el Don News
Staff Editorial
By casting a female to portray one of history’s most powerful men, the Theatre Department makes a timely statement
The Santa Ana College Theatre Department’s version of William Shakespeare’s “Julius Caesar” has empowered women by switching gender roles.
We applaud them for that.
By casting Carmen Munoz as Caesar and Amy Smith as Mark Antony, the modernized tragedy casts two of history’s most powerful figures as females.
Men traditionally performed Shakespeare’s plays when he wrote it. Women have come a long way since then.
Hillary Clinton might be the first female American president, Angela Merkel is the chancellor of Germany and Marissa Mayer is CEO of Yahoo.
But these giant steps have been difficult to celebrate lately. Veiled women are not allowed to drive in Saudi Arabia, adolescent girls are ritually circumcised in parts of Africa and South East Asia and wives get beaten by their husbands in New Jersey.
The historic Caesar was humanized when Shakespeare magnified his flaws.
Director Chris Cannon’s gender bending will hopefully do the same for women.
