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While Shylock exemplifies the worst stereotypes of a penurious, money-hoarding, and petty character—traits historically ascribed to Jews—Mantell chooses to shift the focus away from him. Everything That Never Happened instead explores the story of his daughter, Jessica, and her relationship with Lorenzo. And while both appear in the original play, their stories are told from a completely different and central perspective here.

Added to the tale is Gobbo, a nonbinary housekeeper and confidant to Jessica.

As told by Mantell, Jessica, her father Shylock, and the housekeeper, Gobbo all live in the Jewish ghetto in Venice. Shylock is a well-to-do money lender, but his status carries no weight outside of the ghetto, where he has a reputation of being the lender of last resort. Jessica slips out of the ghetto to wander the streets of Venice, longing for something more than her restrictive life in the ghetto under the ever-watchful eye of her father.

When she meets and falls in love with Lorenzo, she feels she has found her way out, if she can just get away from the ghetto and her father. Gobbo becomes her willing wingman, delivering missives between the two lovers. Jessica and Lorenzo concoct a plan for Jessica to escape her life as proscribed by her religion and, more importantly, her father. Unbeknownst to Jessica, Lorenzo has actually borrowed money from Shylock. Added to that, Lorenzo negotiates a loan between his friend Antonio and Shylock, the terms of which will require his friend to forfeit a pound of flesh if he fails to repay the loan.

As for Gobbo, they reveal that they think of themselves as a ‘Christian man,’ and dress in male clothing to assist with the lovers’ plan for Jessica’s elopement. As one of the components of the marriage to Lorenzo, Jessica will be forced to give up her faith and Jewish identity and convert to Christianity. How the storylines resolve forms the climax of the play.

Sarah Mantell has managed to cover multiple important themes with this work. They examine the discrimination and mistreatment of Jews in 1596 Italy, when they were forced to live in locked and gated communities, not allowed to work except in very limited capacities, could not marry outside of their faith (though that one was prescribed more by the religious mandates rather than legalities in Italy), and so many other discriminatory and restrictive practices. Add to that the misogynistic attitudes that women were not allowed to make their own decisions, let alone determine their own destinies.

During Shakespeare’s day, women were not allowed on stage as actors, so the cross-dressing characters were not thought of as anything out of the ordinary—the Bard was famous for dressing his male actors who were playing females as males to advance a storyline. Mantell’s Gobbo and their burgeoning trans beginnings take the theme to another level altogether. This play presents all of this with poignancy and sympathy, a little pathos, and a lot of humor.

Though Everything That Never Happened does not shy away from the antisemitism of its characters’ place and time, it dispels some of the vitriol by making the horrific treatment of Jews almost incidental to the story of two young lovers trying to work around the obstacles facing their relationship.

It is not until later in the drama when Shylock must accept the decision of the court that he give up his religion and forfeit a large part of his fortune, do we become aware of how great a price he has been forced to pay. Likewise, the character of Gobbo that Mantell added to the story and the trans issues they deal with dovetail nicely with the overall themes of self-actualization and following one’s own dreams.

As one of Baltimore’s only two Equity theatres, we have come to expect a pretty high level of professionalism from each production, and this one is no exception. Director Jessica Kubzansky has put together a team that includes some returning actors who have done the play before. And her guidance is evident in the well-executed choreography. Side note, choreography is not only about dance numbers. It can refer to the instruction given by the director when it’s necessary to cover a lot of the stage, running, jumping, climbing, and the like. And there’s a lot of that going on in this show. Hats off to Jessica Kubzansky’s superlative skill set!

Anton Volovsek’s set sits perfectly on the stage in the Head Theatre, with locations more suggested than cluttering up the stage. The deceptively simple design actually adds to the overall effect of the presentation by using a minimum of set pieces, a very clever ‘rowboat,’ and storage built into a couple of sets of stairs, all framed by a beautiful foot bridge that does indeed evoke a feeling of Venice. Sim Carpenter and Tyrell Stanley do a fine job with the lights and Mel Ng’s beautiful and appropriate costumes compliment the characters nicely.

The small cast is as fine an ensemble as I’ve seen lately. With nary a weak link among them, Erika Soto as Jessica, Nic Picou as Lorenzo, Allison Wick as Gobbo, and Leo Marks as Shylock all acquit themselves admirably. Soto is a gifted comedic actor with excellent timing and facial expressions that convey Jessica’s emotional state perfectly. Nic Picou’s Lorenzo is a fine mix of the fop and the determined suitor.

Leo Marks wisely avoids the stereotypical Shylock portrayal as mean-spirited and presents as a father and a man of faith, capable of great emotion when it comes to his daughter and his religion. And Allison Wick’s understated and pitch-perfect performance as Gobbo makes the most of each scene she is in. When she describes Lorenzo as being ‘so shiny!’, she really nails his character and the scene.

It’s not easy to tackle such weighty subjects as these and infuse them with humor while making the characters relatable today, especially in a piece set in 1596. Sadly, so many of the themes are still with us today—antisemitism is on the rise, the country still seems incapable of taking women beyond the glass ceilings so many are still trying to break through, and the Transgender rights battle rages on. Sarah Mantell wrestles it all into our collective consciousness by reminding us of the importance of confronting these issues. This is a play that should be required viewing for anyone who thinks Shakespeare got it right. Personally, I think Mantell hit the mark much better.

Everything That Never Happened runs through March 9, 2025, at Baltimore Center Stage, 700 North Calvert Street, Baltimore MD 21201. For more information and to purchase tickets, please call the Box Office at 410-332-0033, Tuesday-Friday from 12 noon to 5 pm, or online. 
Running Time: One hour and 20 minutes with no intermission.