Nhlakanipho Manqele (Othello), Clinton Small (Iago) and Darren King (Brabantio) in a scene from Othello. Photo: Val Adamson

2016 marks the 400th anniversary of William Shakespeare and I am delighted that schools still consider it worth learning the Bard’s work.

Part of that ongoing appeal is being able to see Shakespeare performed live and if your child’s school has not yet booked to see Think Theatre’s critically acclaimed production of the tragedy Othello in KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng then I urge you to get them to do so.

It will bring the Bard’s work to vivid life and is the perfect salute to the British playwright, who died on 23 April 1616.

Clare Mortimer (Emilia) and Cara Roberts (Desdemona) in a tender moment from Othello. Photo: Val Adamson

Othello plays at the Hilton College Theatre from February 5 to 12 before heading to the Playhouse Drama stage in Durban from February 15 to March 18. Performances are daily at 9 am and 12 pm (Mondays to Fridays).

The production will also be performed at John Ross College in Richards Bay on February 18; at Port Shepstone High School on March 1; at Dundee High School in Northern KZN on March 7; and at Ferrum High School in Newcastle on March 8.

An evening performance for the public will be given at The Playhouse at 7 pm on March 1.

Othello will also tour to Gauteng for a return season at the University of Johannesburg from May 9 to 20, moving to the Brooklyn Theatre in Pretoria for a short run from May 22 to 27. Performances in Gauteng will be at 9 am and 12 pm daily (Mondays to Fridays).

The duration of Think Theatre’s production is approximately two hours.

Presented in association with the Playhouse Company, Othello is directed as previously by the multi-award-winning actor and director Clare Mortimer, also highly respected for her extensive expertise as a writer and English teacher.

A vital learning aid facility for secondary school learners studying Shakespeare’s stage tragedy as a set work, Think Theatre’s production of Othello is widely appreciated by school teachers, learners and their parents.

As ever before, the great work continues to hold today’s audiences in its grip, as its core themes of love, envy and betrayal remain powerfully relevant to the human condition.

Durban Theatre Award winner Nhlakanipho Manqele reprises his interpretation of the play’s tragic title role, with Cara Roberts again returning as his ill-fated young wife, Desdemona.

Marc Kay and Sarah Richard as Cassio and Bianca in ‘Othello’. Photo by Val Adamson

The rest of the cast, headed by Clinton Small with his award-winning portrayal of the villainous Iago and Mortimer as his wife Emilia, again features Michael Gritten, Marc Kay, Bryan Hiles, Rowan Bartlett and Darren King. Sarah Richard makes her role debut as Bianca.

School bookings for Think Theatre’s production of Shakespeare’s timeless tragedy are climbing fast as schools have reopened for the first term of 2015.

Booking is through Doreen Stanley on 033 343 4884 or 084 556 0668, Fax: 086 402 9592 or 033 343 4884, or email doreen@thinktheatre.co.za.

Follow Thinktheatre’s Othello on Facebook, and keep up to date with production news at #ThinkTheatreOthello on Facebook and Twitter.