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Shakespeare's plays are so universal that they are not contained to by their settings. Indeed, there is much that one can do make Othello seem more applicable to different generations.
The Original: In Renaissance Venice, under the threat of war from the Turks, the grievances of Iago towards his officer, Othello, cause him to begin a dastardly plot. Angered at being passed over for a promotion and suspecting betrayal on the part of his wife, Iago enlists the love struck Roderigo to assist him in his plans.
Arriving in Cypprus, Iago sets into motion a spider's web of deceit and treachery, culminating in dishonor and murder. Amidst the ordered castes of Renaissance society, Iago's mischief quickly puts the safety of Cyprus in question and and eventually, his web destroys evenything.
The Modernization: In modern Venice, the Italian authorities, recently joining with the Triple Entente, decide to mount a defense against the oncoming Ottoman Empire. Commissioned with the job is the Tunisian mercenary general Othello. Recently married to the daughter of an Italian politician, Othello brings his troops to Cyprus preparing to engage the Turkish military.
However, the Turkish troops never arrive and a bitter contest of army-oriented homoerotic desire follows between the General, his liuetetant Cassio and his ensign Iago. Angry at not being promoted and desperate to keep close to Othello, Iago plots to rid himself of any obstacles. Amid the superficailly ordered but covertly unstable hierarchy of the Italian Army, Iago's mischief quickly puts the safety of Cyprus in question and and eventually, his web destroys evenything.
The Adaptation: Deprived of basic comforts, exposed to the harsh natural elements, your fate at the mercy of strangers who would you become?
For 39 days, 16 strangers will be stranded on a remote island, Cyprano, off the coast of San Ventio in the Mediterrean. They will be forced to band together and carve out a new existence, using their collective wits to make surviving in their rugged and primitive environment a little easier.
However, surviving the elements will only last for so long and soon the players will be forced to survive each other. Battling wits, making (and breaking) alliances and staying one step ahead of the game is the only way to win the million dollars and the title of Sole Survivor.
Survivor: Othello!
Modernization only truly exists in transplanting the original text into a new time and place. Any further modifications, such as plot and characters, ends the world of modernization and opens that of adaptation. However, the difference truly exists in the performance. A production of the original text can be identical to a modernization if the actors will it. Indeed, with Iago's motivations as a prime example, the interpretation ultimately defines the performance and thus, the truth behind the play.
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