The Merchant of Venice eyes?" speech to Nazi soldiers. The rock musical "Fire Angel" was based on the story of the play, with the scene changed to the Little Italy district of New York. It was performed in Edinburgh in 1974 and in a revised form at Her Majesty's Theatre, London, in 1977. Braham Murray directed. Arnold Wesker's play "The Merchant" (1976) is a reimagening of Shakespeare's story. In this retelling, Shylock and Antonio are friends and share a disdain for the crass anti-Semitism of the Christian community's laws. David Henry Wilson's play "Shylock's Revenge", was first produced at the University of Hamburg in
The Merchant of Venice "Il Pecorone" by Giovanni Fiorentino, which was published in Milan in 1558. Elements of the trial scene are also found in "The Orator" by Alexandre Sylvane, published in translation in 1596. The story of the three caskets can be found in "Gesta Romanorum", a collection of tales probably compiled at the end of the 13th century. The date of composition for "The Merchant of Venice" is believed to be between 1596 and 1598. The play was mentioned by Francis Meres in 1598, so it must have been familiar on the stage by that date. The title page of the first