UAH Theatre presents "Shakespeare's R&J"

UAH Theatre continues its 2017-2018 season with "Shakespeare’s R&J," an adaptation by Joe Calarco.

Calarco’s provocative version of Shakespeare’s "Romeo and Juliet" begins at a prep school, where four students tire of the monotony of conjugating Latin and lessons on proper behavior. One finds a copy of "Romeo and Juliet," which they take turns reading aloud.

Through Shakespeare’s words, these young people begin to make sense of their lives and to understand the pressures they feel from family, school and society. This four-person staging of Shakespeare’s play explores ideas about love, loss and life as seen through the lens of youth. Usually performed with an all-male cast, UAH’s production of "R&J" will be an all-female production.

The play is directed by Associate Professor Chad Thomas.

"I’m excited to bring all-female Shakespeare to UAH. In the last 20 years, there has been a return to all-male Shakespeare with national tours of productions by companies like Propeller, Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre, and Cheek by Jowl; however, all-female Shakespeare remains the aberration rather than the rule," says Thomas. "And given the cultural moment we are experiencing with #metoo, I think the time is perfect to explore issues of patriarchy and privilege by disrupting the traditional gender associated with Shakespeare."

"Shakespeare’s R&J" runs Feb. 21-24 and Feb. 28-March 3 at 7:30 p.m. and Feb. 25 and March 4 at 2:30 p.m. at Wilson Theatre on the UAH campus. Tickets are $15 for general admission, $7 for seniors and non-UAH students, and free for UAH students with ID. Tickets can be purchased at the door or online.

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