Collaborative

Representation

of Julius Ceasar

By: Director- Huy Vo, Light Designer- Robert Vidal,

Set Designer- Merilyn Vila, Costume Designer-

Dwanna Jones

Group 66

Julius Caesar Script

As director I wanted a traditional and authentic

representation of Julius Caesar to show how story was

told originally.

The Cast

Javier Bardem plays Julius Caesar

Aaron Eckhart plays Octavius Caesar

Colin Farrell plays Marcus Antonius Robert

De Niro plays M. Aemilius Lepidus

Michael Fassbender plays Marcus Brutus

Christoph Waltz plays Cassius)

Cate Blanchett plays Calpurnia wife of Caesar

Angelina Jolie Plays Portla wife of Brutus

Mark Ruffalo plays Flavius

Edward Norton plays Marullus

Ed Harris plays Casca

Kevin Spacy plays Cinna

Jeremy Renner plays Lucius

Gary Oldman play Decius Brutus

Jeff Bridges plays Trebonius

Steve Buscemi plays Artemidorus of Cnidos (Soothsayer)

Martin Sheen plays Metellus Cimber

Spine

The spine of the play would be the death of Julius Caesar. I

have chosen this as the spine because all of the actions that

transpire throughout the play are a result of the

assassination of Julius Caesar and only when Brutus and

Cassius are killed is the death of Caesar is resolved.

During the play all the characters refer back to his

assassination. In the beginning of the play there is a build up

to his assassination and at the climax it occurs and the

denouement there are the repercussions.

Themes

A prominent theme in the play is inflexibility vs. compromise. Brutus and Caesar are both very stubborn and this quality in their personality ends up being their downfall. Brutus believes so strongly in assassinating Caesar and Caesar believes so strongly in his god complex that they end up dying for their actions. This show the need for adapting and being able to compromise when needed instead of rushing to action.

More Themes

In the play, one of the themes is of a tragic hero .

Brutus is a clear example of this theme because

he is trying to do good for the Republic but ends

up getting killed for his part in the assassination of

Caesar.

An additional theme in Julius Caesar is the

argument of fate vs. free will. This is prevalent in

the play because the Soothsayer played by Steve

Buscemi predicted Caesar’s death that would

take place on the 15th of March. However, Julius

choses to ignore this prediction and decided to

not to take the warning . His actions represent

notion of free will.

Purpose

As director I am responsible for deciding on the overall

purpose of the play. Different directors may decide to

translate old stories in a new fashion like Romeo and

Juliet as the Titanic.

However, I wish to give Shakespeare his true credit and

show his story of Julius Caesar in its true light, the original

interpretation of this great story.

Style and Historical Period

Style- Our production will consist of mainly ancient Roman

architecture and clothing to convey an authentic visual

representation of this time period.

Historical Period- The play Julius Caesar takes place

about mid March in 44BC and spans to about early April

after all of the fighting has concluded.

Directorial Concept

I wanted my interpretation of the play to be traditional and

resemble the work of Shakespeare. I also wanted our

production to be a faithful reenactment of the script.

So I wanted to include most of the scenes from the play

like the intro of the play and Caesar’s stroll into the capital

while also including his assassination and the Battle of

Philippi.

I however had to cut out some of the unnecessary

characters and extras that seem to be redundant.

Set Designer- Merilyn

*Throughout this process we coordinated our ideas to make sure that the set design and costumes and dialogue was not overlapping or

interfering with the other elements*

Preliminary Phase

For good communication

with the director and for

ideas not to overlap

Tone: Serious, Calm, Rational, and Earnest*Building set and color scheme based on tone*

Time: 44 B.C.

Place: Ancient Rome, toward the end of the

Roman republic

● The set gives clues as to the specific time and place of the action

The Stage

With the type of

stage that I chose

it allows for the

audience to

interact with

Julius Ceasar or

whoever is the main

character of the

scene.

The drapes in the

back allow for the

audience to see

that the others are

conspiring against

them.

The furniture, the space

-Having furniture, draperies, pictures, lamps, and rugs for

decorative quality and appearance: minimal

-There will be a lot of negative space on the set because it also

allows for the audience to make their own judgements and

expand with their own imagination

-It allows for no major set changes throughout the play

Proscenium Theatre:

Type of Stage Production:

-This allows for the frame of the stage to separate the

stage and the auditorium- Stage will create that fourth wall so it can take the

audience and place them in this fantasy back to 44 BC.

Proscenium Theatre:

Effect:

Helping distinguish realistic from non-realistic theatre:

There will be that fourth wall created that will

distinguish realistic from non- realistic

Alot of black and red to portray the tragedy. The dark colors

emphasize the darkness and the seriousness of the play.

Hue: primary colors will be red, yellow, and blue

Saturation: will be strongly present for the dramatic effect

Value: will be closer to zero in the dark and violent parts of

the play and closer to 50 or 60 on the less intense parts

Temperature: reds, oranges, and yellows which are all warm colors

to portray the emotional qualities of the play

(Though the play opens with a little joke, the subject matter of the play remains serious throughout)

Color Scheme:

Brutus

Brutus- He was character that stood for the greater good of Rome and put the people ahead of himself and Caesar. Brutus’s idealism was both his greatest virtue and his most deadly flaw. Brutus was a dignified military leader and prominent representative for the people. Brutus will wear the image on the left early on in the play and later wear the military apparel in battle.

Cassius

Cassius was a famous

general in Roman during

this time and was the

primary engineer in

Caesar's assassination. He

leads Brutus to believe that

Caesar has become too

powerful for the good of

Roman. Being a decorated

military official he would

wear a traditional uniform

to exemplify his

achievements.

Antony

Being Caesar’s closest

friend he avenges his

death to restore glory back

to his name. Antony is a

power hungry politician

who takes advantage of

Caesar’s death in his

search for power. As

Antony was an average

politician we will wear

traditional robes.

Caesar

Caesar and his godlike

complex proved to be his

downfall. Caesar would

have the most lavish

costume because we was

the leader of Roman.

Calpurnia and Portia

Calpurnia was the wife of Caesar who warms her husband

not to go to the senate on the 15th of March. Because she

was royal she would wear formal Roman attire.

Portia was the wife of Brutus who sided against Caesar

and supported Brutus’s assassination against Caesar. She

was a prominent social figure because of her relationship

with Brutus, although she was not as high on the social

ladder as Calpurnia.

Costumes for Calpurnia and

Portia

Calpurnia would wear the more extravagant costume on the left

and Portia would wear the more simple attire on the right.

Servants and Civilians

The minor characters like the servant to Cassius, Caesar

and Brutus who do not play a rather large role will wear

clothing to represent their low status on the social ladder.

Costumes

As the costume designer the clothing that I have chosen

will meet the needs of our actors to allow them to move

freely in order to achieve the necessary tasks for the

production.

Lighting

Visibility

As the light designer I will provide luminosity to allow the audience to see the faces of our actors and also to allow our actors to be fully engaged with one another.

In different scenes alternative types of light will be used to show a contrast in mood or feeling.

I will try to use light in the form of torches and open flames to depict the time period and show authenticity.

Types of Lighting Used

Torches to show authenticity.

Ellipsoidal Reflector Spotlights- to allow

for a more focused light on our actors.

Strip Lighting- these lights allow me to

color the back wall of the stage different

colors like red or blue to show changes in

emotion.

Shapes and Forms

Illuminating shapes and

forms is one of the most

important jobs of a light

designer.

In our production I must

reveal objects as

interestingly as possible to

give the illusion of an

extraordinary set.

Mood Changes Throughout the

Julius Caesar

In the beginning of the play when the festival is going on as Caesar returns, with the help of blue, green and yellow light I would show how happy and festive Rome was to see Caesar come home victorious.

The mood changes near the middle of the play when there is a great thunderstorm which I will show with the help of flashing white lights and a dark perception of the set.

Towards Caesars death the set would change to a more dark and mysterious mood with the help of dim lighting to show the shadows of the assassins as well as a deep red light along the back wall to represent blood and danger.

This feeling uneasiness and instability after Caesars death would remain constant throughout the end of the play as his death is not resolved until after Brutus and Cassius are dead.

Style with Lighting

Our director has said that he wants to use authentic ancient Roman architecture and clothing to give an original feeling to the audience.

Therefore the basic lighting that I will use will come from torches to simulate lighting mechanisms of 44BC.

This will allow me to uphold his style and also contribute to the accurate representation ancient Roman life.

Time and Place

Julius Caesar takes place in 44BC in ancient Rome.

As the lighting director I will help the audience notice changes in time like night and day by using brighter or dimmer lights.

Also I can show changes in scenery from indoor and outdoors by using different colors like a green overhead light to show the grass. Or perhaps a generic gray light to show them inside a building.

Rhythm of Visual

Movement

As the light designer my job is to shift the audiences

attention from one thing to another by shifting the focus of

stage lights. I can do this by illuminating one thing or actor

on stage in contrast to another to show a change in

viewpoints.

Reinforcement of the Central

Image

Lighting, in combination with the other elements of at

production like the set, costumes and sound are vital in

making a cohesive play.

Therefore it is important that I remain consistent with

whatever is happening on stage. If there is a great storm

like in Julius Caesar I would show that through flashing

lights to represent lighting.

And with our production of Julius Caesar an attempt to be

authentic, I must remain constant to this idea by showing

old fashioned visual types of lighting like torches.

Citations

http://www.sales-and-marketing-solutions.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/Came-saw-conquered-On-Julius-Caesar-and-his-legacy-to-business-marketing_DONE.jpg

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http://www.fashion-era.com/images/all_greeks_romans/grecianmirrore6.jpg

http://gallery.nen.gov.uk/gallery_images/0707/0000/0050/drawings_mid.jpg

http://img2.imagesbn.com/p/9780486113661_p0_v2_s260x420.JPG

http://www3.northern.edu/wild/jr_6.jpg

http://www.osa-opn.org/opn/media/images/articles/0908/features/FeatureImages/feature1-fig1.jpg

The Theater Experience

http://www.fashion-era.com/images/all_greeks_romans/romancuirass.jpg

http://media-cache-ec0.pinimg.com/236x/c7/b6/b9/c7b6b965537abec1d0bed0986b5f2586.jpg

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-k0Y4eIo9SH8/VFkkElEMKmI/AAAAAAAANss/x9dzLSfIPPw/s1600/FolgerJuliusCaesarTW.5.jpg

http://www.hanscopper.com/images/products/torch.jpg

http://www.lisabohn.com/Design/Types_of_Stage_Lights.html