To turn the script of Shakespeare's Othello – with its Elizabethan language, Venetian setting and highbrow reputation – into a 90-minute long series of hip-hop raps might sound like an impossible feat.
Othello in its original form is a tragedy about jealousy and betrayal. This remix by Chicago’s Q Brothers, performed as part of the Abu Dhabi Festival, is more comedy than tragedy. Our hero is transformed from a general in the Venetian army into a hip-hop superstar, who tops the charts with his lyrical rhymes and wins the heart of the illustrious Desdemona.
But Othello’s supposed friend Iago plants the seeds of doubt in his mind about whether Desdemona and fellow rapper Cassio are more than just good friends.
True to the play’s origins, all five cast members are male. As they would have been in Shakespeare’s time, the female roles are hilariously acted out with the use of wigs and dresses. The Q Brothers invoke memories of when rappers took themselves less seriously than nowadays — remember those amusing Run DMC music videos?
They don’t look like your average hip-hop artists, but they certainly sound the part – think Will Smith in his rapping days meets Jay Z crossed with the Beastie Boys. The villain Iago has the same gravely voice as Eminen, with the same mad glint in his eye.
Rapping through a show to original beats mean the cast must be doubly careful to not miss a beat as well as not forget their lines. They succeeded – the Q Brothers delivered a slick show that will to lovers of Shakespeare and hip-hop fans alike, give a few laughs along the way.
Their approach not only makes Shakespeare much more accessible to a younger audience, but is also peppered with witty references that span the decades to connect with older audience members too.
For example, uber-nerd Roderego loves Desdemona so much he'd give up his action figure of Skeletor that is still in mint condition in the box for her – a nice reference for those of us old enough to remember the cartoon adventures of He-man and the Masters of the Universe – yet to bring things up-to-date we also hear that a video of an embrassing moment involving Cassio and Desdemona has gone viral and garnered 12 million YouTube hits.
"We love the Simpsons", Q Brother Jeffrey Quiyum tells the audience during a Q&A session after the show. "A two-year-old and a 65-year-old will laugh at the same episode for different reasons – it's the same with our show."
Shakespeare was the original lyricist who told his stories to the common people through poetry and musical language – so what else would he be if he were alive today but a hip-hop artist?
“Shakespeare would have climbed up on stage to rap alongside us”, says Postell Pringle, who plays Othello, when asked what he thought Shakespeare would have made of their show.
And I think he might well be right.
artslife@thenational.ae
The Bio
Favourite vegetable: “I really like the taste of the beetroot, the potatoes and the eggplant we are producing.”
Holiday destination: “I like Paris very much, it’s a city very close to my heart.”
Book: “Das Kapital, by Karl Marx. I am not a communist, but there are a lot of lessons for the capitalist system, if you let it get out of control, and humanity.”
Musician: “I like very much Fairuz, the Lebanese singer, and the other is Umm Kulthum. Fairuz is for listening to in the morning, Umm Kulthum for the night.”
Teaching in coronavirus times
Europe’s rearming plan
- Suspend strict budget rules to allow member countries to step up defence spending
- Create new "instrument" providing €150 billion of loans to member countries for defence investment
- Use the existing EU budget to direct more funds towards defence-related investment
- Engage the bloc's European Investment Bank to drop limits on lending to defence firms
- Create a savings and investments union to help companies access capital
Petrarch: Everywhere a Wanderer
Christopher Celenza,
Reaktion Books
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
UAE jiu-jitsu squad
Men: Hamad Nawad and Khalid Al Balushi (56kg), Omar Al Fadhli and Saeed Al Mazroui (62kg), Taleb Al Kirbi and Humaid Al Kaabi (69kg), Mohammed Al Qubaisi and Saud Al Hammadi (70kg), Khalfan Belhol and Mohammad Haitham Radhi (85kg), Faisal Al Ketbi and Zayed Al Kaabi (94kg)
Women: Wadima Al Yafei and Mahra Al Hanaei (49kg), Bashayer Al Matrooshi and Hessa Al Shamsi (62kg)
Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
If you go
The flights
Etihad and Emirates fly direct from the UAE to Chicago from Dh5,215 return including taxes.
The hotels
Recommended hotels include the Intercontinental Chicago Magnificent Mile, located in an iconic skyscraper complete with a 1929 Olympic-size swimming pool from US$299 (Dh1,100) per night including taxes, and the Omni Chicago Hotel, an excellent value downtown address with elegant art deco furnishings and an excellent in-house restaurant. Rooms from US$239 (Dh877) per night including taxes.
Dubai World Cup Carnival card
6.30pm: Al Maktoum Challenge Round-2 Group 1 (PA) US$75,000 (Dirt) 1,900m
7.05pm: Al Rashidiya Group 2 (TB) $250,000 (Turf) 1,800m
7.40pm: Meydan Cup Listed Handicap (TB) $175,000 (T) 2,810m
8.15pm: Handicap (TB) $175,000 (D) 1,600m
8.50pm: Handicap (TB) $135,000 (T) 1,600m
9.25pm: Al Shindagha Sprint Group 3 (TB) $200,000 (D) 1,200m
10pm: Handicap (TB) $135,000 (T) 2,000m
The National selections:
6.30pm - Ziyadd; 7.05pm - Barney Roy; 7.40pm - Dee Ex Bee; 8.15pm - Dubai Legacy; 8.50pm - Good Fortune; 9.25pm - Drafted; 10pm - Simsir
McIlroy's recent struggles
Last six stroke-play events (First round score in brackets)
Arnold Palmer Invitational Tied for 4th (74)
The US Masters Tied for 7th (72)
The Players Championship Tied for 35th (73)
US Open Missed the cut (78)
Travellers Championship Tied for 17th (67)
Irish Open Missed the cut (72)
The Farewell
Director: Lulu Wang
Stars: Awkwafina, Zhao Shuzhen, Diana Lin, Tzi Ma
Four stars
The Way It Was: My Life with Frank Sinatra by Eliot Weisman and Jennifer Valoppi
Hachette Books
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
