History AlternativeCharacterInterpretation / Theater

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* Creator/WilliamShakespeare's works [[AlternativeCharacterInterpretation/WilliamShakespeare have their own page]].
* "The Ballad of Sara Berry" from ''35MM: A Musical Exhibition'' has the actions of Sara's ex-boyfriend. Did he take Julie Jenkins to the prom just to spite his ex, because he wanted to latch on to whoever was the most popular at the time, or because he -- like the rest of the school -- saw her as an InUniverse WheelchairWoobie and decided to take her out of pity?
* Nora from Ibsen's ''Theatre/ADollsHouse'' is, in the conventional reading, a naive innocent who gets a harsh lesson in the world and grows up to move out. A wholly different interpretation is that we're actually seeing a plot involving serveral conspirators, organized by Nora, to break her tyrannical husband's hold. The Doctor being "ill" is a setup - he's fine and the card with the X through it is a signal he's ready for Nora to take off with him as they've obviously had a thing going on. Nils Krogstad's reasons for going along with the setup are obvious (knowing he's on the chopping block at work because of Torvald he has nothing to lose and everything to gain revenge-wise) and Nora is also, more kindly, masterminding the reunion of Krogstad with his old girlfriend and her old friend, Christine, who's been the victim of a similar domestic tyranny. Nora is in fact a DiabolicalMastermind orchestrating her husband's downfall.
* Could there be a homosexual subtext to the relationship between Becket and Henry in the play ''Becket''?
* ''Theatre/{{Brand}}'' by Ibsen: A fanatic jerkass who willingly lets his family die for his cause, or a tragic idealist who is doomed by circumstance? He has often been interpreted and shown as something close to the first, although Ibsen himself stated that Brand actually was meant to be a good guy.
* In the musical ''Theatre/{{Chess}}'', opinions vary as to whether Anatoly is a selfish jerk who betrays both his wife and his lover just to win a chess game, or if he's justified in choosing to put his own ambitions above the blackmail that the KGB and the CIA are trying to use on those he cares about. Or is he a man too proud not to give the game his best effort?
** Florence: a desperately lonely woman with horrible taste in men, likely stemming from her DaddyIssues, or selfish player who managed to make both of the world's best chess players into her pawns, despite Freddie's dodgy mental health and Anatoly being a married man with kids?
** Freddie - Anatoly wonders this aloud and we never know one way or another; is the American completely out of his mind, or is it a [[ObfuscatingInsanity carefully cultivated]] gambit to bring him wealth, fame, and publicity, as well as unnerving the hell out of his opponents?
** Anatoly's wife: A poor woman hopelessly devoted to her [[YourCheatingHeart philandering]] JerkAss of a husband, or someone who puts up with his shagging other women, abandonment of their kids, and betrayal of their country because she gets the prestige, wealth, and perks of being married to a national hero?
** The Arbiter: someone only in it for the love of the game and completely above all bribes and manipulation, or a representative of neutral countries who are mutually pissed off at the Americans' and Russians' mutual posturing and gleefully enjoying the chance to tell them both to go screw themselves?
* ''Theatre/TheChildrensHour'':
** Karen's and Martha's relationship is up to interpretation. It's an [[ItWasHisSled extremely well-known]] fact that [[spoiler:Martha loved Karen]], however Karen's feelings for Martha are more ambiguous, to the point where even in-series people [[MistakenForGay have their curiosities]]. Was she in love with Martha or were they only friends?
** Did [[EnfantTerrible Mary]] actually understand what she was saying? She spread [[MaliciousSlander lies]] that she had heard her teachers being intimate however what is her understanding on sex, and homosexuality for that matter? The way she stumbles around when lying could be because she doesn't know what to say or it could be because she's nervous. Whether Mary was purposefully spreading sexual lies or was parroting what adults have said changes just how terrible she is.
* There are various readings of Marlowe's ''Theatre/DoctorFaustus''. There have been productions that managed to turn ''[[{{Satan}} Mephistopheles]]'' into TheWoobie. But even if you don't go that far, whether Faust is a TragicHero who is frustrated by a [[GodIsEvil callous god's]] refusal to do anything and honestly wants to improve the world, or a bored academic who was mostly just trying to summon demons for the lulz and [[EvilIsNotAToy had no idea what he was getting into,]] or a VillainProtagonist who doesn't care about the rest of the world at all and is only in it to enrich himself is open to personal interpretation.
* In Molière's ''Literature/DonJuan'', the character of Don Juan's servant Sganarelle is obviously not the sharpest knife in the drawer, but given the nature of plays, it's possible to portray him as decently crafty, given his intellect and low education. That is, you put a bit of {{subtext}} on his seemingly stupid comments in certain scenes. So it's possible he's not a complete buffoon - until a recent English translation ''added'' a line that can't ''possibly'' be read as anything less than comic relief.
* ''Theatre/JesusChristSuperstar'':
** Intrinsic to the play is the reinterpreted character of Judas, stating his fear that Jesus was no longer in control of the situation as his reason for betraying him, rather than simple greed. Although one might find Judas quite a sympathetic character in the musical, he can, however, also be seen as a coward looking after number one.
** The DVD version with Jerome Pradon as Judas seems to suggest that Judas was romantically in love with Jesus, to the point of obsession, and there's a scene where Judas appears jealous about the attention Jesus gives to Mary Magdalene. Therefore his later actions in betraying Jesus could be seen as those of a lover scorned.
** How sympathetic an individual play's portrayal is can usually be determined by Judas's costume in titular number, where he appears as a vision to Jesus on the cross, where he'll either be dressed in a red/black combination or in white.
* Is Seymour from ''Theatre/LittleShopOfHorrors'' just a flat-out irredeemable murderer? Is he a TragicHero who makes a regrettable DealWithTheDevil? Or is he just doomed by his circumstances?
** Another interesting interpretation is that the entire play is happening in Seymour's head. This theory is supported by some scenes, most noticeably "Suppertime" when Audrey II is singing quite loudly, but Mushnik is unable to hear it.
* There is also the theory of the Villainous Tenor in some Gilbert & Sullivan works, particularly ''Theatre/TheMikado'' which holds that Nanki-Poo is in fact selfish and shirking his princely duties to the point of lining multiple innocent people up to be killed to cover his escape, rather than merely being a victim of Katisha's machinations. Perhaps more credibly it has been advanced for Frederic in Pirates Of Penzance, questioning whether he is a slave to duty or merely going along with what seems his best chance of survival, first going straight as piracy isn't working out for the gang, then joining the pirates again when they have a gun to his head and then refusing to switch sides even when they capture his apparent love interest (who, he wooed largely as an easy way of going straight).
* Recent revivals of ''Oklahoma!'' have switched the roles of Curly as the "good guy" and Jud as the "villain". They present Curly as a self-absorbed {{Jerkass}}, while Jud is a lonesome, hardworking everyman who dreams about things he cannot have. In these productions, by the end, rather than thinking "Jud got what he deserved", you think "That asshole Curly got away with murder!"
** A 2012 production at Seattle's 5th Avenue cast a black actor as Jud, adding "racist douchebag" to the above insult against Curly. In fact, every other character in the show could be seen as racist based on the way they treat Jud.
** Even his attempt to kill Curly with the trick eyeglass isn't fully unprovoked or self-serving. Before that, Curly just randomly shows up at Jud's house, starts up a song about what it will be like ''when Jud is dead'', and when Jud gets pissed off at this, Curly gives what is really an underhanded threat of killing him by showing off how good a shot he is, ''inside Jud's own house, no less.''
** On the other hand, there's Jud's "Bartlet farm" speech, where he recounts how a hired hand burned down his employer's house (killing the entire family inside) because [[IfICantHaveYou the farmer's daughter rejected him]]. Jud claims to have gotten the story from another hired hand, but some productions have implied Jud himself was the killer.
* Hoo boy, ''Theatre/ThePhantomOfTheOpera'' is just ''full'' of these:
** Erik: Evil genius, crazy, or abandoned {{woobie}} who just needs to be loved? He's generally regarded (by those not part of the rather sizeable MisaimedFandom, who just see him as a DracoInLeatherPants cinnamon roll) to be a combination of the three.
** Christine: Idiotic {{ingenue}} who destroys the Phantom's last hope of love, or poor girl confused by [[StalkerWithACrush extreme unwanted attention]]? There's also the interpretation that she only agrees to marry Raoul as a desperate attempt to cling to the familiar in her suddenly changing world, especially since, every time he sings about how he loves her, ''she'' only sings about how she wants him to keep her protected and safe.
** Raoul: Foppish pretty boy who was not interested in Christine until she became famous, or romantic young man fighting for his love? Were his attempts to convince Christine that the Phantom only existed "inside your mind" made out of concern for her mental well-being, or was he being dismissive of her, her thoughts, and her feelings?
** Carlotta: Cartoonish diva villain, or [[TechnicianVersusPerformer Technician]] being forced out in favor of someone less talented, coincidentally right after she disappeared overnight with the theater's wealthy patron?
** Madame Giry is one of the more enigmatic characters, too - talk to ten different fans and you will probably get ten different motivations behind her actions.
** The ContestedSequel ''Theatre/LoveNeverDies'' (2010) has made this even worse: Raoul has been [[RonTheDeathEater turned from Christine's good-hearted childhood friend into an angry alcoholic]] and gets blamed for his failed marriage to Christine because he's just not good enough for her. Critics of the show take the view that Raoul is the real victim, having been driven to dissolution by ten years of living with an emotionally distant [[spoiler: and faithless]] wife and an irritatingly precocious kid. As well, in the 25th Anniversary staging of ''Phantom'' in 2011, Raoul seems to spend half the time exasperated with Christine and half the time bravely and boyishly adoring her, which may be a hint of what's to come in the sequel. Especially since Andrew Lloyd Webber cast his two ''Love Never Dies'' leads in the concert, it seems like he's deliberately trying to make a point that wasn't there. Fans who [[FanonDiscontinuity ignore the existence]] of ''Love Never Dies'' just think it's a more layered way to play Raoul, a role that can easily come off as dull or one-dimensional.
* ''Theatre/SweeneyToddTheDemonBarberOfFleetStreet'':
** Johanna can be seen as the token Broadway Love Interest, as she apparently fell in love with Anthony within the space of two seconds; or she could just be using Anthony to get an escape route away from Turpin's clutches.
** Another interpretation of Johanna in the stage version is that she's something of a budding Sweeney herself. This is based on her abusive childhood, possible inherited mental instability, the posited manipulation of Anthony, her time in the asylum, and her willingness to shoot the asylum-keeper (in the stage musical; the film has the asylum-keeper killed by his "children").
** Toby can be cast either as a child or as a mentally retarded man (indeed, this ambiguity is often exploited to solve talent availability/labour laws issues). The only description given is that he's "simple." Thus, TheMovie has a Toby the size of your thumb, whereas stage productions often cast a man decades older (though the 1980s taping has a Toby that you can [[WillingSuspensionOfDisbelief accept easily as]] a man playing young - until you notice the mustache).
** Neil Patrick Harris in the 2001 concert recording may be an example of an adult Toby - although with Johanna and Anthony being played by the [[DawsonCasting definitely not teenaged]] Lisa Vroman and Davis Gaines, he could be playing younger as well.
** Another interpretation of Toby, based on the ending of the stage version [[spoiler: where Toby is shown as a grown man locked and straightjacketed in an insane asylum]], is that it is an adult Toby telling the story from his own childhood memories and that the adult actor is used consistently to ensure that the audience knows that he is the same character.
** Though not as major as the other characters, the Beadle certainly counts as well - he can be seen as either a complete psychopath who's no better than Judge Turpin, or a WellIntentionedExtremist police officer who believes a HangingJudge is the only way to enforce the law.
* ''Theatre/{{Wicked}}'':
** In the ''Wicked'' fandom, a large number, but not necessarily a majority, of people believe that [[Literature/TheWonderfulWizardOfOz the Wizard]] [[DracoInLeatherPants could be a sympathetic character]] who is ultimately a pawn controlled by [[ManBehindTheMan Madame Morrible]]. But ''only'' in the musical. In the book, Morrible doesn't even reach the level of TheDragon (and is [[spoiler: unceremoniously killed near the end]]) whereas the Wizard is evil.
** It goes beyond that - as mentioned in AlternativeCharacterInterpretation/{{Literature}}, ''the play'' is based off AlternateCharacterInterpretation. (Specifically, that for ''Literature/TheWonderfulWizardOfOz''.)
** The wonderful Avaric. Virtually no one accepts him as the carriage driver he is in the musical, he's either the jerk like he is in the book or... well anything from a serial rapist, murderer and blackmailer to a better love interest to Elphaba than Fiyero and it's not unknown for one fanfic author to express both views of him in different (or the same) fics.
** Glinda near the end. The implications of her more than platonic friendship for Elphaba, and her general personality invoke this in both the musical and books. Her being a StepfordSmiler is the most common, though fans tend to dig deeper.
** Just what ''is'' the relationship between Glinda and Elphaba? Platonic on both sides, unrequited affections on Glinda's side, or mutually romantic? Fans have their different interpretations, especially [[ShipToShipCombat shippers]].
* Considering the controversial ideas of [[Music/RichardWagner Wagner]] his opera can really go through this.
** Is Siegfried from [[Theatre/TheRingOfTheNibelung The Ring Cycle]] really an Ubermensch who refuses to follow the rules of a corrupt society and creates his own morality? Or is he a bully and boor who treats anybody weaker then him, even the one who raised him, with contempt? Could it be because of a [[FreudianExcuse difficult upbringing]] from Mime without his mother? It doesn't help that his treatment of Mime seems to have anti-semitic tones, which considering Wagner were intentional.
** Is Wotan a WellIntentionedExtremist trying to create a lawful world, withdrawing when he realises his time is up and it is time for men to rule? Or a self-serving figure who kills himself from despair?
** Is Hagen really a BastardBastard who is motivated by greed and just likes causing misery? Or has he had a different upbringing due to being illegitimate and growing old prematurely so decides to react against the world when his father offers him a chance?
** To some, Hunding at first looks like a LawfulEvil character who is rightfully killed by Wotan for his persecution and killing Siegmund. Yet by the standards of the time he hasn't done anything wrong and has good reason for pursuing Siegmund who has killed his kinsmen. He even obeys the laws of SacredHospitality in letting Siegmund stay the night despite knowing his crimes. Ultimately Wotan kills him for doing what any man of the culture Wotan set up would be expected to do.
** On the other hand Hunding forced Sieglinde to live as his wife in a loveless marriage, having received her from the killers of her and Siegmund's mother. And in the story Wotan already plans to have Hunding killed when he still wants Siegmund to win the fight; however, he does at that point say that Hunding is unworthy of being brought to Valhalla, which must concern events other than his treatment of Siegmund. In the end, Fricka forces Wotan to let Siegmund die for committing adultery and incest with his sister; since Fricka appears as Hunding's patron and Hunding as Fricka's champion, Wotan after being forced to kill his son Siegmund then also kills Hunding as a TakeThat to his estranged wife: he explicitly tells Hunding to report to Fricka that the fight turned out as she demanded.
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[[foldercontrol]]

[[folder: William Shakespeare's Works]]
Lots of Creator/{{Shakespeare}}an characters receive AlternativeCharacterInterpretation.
* ''Theatre/{{Hamlet}}'' is a classic example of this - is he a disturbed soul pretending to be crazy to trap the "sane", or is he honest-to-goodness bonkers? Modern interpretations generally agree that he isn't completely right in the head, but debate continues on how far this madness extends and on whether it resembles schizophrenia.
** One alternate interpretation of Hamlet is that he is ''not'' an indecisive procrastinator. Rather, he is frustrated by the knowledge that, if he acts too soon, before he can prove Claudius' guilt to everyone else, his plan will fail.
** In one of Hamlet's early soliloquies, he explicitly mentions ''that he doesn't know if "his father's ghost" is a lying apparition or not''. He needs to prove Claudius' guilt ''to himself'' before he can act.
** There's a critical essay on the play that points out that, assuming Hamlet was a Protestant (we know he studied at Wittenberg, which was a center of the Protestant religion in Shakespeare's day), he would have believed that good people go straight to heaven; therefore any ghosts must be the ghosts of damned souls.... in which case it would make sense not to trust them.
** Another essay goes the other way around, claiming that, as a catholic (the play doesn't specify when the action takes place, it could be in medieval times), Hamlet would avoid killing Claudius before he knew for sure Claudius would go to hell. That's why he needed to be sure Claudius was the killer, and, after he was sure of it, he held his strike when Claudius was praying for forgiveness.
** There's also some debate on just how much affection Hamlet had for his mother... and of what kind. Yes, some adaptations go there.
** There is a minority suggesting that Hamlet and Rosencrantz had drunken fumblings with each other at Wittenberg. Well, how else do you explain Guildenstern acting so much like a guy who's been forced to hang out with his boyfriend's asshole ex?
** Another AlternativeCharacterInterpretation: Hamlet's not crazy - just stubborn, stupid, and selfish.
** Part of the problem is that Shakespeare never bothers to explain (and probably doesn't know) that the Danes from the original story he was cribbing from have a superstitious dread of killing the insane. Amlaeth's facade was a canny maneuver to buy time since his stepfather/uncle would kill him to secure his position. It is because of that dread that the bad guy tries to send Amlaeth to a foreign land to a monarch who didn't share that dread of killing the insane.
** The play's script explicitly says that Hamlet's 30. Whether he acts his age is another matter (his immaturity might be part of the problem), as is whether the play treats him as an adult. (Some critics say that Shakespeare might've changed his mind about Hamlet's age and just forgot to take out that line).
** The play's script as it exists today has contradictory information about his age. He's said to be in college; but Hamlet also says he knew Yorick, who ''died'' 30 years ago. Just shows that even in Shakespeare's time WritersCannotDoMath. (Although this may also be a case of a reference to 13 being changed to 30 when the play was reprinted. Numbers got messed up in a few plays of the time because the original author's handwriting was illegible in some places.)
** Or since Horatio is the only one [[spoiler: left alive at the end]], he is by necessity [[spoiler: our Narrator]], thus he would portray [[spoiler: his friend Hamlet]] as more prescient and sensible than he really was. In fact, if Horatio wants to cast [[spoiler: Hamlet]] in the best light possible, the interpretations of all the other characters in the play are suspect as well.
** A theory bolstered by [[spoiler: Hamlet]]'s dying request to Horatio: "[R]eport me and my cause aright/ To the unsatisfied."
** One that both neatly resolves the seeming inconsistencies in the story while opening up a plethora of possible new interpretations: the whole play is a Death Dream from the point of view of Hamlet's father.
** The character of Claudius is full of ambiguities, and has wide scope for reinterpretation. Depending on the portrayal, he appears to be a competent, conscientious, well-liked king - arguably preferable, in fact, to his navel-gazing undergrad of a nephew. There's little reason to think that Hamlet would be up to the unpoetical demands of the job. In fact, it's only because of the DeusExMachina that is Fortinbras that Hamlet's actions don't throw Denmark into rudderless chaos and invasion. ''There's'' "something rotten" for you.
** Polonius' traditional interpretation as a doddering bore and [[IdiotBall fumbler]] might also be off. As a couple of modern portrayals have borne out, Polonius can be seen as a [[HypercompetentSidekick competent]], occasionally ruthless official who understands more than many actors and directors give him credit for. His "neither a borrower nor a lender be" speech to Laertes - usually played for laughs - is perfectly sound advice from start to finish, and his opposition to his daughter's relationship with Hamlet proves horribly well-founded.
** Additionally, readers, viewers, and Hamlet himself take Claudius' panicked reaction to Hamlet's staged [[ShowWithinAShow play-within-a-play]] as open/shut confirmation of the king's guilt. However, Claudius' terror makes ''equal'' sense as the reaction of an innocent monarch whose crazy young nephew and heir has just staged a thinly-veiled portrayal of his impending [[ConspicuouslyPublicAssassination death]] at the latter's hands.
** Another is how much Claudius' love for Gertrude - if he truly loved her, like he said, shouldn't he have [[spoiler: knocked the poisoned wine away from her]]? Or was he too far away and simply restrained himself when she started to drink (that depends on the adaptation)? Or did he just let logic stop him for one instant to continue his plan?
** Furthermore, how much did Gertrude herself know - was she in some way complicit with her husband's death, or completely innocent of the whole thing? Also how does she react to the closet scene, in which Hamlet brings all kinds of accusations to her? Does she believe him and realise her guilt in betraying her husband by marrying Claudius, or insist that he is mad (which she later does in the graveyard, but maybe that was just to protect him)? IIRC, David Tennant's version had an interesting spin on it: Gertrude refuses to believe Hamlet, but when Claudius tells her not to drink the wine she suddenly realises that it is poisoned, Hamlet was telling the truth about everything, and then commits suicide out of guilt by drinking it deliberately.
** Another thing that can be interpreted differently is the ghost: is he real, or is he a part of Hamlet's insanity. There is evidence for both theories in the play. The evidence that the ghost is real is the fact that Hamlet went to see the ghost after the others claimed to have seen it. Evidence that the ghost isn't real is the fact that there is a scene in which Hamlet sees the ghost, but his mother doesn't.
** Some people think Ophelia acts the way she does [[http://www.craftyscreenwriting.com/ophelia.html because she was pregnant]]
** There's been at least one production where the actors playing Horatio and Fortinbras [[BastardlySpeech decided to imply]] that Horatio had secretly orchestrated the events of the play to clear Fortinbras's path to the throne.
* ''Theatre/RichardII'': Is Richard a capricious tyrant or a sheltered twit who, either way, places too much value in his divine right to rule? Was Bolingbroke after the crown from the start, or was it something he fell into, as the circumstances surrounding his motives changed? Was he right in taking the crown from Richard and ahead of Mortimer? Did he order Richard's death, or was he genuinely regretful? And more generally, was he an unscrupulous usurper, or England's great hope brought low by the deadly politics of the age? It's worth noting that the real Bolingbroke was a real life KnightInShiningArmor, a principled administrator, a forceful and decisive ruler, and hailed by people from all walks of life as England's savior when he took the throne. History paints a picture of a deeply conflicted king, assailed on all sides by rebels and traitors, and terrified for the state of his soul in light of the NecessarilyEvil sins he committed in restoring order to England.
* ''Theatre/HenryIV'' parts one and two: Is Falstaff a sad, old, cowardly man looking at the Crown Prince as a meal ticket, or is he an indefatigable mound of life and bombast who genuinely loves his Hal like a son? Is Hal a defiant, young hedonist living out the last flames of irresponsible youth before the weight of the crown comes crashing down on him, or is he a cold, calculating politician using the denizens of Eastcheap to craft his public image so he can appear so much finer in his reformation? Do Hal and Falstaff even really like each other? There are so many ways to play both characters. Compare the scene where Hal and Falstaff practice Hal's future encounter with his father the king: the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g8k1Fg_Oquk&list=UU3On2n4-IiMVbuqxhVEITXA&index=6&feature=plcp 2012 BBC production]] and the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VRmSvaSes7U 2010 Globe Theatre production]].
* Then moving on to ''Theatre/HenryV'': Is this truly the reformed Hal, the noble and victorious "star of England" the brave and courageous leader of a "band of brothers" in a just cause? Or is he still a cold master of his own public image, grinding up the "good yeomen whose limbs were made in England" to make an illegal and poorly thought-out land grab in France? In one breath he exhorts his soldiers, "on, on you noblest English!" and then in another threatens "heady murder, spoil and villainy" upon the civilians of a French town. His losses in the Battle of Agincourt are tiny compared with the French, but he ''did'' kill all his prisoners. Does he even know what he's doing at any given moment?
* ''Theatre/{{Macbeth}}'': Was Lady Macbeth a manipulative and power-hungry bitch steering her weak-willed husband into regicide, or was she a feminist hero overcoming the role society had built for her and asserting her strength?
** In the Creator/AgathaChristie novel ''Cat Among the Pigeons'', another alternative is offered: Lady Macbeth was someone who liked the idea of being a power-hungry bitch willing to kill anyone who got in her way but wasn't really one: once she got a taste of what that was like, it drove her mad. Macbeth, on the other hand, thought of himself as the hero and needed a push to get started. Once he did, however, he found that he was in fact a power-hungry bastard willing to kill anyone who got in his way without remorse.
** Then there's Macbeth himself and the witches. Did Macbeth kill Duncan because the witches prophesied he would become king? He admits that he had already been fantasizing about killing Duncan before he ever met the witches ("whose murder is yet but fantastical"), and that if their prophesy is true, he'll become king without killing Duncan ("then chance will crown me"). Has he perhaps already decided, subconsciously, to kill Duncan and seize the throne, and the witches have come to him to ''warn'' him? Likewise, does he kill Macduff's family and try to kill Macduff because the witches warned him to "beware Macduff," or had he already decided to do it; Macduff was already plotting against him, after all, which is why Macduff was in England when the assassins came.
** In some productions the Third Murderer is Macbeth in disguise. In Creator/RomanPolanski's film adaptation the Third Murderer is Ross.
* The character of Shylock in ''Theatre/TheMerchantOfVenice'' is open to lots of AlternativeCharacterInterpretation, largely because he's not drawn as unambiguously evil as other Jewish characters of the same time. Is he a greedy bastard who cares for nothing but money? Is he a hard-nosed business man who knows that his only protection from those who would like to see him ruined is his reputation as a bastard? Is he the victim of repeated bullying and abuse who finally gets what he believes is a chance to take revenge on the person who has abused him the most - and do it legally? The famous "hath not a Jew" speech in particular humanizes Shylock well beyond most Shakespearean villains, who tend to be ForTheEvulz or mad for power. Revenge killings were still common in Shakespeare's day, and still often considered legally justified. Shylock's also the only character in the play who doesn't try to twist the law or back out of bargains freely entered, despite these traits generally being ascribed to Jews centuries before and since, implying Shakespeare may have intended the character as a Deconstruction.
** The character of Portia from the same play is one of Shakespeare's very best villains. After getting Shylock to give up his demand for the pound of flesh she, along with the Duke and Antonio twists the law around so much that Shylock has to give up all his wealth to the state and his ungrateful daughter (who by the way left his house by stealing his money), and also has to convert to Christianity, or die. Then she tricks her husband's ring from him, just so she can hold it over him as being "unfaithful."
** Is Antonio in love with Bassanio, and essentially being asked to finance his own heartbreak? Is Bassanio a callous dunce cruelly taking advantage of his best friend's romantic feelings for him?
* Creator/ChristopherMarlowe's ''Theatre/TheJewOfMalta'' is seen by many to be even more unsympathetic than Shylock, but consequently authors find that he's far less problematic since the EvilVersusEvil setting of the play, the fact that Barabas blames his villainy, like Shylock on the Christians and that SocietyIsToBlame, and that Christianity or any other religion is not depicted as being more merciful than Judaism, makes him far more convincing a DracoInLeatherPants than Shylock.
* The character of Claudio in ''Theatre/MuchAdoAboutNothing'' is consistently portrayed as a [[KidHero fresh-faced]] young ball of {{Wangst}}, whose willingness to be fooled by Don John and public rejection of Hero makes him look all the more callow and culpably gullible. If one takes Benedick's description seriously though, Claudio is better seen as a [[DumbMuscle huge, raging moose of a professional warrior]], genuinely unused to female attentions, socially clumsy, and inspired to flights of language that aren't natural to him. He doesn't trust his good fortune; he's afraid of looking like an idiot, and half-prepared to hear that he's been taken for a fool all along. This combustible mixture doesn't make his [[WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds meltdown and public treatment of Hero]] less horrifying, but it puts the character into focus and helps one understand why Hero might be prepared to forgive him.
* An alternate interpretation of Iago's actions in ''Theatre/{{Othello}}'' are those of a scorned lover. Iago manipulates the situation to destroy everyone around Othello except for Iago himself. If his plan had gone correctly the only person left that Othello could trust, and thus who he would naturally turn to, would be Iago.
* Then there's the battle between people who believe ''Theatre/RomeoAndJuliet'' were really, deeply in love, and those who think they were just [[HormoneAddledTeenager dangerously hormonal]].
** Romeo, a romantic hero who just found his OneTrueLove - or dangerously passionate, fickle nutcase? Did he sweetly entice Juliet, or poison her reason with his vile tricks?
** Similarly, Paris is either a [[RomanticRunnerUp genuinely nice guy who really cared for Juliet]] or a GoldDigger who [[PropertyOfLove regarded her strictly as property]].
** Another common question is how serious the feud between the two houses really is, and how deeply each character supports it. In particular, when Tybalt discovers that Romeo has infiltrated the party and threatens to kill him, Capulet shuts him down, saying that he has heard nothing but good things about the boy; this implies that it is at least ''feasible'' that he would have endorsed Romeo's marriage to his daughter if he had heard, especially both he and Montague were under heavy pressure to end the feud; this also implies that the feud may have been taken more seriously by the younger generation than by adults.
* ''Theatre/TheTamingOfTheShrew'': No way Katherine's speech at the end about women needing to submit to their husbands is meant to be taken literally. She doesn't gradually weaken under Petrucchio's mind games but suddenly, out of sheer exasperation, grits her teeth and starts agreeing with him to get him to do what she wants. Who really "tames" the shrew here? Katherine seems to be the one who tames herself and learns self-control, which reaps more benefits than tactlessly bitching at the world.
** TheMusical version, ''Theatre/KissMeKate'', calls for a sly FourthWall breaking wink at the end of this speech, a gesture that is no big deal now, but scandalous in the 40s. You can tell which side of the argument a director lies on by whether they keep or omit the wink.
** This one goes hand in hand with the characterization of Petruchio. Is he trying to break Kate psychologically? Or is he trying to help her to become a better person through ToughLove? Is this a game for him, a contest for dominion, his idea of a friendly argument? One performance involved a Petruchio who was a good 30 years older than Kate (probably pretty historically accurate at that) which led to a paternal vibe of "This is going to hurt me more than it hurts you."
** An alternate AlternateCharacterInterpretation: Petruchio has no interest at all at taming Kate (as he says early on, he actually likes her for her wit), but all his friends expect him to try to. Therefore he makes an absurdly big show of taming her to hint to her that he's not serious while he looks like he's trying really hard to his somewhat dumber friends. The scene where she comes over is where she finally gets it and starts to play along. The moral of the story, and especially the ending scenes, is not therefore "wives, submit to your husband" but rather "a happy marriage is built on trust and not the man and woman struggling against each other."
** The film version with Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton (talk about your RealitySubtext) adds an interesting twist. After the first dinner scene, when Petruchio takes away all of Katherine's food and screams violently, she retires to her room and ''does'' seem genuinely afraid...until a look of recognition comes into her eyes, and she lets out a low, satisfied laugh. This suggests that she's figured out what Petruchio is up to, and decided to play along to trick him.
** Outside of the Petruchio/Kate controversy, we have Tranio ([[TheJeeves loyal servant with Lucentio's best interests at heart]] or underhanded schemer attempting to win Bianca for himself?) and Bianca (sweetie or shrew?)
* In most productions of Shakespeare's ''Theatre/TheTempest'', Caliban is a savage at heart, acting only on emotion and instinct, devoid of compassion; meanwhile Ariel is a pure creature of the spiritual realm, incapable of malice. However, some productions go as far as reversing the two - noting Prospero's vicious mistreatment of Caliban, they see him as a tragic creature, whose 'rape' of Miranda was a simplistic, disastrous attempt to express his love for her, for which he has been cruelly abused ever since; while Ariel is shown as an evil spirit who is kept in check by Prospero (why was he imprisoned in that tree in the first place, hm? Why does Prospero keep changing his mind about freeing him? Is it possible that a being who describes so poetically how he whipped up a massive storm and dashed a ship to pieces is a little dangerous?).
** The possible interpretation that Ariel is actually gay. This was explored in the 1979 film version of the play.
** A little more on Caliban: he has one line about how Miranda wasn't exactly refusing his affections. Creator/BrianAldiss expanded this into a short story, with the two genuinely in love and Prospero forcing them apart for his own reasons.
** Prospero himself can be subject to this, largely depending on how justified one believes his revenge against his brother Antonio to be. Though Prospero seems think that Antonio is just a lying, opportunistic scumbag who wrongfully usurped the dukedom of Milan out of sheer lust for power, Antonio can alternately be read as a pragmatist with a far better understanding of the responsibilities of ruling than his sorcerer brother - who outright admits that he cared more about his mystical studies than about his duties as duke.
** Doing a GenderFlip on Prospero, as Julie Taymor did in her 2010 film and Joe Dowling did at the Old Globe in 2018, has a profound effect on the sorcerer. Prospera as a mother relates differently to her daughter, Miranda, with more understanding of what she's going through, and when she returns to Milan, she gives up a great deal more freedom than her male counterpart.
[[/folder]]

* Considering the controversial ideas of [[Creator/RichardWagner Wagner]] his opera can really go through this.

* In Molière's ''DonJuan'', the character of Don Juan's servant Sganarelle is obviously not the sharpest knife in the drawer, but given the nature of plays, it's possible to portray him as decently crafty, given his intellect and low education. That is, you put a bit of {{subtext}} on his seemingly stupid comments in certain scenes. So it's possible he's not a complete buffoon - until a recent English translation ''added'' a line that can't ''possibly'' be read as anything less than comic relief.

** Another is how much Claudius' love for Gertrude - if he truely loved her, like he said, shouldn't he have [[spoiler: knocked the poisoned wine away from her]]? Or was he too far away and simply restrained himself when she started to drink (that depends on the adaptation)? Or did he just let logic stop him for one instant to continue his plan?

* In the musical ''Theatre/{{Chess}}'', opinions vary if Anatoly is a selfish jerk who betrays both his wife and his lover just to win a chess game, or if he's justified in choosing to put his own ambitions above the blackmail that the KGB and the CIA are trying to use on those he cares about. Or is he a man too proud not to give the game his best effort?
** Florence; desperately lonely woman with horrible taste in men, likely stemming from her DaddyIssues, or selfish player who managed to make both of the world's best chess players into her pawns, despite Freddie's dodgy mental health and Anatoly being a married man with kids?

** Anatoly's wife: A poor woman hoplessly devoted to her [[YourCheatingHeart philandering]] JerkAss of a husband, or someone who puts up with his shagging other women, abandoment of their kids, and betrayal of their country because she gets the prestiege, wealth, and perks of being married to a national hero?
** The Arbiter: someone only in it for the love of the game and completely above all bribes and manipulation, or a representative of neutral countries who are mutally pissed off at the Americans' and Russians' mutual posturing and gleefully enjoying the chance to tell them both to go screw themselves?

** Did [[EnfantTerrible Mary]] actually understand what she was saying? She spread [[MaliciousSlander lies]] that she had heard her teachers being intimate however what is her understanding on sex, and homosexuality for that matter? The way she stumbles around when lying could be because she doesn't know what to say or it could be because she's nervous. Whether Mary was purposedly spreading sexual lies or was parroting what adults have said changes just how terrible she is.

** Toby can be cast either as a child or as a mentally retarded man (indeed, this ambigulity is often exploited to solve talent availability/labour laws issues). The only description given is that he's "simple." Thus, TheMovie has a Toby the size of your thumb, whereas stage productions often cast a man decades older (though the 1980s taping has a Toby that you can [[WillingSuspensionOfDisbelief accept easily as]] a man playing young - until you notice the mustache).

* Then there's the battle between people who believe ''Theatre/RomeoAndJuliet'' were really, deeply in love, and those who think they were just dangerously hormonal.

** Karen's and Martha's relationship is up to interpretation. It's an [[ItWasHisSled extremely well-known]] fact that [[spoiler:Martha loved Karen]] however Karen's feelings for Martha are more ambiguous, to the point where even in-series people [[MistakenForGay have their curiosities]]. Was she in love with Martha or were they only friends?
** Did [[EnfantTerriblr Mary]] actually understand what she was saying? She spread [[MaliciousSlander lies]] that she had heard her teachers being intimate however what is her understanding on sex, and homosexuality for that matter? The way she stumbles around when lying could be because she doesn't know what to say or it could be because she's nervous. Whether Mary was purposedly spreading sexual lies or was parroting what adults have said changes just how terrible she is.

*** In one of Hamlet's early soliloquies, he explicitly mentions ''that he doesn't know if "his father's ghost" is a lying apparition or not''. He needs to prove Claudius' guilt ''to himself'' before he can act.
*** There's a critical essay on the play that points out that, assuming Hamlet was a Protestant (we know he studied at Wittenberg, which was a center of the Protestant religion in Shakespeare's day), he would have believed that good people go straight to heaven; therefore any ghosts must be the ghosts of damned souls.... in which case it would make sense not to trust them.
*** Another essay goes the other way around, claiming that, as a catholic (the play doesn't specify when the action takes place, it could be in medieval times), Hamlet would avoid killing Claudius before he knew for sure Claudius would go to hell. That's why he needed to be sure Claudius was the killer, and, after he was sure of it, he held his strike when Claudius was praying for forgiveness.

*** Part of the problem is that Shakespeare never bothers to explain (and probably doesn't know) that the Danes from the original story he was cribbing from have a superstitious dread of killing the insane. Amlaeth's facade was a canny maneuver to buy time since his stepfather/uncle would kill him to secure his position. It is because of that dread that the bad guy tries to send Amlaeth to a foreign land to a monarch who didn't share that dread of killing the insane.

*** The play's script as it exists today has contradictory information about his age. He's said to be in college; but Hamlet also says he knew Yorick, who ''died'' 30 years ago. Just shows that even in Shakespeare's time WritersCannotDoMath. (Although this may also be a case of a reference to 13 being changed to 30 when the play was reprinted. Numbers got messed up in a few plays of the time because the original author's handwriting was illegible in some places.)

*** A theory bolstered by [[spoiler: Hamlet]]'s dying request to Horatio: "[R]eport me and my cause aright/ To the unsatisfied."

*** Outside of the Petruchio/Kate controversy, we have Tranio ([[TheJeeves loyal servant with Lucentio's best interests at heart]] or underhanded schemer attempting to win Bianca for himself?) and Bianca (sweetie or shrew?)

* In the musical 'Theatre/{{Chess}}', opinions vary if Anatoly is a selfish jerk who betrays both his wife and his lover just to win a chess game, or if he's justified in choosing to put his own ambitions above the blackmail that the KGB and the CIA are trying to use on those he cares about. Or is he a man too proud not to give the game his best effort?

** Anatoly's wife: A poor woman hoplessly devoted to her philandering jackass of a husband, or someone who puts up with his shagging other women, abandoment of their kids, and betrayal of their country because she gets the prestiege, wealth, and perks of being married to a national hero?

* There are various readings of Marlowe's ''Theatre/DoctorFaustus''. There have been productions that managed to turn ''Mephistopheles'' into TheWoobie. But even if you don't go that far, whether Faust is a TragicHero who is frustrated by a callous god's refusal to do anything and honestly wants to improve the world, or a bored academic who was mostly just trying to summon demons for the lulz and had no idea what he was getting into, or a VillainProtagonist who doesn't care about the rest of the world at all and is only in it to enrich himself is open to personal interpretation.

* Hoo boy, ''Theatre/ThePhantomOfTheOpera'':
** Erik: Evil genius, crazy, or abandoned {{woobie}} who just needs to be loved? He's generally regarded (by those not part of the rather sizeable FanDumb) to be a combination of the three.

** The sequel ''Theatre/LoveNeverDies'' (2010) has made this even worse: Raoul has been [[RonTheDeathEater turned from Christine's good-hearted childhood friend into an angry alcoholic]] and gets blamed for his failed marriage to Christine because he's just not good enough for her. Critics of the show take the view that Raoul is the real victim, having been driven to dissolution by ten years of living with an emotionally distant [[spoiler: and faithless]] wife and an irritatingly precocious kid. As well, in the 25th Anniversary staging of ''Phantom'' in 2011, Raoul seems to spend half the time exasperated with Christine and half the time bravely and boyishly adoring her, which may be a hint of what's to come in the sequel. Especially since Andrew Lloyd Webber cast his two ''Love Never Dies'' leads in the concert, it seems like he's deliberately trying to make a point that wasn't there. Fans who [[FanonDiscontinuity ignore the existence]] of ''Love Never Dies'' just think it's a more layered way to play Raoul, a role that can easily come off as dull or one-dimensional.

*** Another interpretation of Johanna in the stage version is that she's something of a budding Sweeney herself. This is based on her abusive childhood, possible inherited mental instability, the posited manipulation of Anthony, her time in the asylum, and her willingness to shoot the asylum-keeper (in the stage musical; the film has the asylum-keeper killed by his "children").
** Justified due to availability of talent: Toby can be cast either as a child or as a mentally retarded man. The only description given is that he's "simple." Thus, TheMovie has a Toby the size of your thumb, whereas stage productions often cast a man decades older (though the 1980s taping has a Toby that you can [[WillingSuspensionOfDisbelief accept easily as]] a man playing young - until you notice the mustache).
*** Neil Patrick Harris in the 2001 concert recording may be an example of an adult Toby - although with Johanna and Anthony being played by the [[DawsonCasting definitely not teenaged]] Lisa Vroman and Davis Gaines, he could be playing younger as well.
*** Another interpretation of Toby, based on the ending of the stage version [[spoiler: where Toby is shown as a grown man locked and straightjacketed in an insane asylum]], is that it is an adult Toby telling the story from his own childhood memories and that the adult actor is used consistently to ensure that the audience knows that he is the same character.

*** On the other hand Hunding forced Sieglinde to live as his wife in a loveless marriage, having received her from the killers of her and Siegmund's mother. And in the story Wotan already plans to have Hunding killed when he still wants Siegmund to win the fight; however, he does at that point say that Hunding is unworthy of being brought to Valhalla, which must concern events other than his treatment of Siegmund. In the end, Fricka forces Wotan to let Siegmund die for committing adultery and incest with his sister; since Fricka appears as Hunding's patron and Hunding as Fricka's champion, Wotan after being forced to kill his son Siegmund then also kills Hunding as a TakeThat to his estranged wife: he explicitly tells Hunding to report to Fricka that the fight turned out as she demanded.

* The character of Shylock in ''Theatre/TheMerchantOfVenice'' is open to lots of AlternativeCharacterInterpretation, largely because he's not drawn as unambiguously evil as other Jewish characters of the same time (Marlowe's ''Theatre/TheJewOfMalta'', most notably.) Is he a greedy bastard who cares for nothing but money? Is he a hard-nosed business man who knows that his only protection from those who would like to see him ruined is his reputation as a bastard? Is he the victim of repeated bullying and abuse who finally gets what he believes is a chance to take revenge on the person who has abused him the most - and do it legally? The famous "hath not a Jew" speech in particular humanizes Shylock well beyond most Shakespearean villains, who tend to be ForTheEvulz or mad for power. Revenge killings were still common in Shakespeare's day, and still often considered legally justified. Shylock's also the only character in the play who doesn't try to twist the law or back out of bargains freely entered, despite these traits generally being ascribed to Jews centuries before and since, implying Shakespeare may have intended the character as a Deconstruction.

** Another AlternativeCharacterInterpretation: Hamlet's not crazy -- just stubborn, stupid, and selfish.

** The character of Claudius is full of ambiguities, and has wide scope for reinterpretation. Depending on the portrayal, he appears to be a competent, conscientious, well-liked king--arguably preferable, in fact, to his navel-gazing undergrad of a nephew. There's little reason to think that Hamlet would be up to the unpoetical demands of the job. In fact, it's only because of the DeusExMachina that is Fortinbras that Hamlet's actions don't throw Denmark into rudderless chaos and invasion. ''There's'' "something rotten" for you.
** Polonius' traditional interpretation as a doddering bore and [[IdiotBall fumbler]] might also be off. As a couple of modern portrayals have borne out, Polonius can be seen as a [[HypercompetentSidekick competent]], occasionally ruthless official who understands more than many actors and directors give him credit for. His "neither a borrower nor a lender be" speech to Laertes--usually played for laughs--is perfectly sound advice from start to finish, and his opposition to his daughter's relationship with Hamlet proves horribly well-founded.

** Furthermore, how much did Gertrude herself know -- was she in some way complicit with her husband's death, or completely innocent of the whole thing? Also how does she react to the closet scene, in which Hamlet brings all kinds of accusations to her? Does she believe him and realise her guilt in betraying her husband by marrying Claudius, or insist that he is mad (which she later does in the graveyard, but maybe that was just to protect him)? IIRC, David Tennant's version had an interesting spin on it: Gertrude refuses to believe Hamlet, but when Claudius tells her not to drink the wine she suddenly realises that it is poisoned, Hamlet was telling the truth about everything, and then commits suicide out of guilt by drinking it deliberately.

** Some people think Ophelia acts the way she does [[http://www.craftyscreenwriting.com/ophelia.html Because she was pregnant]]

* The character of Shylock in ''Theatre/TheMerchantOfVenice'' is open to lots of AlternativeCharacterInterpretations, largely because he's not drawn as unambiguously evil as other Jewish characters of the same time (Marlowe's ''Theatre/TheJewOfMalta'', most notably.) Is he a greedy bastard who cares for nothing but money? Is he a hard-nosed business man who knows that his only protection from those who would like to see him ruined is his reputation as a bastard? Is he the victim of repeated bullying and abuse who finally gets what he believes is a chance to take revenge on the person who has abused him the most -- and do it legally? The famous "hath not a Jew" speech in particular humanizes Shylock well beyond most Shakespearean villains, who tend to be ForTheEvulz or mad for power. Revenge killings were still common in Shakespeare's day, and still often considered legally justified. Shylock's also the only character in the play who doesn't try to twist the law or back out of bargains freely entered, despite these traits generally being ascribed to Jews centuries before and since, implying Shakespeare may have intended the character as a Deconstruction.
** The character of Portia from the same play is one of Shakespeare's very best villains. After getting Shylock to give up his demand for the pound of flesh she, along with the Duke and Antonio twists the law around so much that Shylock has to give up all his wealth to the state and his ungrateful daughter (who, by the way, left his house by stealing his money), and also has to convert to Christianity, or die. Then she tricks her husband's ring from him, just so she can hold it over him as being "unfaithful."

* The character of Claudio in ''Theatre/MuchAdoAboutNothing'' is consistently portrayed as a [[KidHero fresh-faced]] young ball of {{Wangst}}, whose willingness to be fooled by Don John and public rejection of Hero makes him look all the more callow and culpably gullible. If one takes Benedick's description seriously, though, Claudio is better seen as a [[DumbMuscle huge, raging moose of a professional warrior]], genuinely unused to female attentions, socially clumsy, and inspired to flights of language that aren't natural to him. He doesn't trust his good fortune; he's afraid of looking like an idiot, and half-prepared to hear that he's been taken for a fool all along. This combustible mixture doesn't make his [[WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds meltdown and public treatment of Hero]] less horrifying, but it puts the character into focus and helps one understand why Hero might be prepared to forgive him.

** Romeo, a romantic hero who just found his OneTrueLove -- or dangerously passionate, fickle nutcase? Did he sweetly entice Juliet, or poison her reason with his vile tricks?

* In most productions of Shakespeare's ''Theatre/TheTempest'', Caliban is a savage at heart, acting only on emotion and instinct, devoid of compassion; meanwhile Ariel is a pure creature of the spiritual realm, incapable of malice. However, some productions go as far as reversing the two -- noting Prospero's vicious mistreatment of Caliban, they see him as a tragic creature, whose 'rape' of Miranda was a simplistic, disastrous attempt to express his love for her, for which he has been cruelly abused ever since; while Ariel is shown as an evil spirit who is kept in check by Prospero (why was he imprisoned in that tree in the first place, hm? Why does Prospero keep changing his mind about freeing him? Is it possible that a being who describes so poetically how he whipped up a massive storm and dashed a ship to pieces is a little dangerous?).

** Prospero himself can be subject to this, largely depending on how justified one believes his revenge against his brother Antonio to be. Though Prospero seems think that Antonio is just a lying, opportunistic scumbag who wrongfully usurped the dukedom of Milan out of sheer lust for power, Antonio can alternately be read as a pragmatist with a far better understanding of the responsibilities of ruling than his sorcerer brother--who outright admits that he cared more about his mystical studies than about his duties as duke.

* Nora from Ibsen's ''Theatre/ADollsHouse'' is, in the conventional reading, a naive innocent who gets a harsh lesson in the world and grows up to move out. A wholly different interpretation is that we're actually seeing a plot involving serveral conspirators, organized by Nora, to break her tyrannical husband's hold. The Doctor being "ill" is a setup--he's fine and the card with the X through it is a signal he's ready for Nora to take off with him as they've obviously had a thing going on. Nils Krogstad's reasons for going along with the setup are obvious (knowing he's on the chopping block at work because of Torvald he has nothing to lose and everything to gain revenge-wise) and Nora is also, more kindly, masterminding the reunion of Krogstad with his old girlfriend and her old friend, Christine, who's been the victim of a similar domestic tyranny. Nora is in fact a DiabolicalMastermind orchestrating her husband's downfall.

* In Molière's ''DonJuan'', the character of Don Juan's servant Sganarelle is obviously not the sharpest knife in the drawer, but, given the nature of plays, it's possible to portray him as decently crafty, given his intellect and low education. That is, you put a bit of {{subtext}} on his seemingly stupid comments in certain scenes. So it's possible he's not a complete buffoon -- until a recent English translation ''added'' a line that can't ''possibly'' be read as anything less than comic relief.

** Justified due to availability of talent: Toby can be cast either as a child or as a mentally retarded man. The only description given is that he's "simple." Thus, TheMovie has a Toby the size of your thumb, whereas stage productions often cast a man decades older (though the 1980s taping has a Toby that you can [[WillingSuspensionOfDisbelief accept easily as]] a man playing young -- until you notice the mustache).
*** Neil Patrick Harris in the 2001 concert recording may be an example of an adult Toby -- although with Johanna and Anthony being played by the [[DawsonCasting definitely not teenaged]] Lisa Vroman and Davis Gaines, he could be playing younger as well.

* ''JesusChristSuperstar'' reinterpreted the character of Judas, stating his fear that Jesus was no longer in control of the situation as his reason for betraying him, rather than simple greed. Although one might find Judas quite a sympathetic character in the musical, he can, however, also be seen as a coward looking after number one.
** The most recent DVD version, starring Jerome Pradon as Judas, seems to suggest that Judas was romantically in love with Jesus, to the point of obsession, and there's a scene where Judas appears jealous about the attention Jesus gives to Mary Magdalene. Therefore his later actions in betraying Jesus could be seen as those of a lover scorned.