"If you prick us, do we not bleed? / if you tickle us, do we not laugh? / if you poison us, do we not die? / and if you wrong us, shall we not revenge?" So speaks the Jew Shylock to his Christian baiters, Salanio and Salarino, in Shakespeare's play about rash promises, cross-dressing, how to pick a winner in a raffle - oh, and the tender-mercies of Western triumphalism in the face of a vanquished alien (sound familiar?).

Exeter College Fellows' Garden is the stage for the latest offering of open-air Shakespeare this season, this time courtesy of the Oxford Theatre Guild. There was a good crowd on hand for the opening night, drawn no doubt by the very reasonable price of plastic-cupped Pimms at this event (Oxford Shakespeare Company take note!). The garden is a magnificent backdrop for this production, and if the pleasant illusion of being in Venice was occasionally shattered by the drunken shout of some worthy stumbling through Brasenose Lane or the whirr of low flying helicopters (what is it with all
the helicopters in Oxford lately anyway?), this reviewer was particularly pleased to have an opportunity at last to climb the steps to the top of the
garden wall during the interval and take in the stunning views of Radcliffe Camera and St Mary's.

There are some strong performances here: Nick Quartley is spot on as the crafty Shylock, and Anna Glynn delivers the goods as Portia. But the lead
roles are not well supported by some of the other performances: Antonio is just too prissy, with his hand-on-heart lines delivered in a sing-song voice that verges on the downright silly, and Gratiano is hammy (think Lord Percy in Blackadder). But if you can get past these and other minor quibbles (Tuber: speak up man, this is open air and the back seats are a long way back), you will find plenty of meat in this marvellous play, which surely has in the figure of Shylock one of Shakespeare's most memorable, if problematic, creations.

JUSTIN BEPLATE, 13/7/04