plot

Act I

The play stars on a Roman holiday, the Lupercalia (February 15). On this day, Caesar comes back to Rome after he defeated Pompey, a former leader of the Roman Empire. This victory makes Caesar so powerful, that he almost rules the empire by himself. On the street, a fortune-teller warns Caesar of the ides of March, which will be on March 15. But Caesar does not take him seriously and leaves.

Meanwhile, Cassius plans a plot to murder Caesar for having too much power over the empire and asks Brutus to join. Brutus shares the sorrows over the current political situation but does not want to join the plot of Cassius immediatly. They get interrupted by Casca, who tells them that Caesar was offered the crown of the king of Rome but he turned it down every time.

Later, Cassius starts telling Casca about the plot against Caesar but gets interrupted by Cinna. Cassius sends Cinna away to bring Brutus a few impertant letters and invites Casca over for dinner to make him join the plot.