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| Britain |
| Marlowe rewrite draws criticism |
| 2005-11-25 |
| Theatre producers have been criticised for rewriting parts of a 16th century stage play to avoid upsetting Muslims, it has been reported. Christopher Marlowe's Tamburlaine the Great includes a reference to Muhammad being "not worthy to be worshipped" and a scene where the Koran is burnt. But a production at the Barbican in London, now ended, altered these scenes over fears they might offend. The decision has been attacked by Marlowe experts, said the Times. Stage director Terry Hands, who directed a production of Tamburlaine for the RSC, told the newspaper: "I don't believe you should interfere with any classic for reasons of religious or political correctness." And English professor Park Honan, author of Christopher Marlowe: Poet and Spy, said: "It is wrong to tamper with a play, wrong to shorten it and wrong to leave out the burning of the Koran." But Simon Reade, artistic director of the Bristol Old Vic where the production initiated, told the same newspaper not changing the original text "would have unnecessarily raised the hackles of one of the world's great religions". In a statement, the play's director David Farr said: "the choices I made in the adaptation were personal abut the focus I wanted to put on the main character and had nothing to do with modern politics." The production closed at the Barbican Centre last week. Tamburlaine is not the first production to come under fire for its treatment of religious sensibilities. Last year a production of Behzti by British Sikh writer Gurpreet Kaur Bhatti - which featured a sexual assault in a Sikh temple - was cancelled by the Birmingham Repertory Theatre following violent protests. And in recent months a National Theatre production of Howard Brenton's play Paul has offended some Christians with its suggestion that Jesus was not the son of God.Nuff said.. |
| Posted by:Howard UK |
| #2 Tamburlaine the Great Timur, (also known as Temur, Taimur, Timur Lenk, Timur i Leng, Tamerlane, Tamburlaine, or Taimur-e-Lang, which translates to Timur the Lame, as he was lame after sustaining an injury in battle) (1336–February 1405) was a renowned 14th century Tatar conqueror, ruler of the Timurid Empire (1370–1405) in Central Asia, and founder of the Timurid dynasty, which survived until 1506. Known for his daring military adventures, audacious campaigns and aggressive expansions, Timur was also responsible for bloodthirsty massacres of civilians and the plunders of whole nations. Could have been the poster boy for Al Qaeda. Most of the cities he looted and the people he slaughtered were fellow muslims. Things don't change much in that part of the world left to their own. |
| Posted by: Jinetle Clamp2837 2005-11-25 10:05 |
| #1 And in a related development, Reade also announced that the Merchant of Venice will be set in Turkey and the part of Shylock played as Armenian. |
| Posted by: Jarong Angaviper4129 2005-11-25 09:39 |