The Merchant of Venice Act I

In which we meet the thoughtful merchant Antonio, perplexed by a melancholy he knows not the cause of, and his hopeful kinsman Bassanio, who seeks means to woo the wealthy Portia by way of a bond with the moneylender Shylock, whose wary dealings shadow their commerce with latent strife. Meanwhile, Portia contemplates the suitors her father’s will compels her to choose amongst, revealing her keen wit and constrained heart amidst the grand pageant of Venetian society.