The Riot Stage isn’t just about theater
We take our comedy filmmaking— seriously!
Check out this series of SNL style commercials that set up the Shakespeare scenes in our show.
This "ad" sets up the following scene:
Scene: Henry IV, Part 2 – Act 2, Scene 3. Lady Percy begs her father-in-law not to go back to war after her husband's death, but instead of mourning, he clings to the battlefield to reclaim a sense of purpose. The scene reveals how power often chooses conflict over vulnerability. He wants to rejoin the rebellion, not because it's wise, but because it makes him feel relevant and powerful again. Faced with pain, he doesn’t grieve, he gears up.
This "ad" sets up the following scene:
Richard III - Act 1, Scene 4 — modeled after NBC’s iconic 90’s “The More You Know” campaign, this faux PSA sets up the scene’s ironic tension: one of Clarence’s would-be killers struggles to justify the murder with moral and intellectual reasoning, only to be mocked for his clumsy logic and low status. Shakespeare draws a sharp connection between systemic failures, like class and access to education, and who gets manipulated into doing the dirty work. The PSA’s earnest tone heightens the dark comedy by pretending there’s a simple solution to what Shakespeare shows is a tragic and structural problem.
This "ad" sets up the following scene:
Julius Caesar – Act 2, Scene 1. As Brutus grows more consumed by his political conspiracy, Portia struggles to bridge the emotional gap between them. She pleads with Brutus to confide in her. This ad’s absurd pharmaceutical tone highlights the modern frustration with emotionally unavailable partners, underscoring how language (or the refusal to use it) becomes a battleground for intimacy, agency, and power.
This "ad" sets up the following scene :
Tempest – Prospero’s StormAct 1, Scene 1 — the storm at sea. It’s the opening chaos where the ship is being wrecked, and the nobles are panicking while the boatswain shouts orders. But unknown to them, the storm is being magically orchestrated by Prospero. And in our version, it functions as a satirical mirror to modern political disaster management — where those in charge create the chaos and then sell themselves as the solution.