What was Big Willy Shakes going for?
Othello is the first time “vanish into air” is ever recorded. Shakespeare used a similar phrase in The Tempest a few years later when Prospero says, “These our actors, as I foretold you, were all spirits, and are melted into air, into thin air” (4.1.148-150).
As you probably already know, the phrase “vanish into air” basically means to disappear without a trace. The literal meaning of this phrase, then, is that the clown is asking the musicians to be go, scoot, am-scray. You get the idea.
But this is Shakespeare. And there is almost always another meaning hidden beneath even the simplest of words when it comes to our boy Shakey. We think there’s something darker at work here, too, with vanishing.
Some scholars think Othello is more like a comedy in the first three acts than a tragedy. There’s a tricky plot afoot, lots of teasing, and it seems that everything can be resolved by the end of the play. Even though Iago is tricking people, he'll come clean by the end and everyone will go home happy and be best friends for life. Right?
Wrong.
Act 3 (when this scene takes place) is the final Act that hints at a happy resolution. It all turns dark once we get to Act 4. The clown disappears after Act 3 as well—there is no room for him anymore in the tragedy.
Here's the thing: we think that Shakespeare having the clown tell the musicians to leave is symbolically asking comedy to leave the play as well. Think about it. Musicians often appear on stage in weddings, festivals, and other jovial events. They play fun music. In fact, Cassio sends them over to Othello’s to cheer him up. But happy music has no place in a tragedy.
So, it is not just the musicians that are vanishing into air. It’s also the comedy itself. Watch out. It's all downhill from here.