Romeo and Juliet is a classic tragedy written by William Shakespeare which tells the story of two star-crossed lovers whose unforeseen relationship leads to their unfortunate deaths. The play explores the themes of adolescence, fate, and the forcefulness of love. Playing Romeo will be Jonathan Kimmel ‘20 and playing the Juliets will be Elektra Ballas ‘21 and Sadie Hornung ‘21.

“When I first revisited the script I was struck by how there were several moments in the play where the course of these tragic events could have been halted. And then I thought, perhaps our story is that of Juliet looking back at the events of the play and trying to understand where things went wrong. After all, the script starts with the end of the play,” Mrs. Gibson comments on why she chose two Juliets.

This production will feature three contemporary dances. The cast will be working with Khalil Munir, a professional choreographer, and Lily Nevo ‘20, dance captain, on the multiple dances throughout the performance. In addition, Romeo and Juliet will feature a number of epic fights. Charles Conwell, a professional fight choreographer, will be working with the cast on stage combat.

Kimmel ‘20 mentions that he is “excited to see friends, see a bunch of people I don’t usually get to see outside of school.” Hornung ‘21 adds by remarking that she is “excited to be performing a full length Shakespeare because I’ve never done one before.”

Ballas ‘21 comments that by using contemporary dance, music, and setting “we are going to make it interesting and easy to interpret.

Some people’s problem with Shakespeare is that they can’t understand his language, but with our inflections and our various hand gestures and so forth, it will be very easy to understand.” Romeo and Juliet is going to be an accessible, understandable, and extremely enjoyable production for everyone.

Romeo and Juliet will open on Friday, November 22nd at 7:30 PM and additional performances will follow on Saturday, November 23rd at 7:30 PM and Sunday, November 24th at 2:00 PM. Tickets will be sold closer to the performance dates.