It turned out, when a subject was interesting to her she could read quite a lot in a day. She’d just discovered that Shakespeare was unaccounted for going on seven years. Certainly, he must have been somewhere, but historians could not confirm where.
She theorized he must have been on the continent—how else could he have set his plays in those foreign places? It was very interesting to think about.
Now, though, her books had been put away and all her thoughts had gone to her upcoming performance as Cassio. It was the night of Lady Rawley’s play and while she was disappointed that she would not play Desdemona, she was determined to triumph as Cassio.
She did think her costume was very good looking. She wore a tight-fitting coat with regimental braid and a skirt with braid running down the sides of it to hint at trousers. Cordelia had thought it might be something more plain, as by this point in the play, Cassio had been dismissed from his position.
However, Lady Rawley said she did not wish for Cordelia to appear drab and one of the most charming things about rewriting Shakespeare was that she could take any liberty she felt like taking.
Miss Mayton was dressed in her usual widow’s weeds, which Lady Rawley thought would be a wonderful hint to the audience, as Emilia would end a widow after all.
As they approached Lady Rawley’s house, she had one last look at the invitation that had gone out.
In this exciting new idea of Othello, renamedOthello Redux, things take a surprising turn. Iago has managed to convince Othello that Desdemona has taken Cassio as her lover. Will Desdemona die, as she has a thousand times on a thousand stages? Or will she take her fate into her own hands and live on? If so, how and with who? (Heads are spinning as Desdemona races toward the fate that the fates have set out for her!) All will become known in the most dramatic terms in a final revealing moment.
Cast: Desdemona played by the incomparable Lady Margaret Rawley
Iago played by the indomitable Mrs. Jemima Robinson
Othello played by the indubitable Lady Agatha Montfried
Emilia played by the indispensable Miss Eloise Mayton
Cassio played by the ineffable Lady Cordelia Bennington
“I am indispensable and you are ineffable,” Miss Mayton said as Sandren opened the carriage door. “I feel we’ve done very well for ourselves.”
“Goodness,” Cordelia said, her nerves creeping up on her, “this is the first time I will have a real audience! People who are not a part of my family. It is rather thrilling.”
Hoofbeats drew her attention and Cordelia turned.
Lord Harveston approached on his horse. He did sit a horse very well, despite spending all his time reading books. It was a rather fine horse too.
He swung himself down easily and handed the reins to a groom. “Lady Cordelia, Miss Mayton.”
“Lord Harveston,” Cordelia said, “I did not realize you would come early.”
“My aunt requested it specifically,” Lord Harveston said. “She wishes me to examine the flowers and the sideboards, so that I might pick up tips for my own entertaining.”
He said it in a sort of sighing voice and Cordelia knew very well what he thought about it.
“I can only applaud your willingness to indulge your aunt,” she said.
“Oh yes,” Miss Mayton said, “as an aunt myself, I can confirm it is very much appreciated.”
Lord Harveston appeared gratified that they understood the real case of the thing. After all, there was nothing wrong with the sideboards he’d presented so far. As for flowers, well, for a gentleman like himself, it did not really suit.
“May I escort you inside?” he asked, holding his arms out.
Cordelia took one side and her aunt the other.
He really was such a gentleman. Oh, of course, he’d not begun so pleasant, but then he did not have a sister in the house who could have straightened out his ideas.
Since then, though, he’d seemed to have straightened his ideas out himself.
“Lord Harveston,” she said, “did you know that historians lost track of Shakespeare for seven years? They cannot account for where he was.”
“I believe I did read that somewhere.”
