Video: Wendell Pierce Previews OTHELLO on LIVE WITH KELLY AND MARK
Othello begins previews on May 19 at STC’s Harman Hall and runs through June 28.
Next month, esteemed stage and screen performer Wendell Pierce will take on the role of Othello in Simon Godwin's production of the play at Shakespeare Theatre Company in Washington, D.C. Pierce previewed the project during an appearance on Live with Kelly and Mark back in February.
"It's the greatest challenge around. I'm already working on it now," he said at the time. "It's like being a detective. The verse is so filled with clues... [Shakespeare] is the great combination of spirit, mind, and technique." Watch the discussion with Pierce now.
Featuring Pierce in the title role, the cast also includes Ben Turner, Olivia Cygan, Melanie Field, and Lucas Iverson. Othello begins previews on May 19 at STC’s Harman Hall and runs through June 28.
In Shakespeare’s towering tragedy about the power of words to kill, Venice is scandalized when its protector, Othello (Pierce), elopes with a nobleman’s daughter, while his most trusted lieutenant, Iago, seethes after being passed over for a promotion. Vengeful Iago (Turner) speaks a word and contorts the world: transforming Othello’s faithful wife into an adulteress and upright men into beasts.
Pierce is familiar to audiences because of his captivating performances on screen, including The Wire, Treme, and Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan, as well as CBS's Elsbeth and Starz's Raising Kanan, part of the Power franchise. His lengthy stage career has encapsulated both classic and modern works, from an early role at STC to a Tony Award-nominated turn in Death of a Salesman, the first Black actor to play Willy Loman on Broadway. Pierce will also be honored with STC’s Will Award for Classical Theatre at the company’s annual All the World’s a Stage gala on April 13.
