A fresh take on an age old tale
On 22 May, the 19-strong ensemble will take over 77 Fairlie Terrace to perform one of the most famous plays of Shakespeare’s portfolio.
Jenny Nimon, in the role of Lady Capulet, says it’s been quite a process to unpack all the layers of the play and find a new spin on the tale. “The understanding we all brought to the table was very superficial because of the cultural knowledge and connotations that are associated with the play—it’s been really interesting to see what’s actually there.”
Austin Harrison, Mercutio, says there’s a whole lot more going on than just star-crossed lovers who end in tragedy.
“There’s this real intergenerational conflict. The young people are trying to escape this horrible brutal society that they’ve been born into but end up being swallowed up by it.”
Director Lori Leigh says Romeo and Juliet is a play about youth and all its associated energies. “We’ve explored these and the larger question of the play: Will our future be destroyed by the illogical, violent and oppressive systems that govern our world? Or is there still enough love, passion and imagination left in humanity to dream, and break the cycle of hate?”
Because the play deals with many themes and messages that are still relevant today, it’s been important for the cast to truly understand the text and what they were saying.
“The kinds of topics we are dealing with, like suicide and domestic violence, mean we need to make sure our delivery is authentic and truthful and to do this we need to understand what we’re saying,” says Jenny.
”Our first assignment was doing a full paraphrase of the script,” says Austin, “and so much of the work since then has been asking ‘what is going on and why are we saying it?’ We’ve been super lucky to have Lori Leigh to guide us in this process.”
The season of Romeo and Juliet runs from Tuesday 22 May till Saturday 26 May at Studio 77. $16 waged and $8 unwaged, book at Eventfinda
Photo credit: Pete Monk.