Centenary College presents modern “Romeo and Juliet”
November 4, 2016
SHREVEPORT, LA — Centenary College’s Department of Theatre and Captain Shreve High School’s Theatre Performance Team have collaborated to create a fast-paced, provocative production of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. The updated classic premieres at Centenary’s Marjorie Lyons Playhouse (MLP) at 7:30 p.m. on November 10, with additional evening performances November 11-12 and November 17-19. There will also be a 2:00 p.m. matinee on Sunday, November 13.
Romeo and Juliet is directed by Heather Peak Hooper with stage combat choreography created by Andrew Dylan Ray. The production also features set design by Don Hooper, light design by Courtney Gaston, and costume design by Julia Eckelkamp.
“The Centenary/Captain Shreve production of Romeo and Juliet is a dramatic sprint!,” says Dr. Steve Shelburne, professor of English at Centenary. “Heather Hooper's spare script takes a plot in which youthful rashness precipitates tragedy and makes the whole production quick as ‘lightning, which doth cease to be/ Ere one can say it lightens.’ The tight set and crowded scenes--enlivened by some remarkably staged fights--remind us that the play is a civil as well as a personal tragedy. But purists take note: Hooper's production complicates gender, race, and motivation in ways that will provoke traditionalists while winning new audiences.”
Set in 2016 urban America, MLP’s Romeo and Juliet reimagines Shakespeare’s tale with a racially diverse cast of both Centenary and Captain Shreve students. The production combines multi-media with live theatre to build a modern world for the star-crossed lovers. The script has been significantly trimmed, but Shakespeare’s original language still drives this timeless story to its fateful end.
All tickets are $5.00 and can be purchased online at centenary.edu/playhouse. For more information, contact the MLP Box Office at 318.869.5242.