public opinion can be swayed.

Together, the cast brings renewed clarity to a story audiences may think they know, revealing the human cracks beneath public power and the dangerous speed at which certainty can collapse.