The Merchant of Venice (opera) role of Shylock was sung by the baritone Lester Lynch. Lynch is an African American and this in the opinion of the critic of "The Guardian" gave the opera "a further racist edge...[and] a deliberately shocking contemporary resonance." The Bregenz production was recorded as a DVD by Unitel Classica in 2014, and issued together with a documentary DVD about the planning and development of the production directed by Mark Charles (Unitel 2072708-1/-2). Notes Sources The Merchant of Venice (opera) The Merchant of Venice is an opera by André Tchaikowsky (1935–1982) to a libretto, based on the Shakespeare play, by John
Jessica (The Merchant of Venice) actions amount to abandoning her father and betraying him to his enemies. By the last half of the 20th century this "sentimentally sympathetic reading" was starting to be rejected, but without a corresponding reassessment of Jessica. She was still viewed as inhabiting primarily negative values, in contrast with the positive values associated with Portia, Bassanio, and Antonio. Writing in 1977, Raymond B. Waddington thinks that: Slights contradicts this view, pointing out that it conflicts with "a natural audience response" and argues that "we must question judgments that deny the most obvious emotional force of Shakespearean plots and characters." Shakespeare's plays