Othello wakes up! Shakespeare's Globe reimagines the General as 'a boy from the estates' who becomes a Met Police DCI with Iago as his racist deputy – while Desdemona is a Chelsea girl

The Globe Theater has given Othello a modern makeover, with a new production of the Shakespearean classic portraying it as an investigation into police racism.

Instead of 16th-century Venice, the new production, directed by Ola Ince, takes place in 2024 London.

Othello, played by Ken Nwosu, is recast from a “Moorish” military commander to a black detective chief inspector in the Met who rises against the odds in a racist force.

Iago is cast as his sergeant, and instead of being jealous of his love life, he is angry that his “governor” has been promoted above him.

The show is advertised as “Othello for our times” and claims it is about “issues that successful black people have faced for centuries.”

Critics have said it is “designed to appeal to Jed Mercurio fans.” While some reviews have called it “clever” and “gripping,” others have said that Ince has been “too ambitious in imposing too many ideas.”

Ralph Davies as Iago and Sam Swann as Rogerigo in the play's reimagining

In the original play, written around 1603, Othello is a 'Moorish' military commander serving as a general in the Venetian army.

He defends Cyprus against an invasion of the Ottoman Turks with his trusted ensign Iago at his side.

But Iago, suspecting that Othello may have had an affair with his wife Emilia, secretly plots against him and destroys him.

In the retelling, however, Iago's campaign is spurred by jealousy over Othello being promoted above him.

According to Shakespeare, Othello secretly married Desdemona, the daughter of a Venetian senator.

Iago fuels Othello's jealousy because he thinks Desdemona is deceiving him, until he finally kills her in a fit of rage.

While Othello in the original is a nobleman (albeit not a Venetian one), the new play sees him as “a child from the estates who has triumphed against all odds.”

The racism in the play is overt, Othello hears comments on police radios and he is described by his father-in-law as a 'dirty thief' with a 'sooty bottom'.

Othello (pictured), played by Ken Nwosu, is recast from a 'Moorish' military commander to a black detective chief inspector in the Met who rises against the odds in a racist force.

While Othello is revealed to be 'from the estates', Dedemona (played by Poppy Gilbert) is a 'Chelsea Girl', while Cassio (now a police captain, rather than a military one) is described as 'Eton Boy'.

While Othello is revealed to be 'from the estates', Dedemona (played by Poppy Gilbert) is a 'Chelsea Girl', while Cassio (now a police captain, rather than a military one) is described as 'Eton Boy'.

Ince also cast a second Othello, to play the 'subconscious self' of the protagonist Othello.

In a four-star review The Evening Standard said it was an 'intimate, powerful production, Shakespeare's study of envy, racism and misogyny transposed from 16th-century Venice to the contemporary with depressing ease'.

The guardwho also gave it four stars, said: 'The framing as a police procedural fits well with the world of Shakespeare's play and carries the chilling echoes of a Met still grappling with institutionalized racism and misogyny within its ranks – as well as distant resonances of the murder of George Floyd'.

However, Time Out says it “becomes hopelessly entangled in itself” and “gradually loses power.”

What's on stagewho also gave the play four stars, said: 'At times it seems to succumb to its ambition and strain to answer all the urgent and important questions it raises'.

By giving the piece three stars, the Telegraph wrote: 'Ince paints a terribly convincing portrait of the Met, but sometimes at the expense of an equally convincing reading of the play.'

The play can be seen at Shakespeare's Globe until the end of April

In a two star review the times said, “Ince's desire to make the piece more accessible still leads to some shocking moments,” adding that ti “needs to be dialed back a bit.”

The website also provides warnings to the public.

'Content guidance: The piece includes topics such as domestic violence, misogyny, anti-Black racism and offensive language.

'The play also contains violence, including murder, references to suicide and scenes of a sexual nature. “This production involves the use of stage blood and weapons (including prop guns, tasers, knives and batons), flashing lights and loud gunshots,” it reads.

This is not the first time that The Globe has sparked debate with a retelling of a play.

Last year they retold Joan of Arc as non-binary and the use of the pronouns 'they/them' has sparked extensive backlash from feminists and historians.

Theater bosses were also criticized for substantive warnings that Julius Caesar 'contained knives'.