In this theatrical funhouse mirror, an actor, Saul Rubinek, is played by the actor Saul Rubinek, who is playing Shylock in a production of The Merchant of Venice that is running in whatever theatre you’re in, whatever night you’re there. You’ve arrived just in time for the second act, but the show does not go on. Instead, the actor portraying Shakespeare’s most controversial character steps out of the role and into the spotlight to share why the show has been cancelled. Centuries of artistic tension collide with today’s call for accountability, all channelled through one actor’s life story and his plea for understanding as he fights cancellation and, possibly, extinction.
About the Author
Mark Leiren-Young is an award-winning playwright, screenwriter, satirist, author and environmental activist based in Victoria, BC. His play Bar Mitzvah Boy, (which he’s adapting for screen) was long-listed for the Leacock Medal for Humour–an award he received for his memoir Never Shoot a Stampede Queen. His previous theatrical exploration of Shakespeare’s infamous Jew, Shylock, has been translated into several languages and produced throughout Canada, the US, and Europe. Mark won the Writers Guild of Canada Award for Best Documentary for The Hundred-Year-Old Whale (which he also directed) and has been hosting Skaana, a podcast about ocean-related environmental issues, since 2017. He is writing and directing a documentary based on his bestselling book, The Killer Whale Who Changed the World. He has also written multiple award-winning non-fiction books for younger readers including Orcas Everywhere, Sharks Forever, Octopus Ocean and, his latest, One Ocean. His latest book for adult readers is Greener Than Thou: Surviving the Toxic Sludge of Canadian Eco-Politics (Sutherland House, 2025).
