Friday, Dec. 9, at 8 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 10 at 2 p.m. and 8 pm. Adams House Pool Theater. $8 general admission, $5 students.

“Desdemona: A Play About a Handkerchief,” an Athena Theater Company production written by playwright and recent Harvard visitor Paula Vogel (see story, page B2), is about much more than just a handkerchief. The play is set to shock and intrigue audiences during its upcoming run at the Adams Pool Theater.

According to Director Rebecca J. Levy ’06, “Desdemona” is a comedic rewrite of Shakespeare’s famed tragedy “Othello.” Told from a purely female perspective, the play features the three-person cast of Beth R. McLeod as Desdemona, Anna M. Resnick ’09 as Desdemona’s maid Emilia, and Julia C.W. Chan ’05 as the prostitute Bianca. Levy writes in an e-mail, “I picked ‘Desdemona’ because it is extremely well written and entertaining. Those persons very familiar with the Shakespeare version will be in for a delightful surprise. However, you do not need to know ‘Othello’ to enjoy this play.”

As it tackles the significant themes of male-female relations and female sexuality and liberation, the play also works to amuse the audience with its sense of comedy and imagery that is deeper and more scandalous than the title implies. “[‘Desdemona’] is put together into over 20 short scenes and they’re like movie takes. Each scene has a different feel to it. Some parts are really emotional and dramatic. It’s really funny but also very moving,” said Resnick.

Though Shakespearean purists may be surprised by Vogel’s dark, satirical take on the original, Levy predicts that most viewers will have much more positive reactions: “[The audience] will eat it up like fresh baked goods.”