The Story So Far…
Anna Ray and Ellis McFarland formed and incorporated McFarland Ray Productions after meeting at The So and So Arts Club launch in 2012, where they soon discovered a mutual passion to perform Shakespeare. They were later joined by fellow actor and producer Charlie Frost.
Our first production, The Merchant of Venice, was directed by Carol Allen of Cat’s Whiskers Films, who also created our modern adaptation of the Shakespeare play, while theatre designer Marcio Andrey Santarosa designed the set and costumes. Our version was a
radical and contemporary view of Shakespeare's comedy-drama reflecting today's multicultural society – several of the characters were black or Asian; Antonio was a wealthy gay Muslim, who suppresses his sexuality because of his religion; Shylock was now a high-flying woman in the world of finance; while Portia and Nerissa found an ingenious way of dealing with Portia's late father's wishes to find a suitable and acceptable husband.
We are now in pre-production of a short comedy film called Last Respects, written by Nikki Lloyd and directed by Kaitlin Kargeaux. You can learn more about them at Meet the Team.
You can keep up to date with all things McFarland Ray in News. Or follow us on Twitter and Facebook (links above right) or our dedicated @_LastRespects Twitter page.
Contact us at [email protected]
Our first production, The Merchant of Venice, was directed by Carol Allen of Cat’s Whiskers Films, who also created our modern adaptation of the Shakespeare play, while theatre designer Marcio Andrey Santarosa designed the set and costumes. Our version was a
radical and contemporary view of Shakespeare's comedy-drama reflecting today's multicultural society – several of the characters were black or Asian; Antonio was a wealthy gay Muslim, who suppresses his sexuality because of his religion; Shylock was now a high-flying woman in the world of finance; while Portia and Nerissa found an ingenious way of dealing with Portia's late father's wishes to find a suitable and acceptable husband.
We are now in pre-production of a short comedy film called Last Respects, written by Nikki Lloyd and directed by Kaitlin Kargeaux. You can learn more about them at Meet the Team.
You can keep up to date with all things McFarland Ray in News. Or follow us on Twitter and Facebook (links above right) or our dedicated @_LastRespects Twitter page.
Contact us at [email protected]