Vallejo Shakespeare in the Park is going deep— in more ways than one— for this year’s play, which is directed by a well-known forner Benicia educator.

Christine Mani, who taught theater at Benicia High School for 17 years, is directing “Measure for Measure,” which kicks off a four-week run in multiple cities Friday. William Shakespeare’s dark comedy, written in either 1603 or 1604, is set in Vienna when its duke, Vincentio, decides to go on a break from ruling. He puts the strict Judge Angelo in charge, who enforces harsh immorality laws, sentences a man named Claudio to death for impregnating his fiancee and offers his sister Isabella a deal where he will spare Claudio from death if she has sex with Angelo.
While the play is not as universally known as other Shakespeare titles like “Romeo and Juliet” or “Hamlet,” it is one that has a lot of relevance in today’s political and cultural climate.

To bring this play to life, Vallejo Shakespeare in the Park recruited Mani, who taught at Benicia High from 1999 to 2016 and is currently a theater instructor at Solano Community College. Mani had portrayed Emperor Saturninus in the company’s production of “Titus Andronicus” last year and was in talks to direct the following year’s play.

“I had a lot of great fun with the company and the interesting way of using different spaces and different venues they would travel to throughout the production,” she said. “I said, ‘I would definitely work with this company again.’”

This is not the first time Mani has directed a play by The Bard, as she also helmed “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” in college and Benicia High’s production of “Twelfth Night.” Mani likes “Measure for Measure” because of how pertinent the themes are for today’s society, even though the play was written more than 400 years ago. One particular theme is the abuse of power, especially by men, which are still being addressed today by movements such as Time’s Up. Mani said there was a notion that men in powerful positions “have the ability to ask for something and get it just because they’re in power.”

“I like the fact that that comes back into play in all this,” she said.

To demonstrate how prevalent this issue continues to be, Mani said the production is actually being set slightly in the future.

“As much as we’re fighting for these same elements today, Shakespeare was realizing those same elements 400 years ago,” she said. “Everyone tends to believe that the second something like the Time’s Up movement is brought to light and the world at large starts recognizing it, that it’s gonna go away or it’s gonna get better. That’s not necessarily the case, and that’s why we set it slightly in the future.”

Additionally, Mani said the production is dialing back the heavy references to Catholicism that were in the original play to make the views of religion more general.

“Though the religious aspects are still there, I didn’t want people to bring in their own personal beliefs of the Catholic faith,” she said. “I wanted it to be more generalized to any religion and any concept.”

The cast features a diverse array of performers who hail from throughout Solano and Contra Costa counties with one cast member even coming from Los Angeles. There are a number of Benicia actors in the cast, including 2015 BHS graduate Marjory Harper who plays Pompey Bum. Mani said the cast has been hard-working and adept at adjusting to different venues.

“They’re constantly on their toes trying to make it something special for each and every audience,” she said. “I think that’s what’s so amazing about this company.”

Overall, Mani sees “Measure for Measure” as a play with a lot of humor and depth and hopes audiences will take away the idea of being able to support one another in difficult times.

“We need to be aware of the power struggle surrounding us and not allow those power struggles to keep gaining power,” she said. “We need to support each other, and if one person is being put down in any way, shape or form, they’re not alone and we need to help them not be alone. We need to support each human being, no matter anything about them.”

“Measure for Measure” will kick off its first set of shows at 3 p.m. Saturday, July 28 and Sunday, July 29 at Hanns Park Amphitheater, located at 198 Skyline Drive at Redwood Road in Vallejo. The play will subsequently be performed at Rithet Park in Crockett on Saturday, Aug. 4; Susana Neighborhood Park in Martinez on Sunday, Aug. 5; Peralta Hacienda Historical Park in Oakland— accessible via the Fruitvale BART station— on Saturday, Aug. 11 and Sunday, Aug. 12. All shows are at 3 p.m. The tour will conclude with two evening fundraiser shows at 8 p.m. Friday, Aug. 17 and Saturday, Aug. 18 at Savage & Cooke Distillery, located at 1097 Nimitz St. on Mare Island in Vallejo. Tickets for these two shows are $25. All other performances are free, but donations are strongly encouraged. Chairs will not be provided for the outdoor shows, so audience members are encouraged to bring blankets to sit on. For more information, visit vallejoshakespeare.org.