Othello #3

The actor's interpretation of Cassio can have a significant impact on Cassio's character.  One example of the flexibility of Cassio's character is when Iago attempts to get him drunk.  Before leaving the stage, when Cassio attempts to prove he is still sober, he indicates both of his hands, saying, "this is my right hand, and this is my left" (II.iii.118-119).  Cassio has two options.  One is to indignantly and defensively prove his sobriety.  The other is to actually be drunk.  The actor that portrays Cassio does not have any stage directions instructing him how to move while reciting this line.  The actor therefore has the option to confuse his right and his left hand.  He has the option to storm offstage in a huff or to stumble off clumsily.  He can maintain or vary the tempo of his lines to convey the effect of control or of loss of control.  Cassio's acting choices help to gauge the speed of the success of this stage of Iago's plan; if he storms off sober, Iago will have to set another trap.  If Cassio chooses to wander drunk off the stage, then Iago's plan is working perfectly based on what he 'confesses' to the audience.