ROMEO AND JULIET to be Presented Outdoors At Shakespeare & Company

Shakespeare & Company will present Romeo and Juliet, directed by Kevin G. Coleman and Jonathan Epstein, July 18 through August 10 outdoors at the Arthur S. Waldstein Amphitheatre.

Epstein, who noted he and Coleman have collectively directed more than 20 productions of Romeo and Juliet, said this production explores the pursuit of delight within a difficult and warring world.

"Shakespeare is a master of integrating delight and this play is the archetype of that," he said. "So, we're asking: In a world where the common language is about conflict and strife, how can delight make room for itself?"

This production also marks the first outdoor mainstage production of the year at Shakespeare & Company, and the first since it was named one of the Top 10 Outdoor Performance venues in the U.S. by Newsweek. Epstein said he's excited to see this season's Romeo and Juliet take shape on the amphitheatre stage.

"You could wait a lifetime to see a Romeo and Juliet capable of filling a space this size with this much intimacy and passion," he said, noting that he's also eager to see audience reactions to the production and its interpretations. "This cast as a whole is committed to both the sanctity and the whimsy of telling a story like this, and of all of the productions of this play that I've been involved in, this couple [Caitlin Rose, Romeo, and Ashley McCauley Moore, Juliet] takes delight in each other more than any other Romeo and Juliet I've ever seen," he said.

Shakespeare & Company Artistic Director Allyn Burrows agreed that this production of Romeo and Juliet celebrates joy, but also calls attention to timely subjects.

"Once again we are reminded by this timeless classic, replete with soaring poetry, that divisions wrought by 'adults' wreak havoc on the lives of youth," he said. "While the lessons continue to be ignored, the beauty of the story cannot be."