Tennessee Shakespeare Company Expands Its Free Shout-Out Shakespeare Series into the Spring with ROMEO AND JULIET

Tennessee Shakespeare Company’s Free Shout-Out Shakespeare Series expands into the Spring featuring Romeo and Juliet in six different outdoor venues throughout the Shelby County area from February 28 – March 29. 

Romeo and Juliet also plays indoors on TSC’s Tabor Stage for two half-price-admission performances on February 28 and March 19.

The Spring Shout-Out Shakespeare Series spans four weeks, opening on February 28. The Series will perform at Elmwood Cemetery for the first time. Returning venues include Collierville Town Square, Dixon Gallery & Gardens, Hillwood at Davies Manor in Bartlett, Overton Square’s Chimes Square Amphitheatre, and Raleigh Library. 

Outdoor performances are free, with the exception of the Elmwood Cemetery performance, and open to the public. 

Tickets to the Elmwood Cemetery performance are $15 at the gate and $16.88 when purchased online before the performance. For all other outdoor performances, no tickets or reservations are required: first-come/first-seated. Patrons are encouraged to bring a chair or blanket for seating, and to picnic. 

The indoor Tabor Stage performances require reservations through TSC’s Box Office online here or at (901) 759-0604.

Directed by TSC Director of Education and Outreach Programs Sarah Hankins, this 90-minute production, which begins as one of Shakespeare’s great comedies but ends in perhaps his gravest tragedy, features a seven-actor ensemble that includes TSC’s Classical Theatre Apprentice Company, as well as veteran TSC actor Marquis Dijon Archuleta. 

The design team includes Jeremy Allen Fisher (scenic and lighting) and Allison White (costumes). Cu Cukale is the Production Stage Manager.

Romeo and Juliet begins with a feud so old that no one remembers its cause, yet its violence demands a terrible price. What starts with striking humor and the electric thrill of first love gradually darkens into one of Shakespeare’s most profound tragedies. Amid sword fights and soaring poetry, two young lovers dare to imagine a future beyond the hatred that defines their families. Their romance is tender, impulsive, and at times surprisingly funny, and yet shadowed by the weight of generational conflict and the expectations of parents determined to shape their children’s destinies. The Capulets and Montagues must reckon with the ever-increasing damage they have long chosen to ignore.

“This play still resonates with modern audiences through young love, the struggles of parents making choices for their children that they think are better than the choices that were made for them, and both the positive and negative power of friendships,” says director Hankins. “Romeo and Juliet is surprisingly comedic and takes us through that first flush of love, full of hope, excitement, and poor choices. However, generational tensions emerge, and this play questions how we break generational trauma and craft a path forward of independence in a society that defines very strict roles.”

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Performance Schedule:

Sunday, February 28 at 4:00 pm:

TSC’s Tabor Stage; half-price admission charged; reserve seats with TSC’s Box Office

Thursday, March 19 at 7:00 pm:

TSC’s Tabor Stage; half-price admission charged; reserve seats with TSC’s Box Office

Friday, March 20 at 7:00 pm:

Overton Square’s Chimes Square Amphitheatre; no reservations required

Saturday, March 21 at 6:00 pm:

Elmwood Cemetery, 824 S. Dudley St.; reserve seats with Elmwood Cemetery online here or at the gate (limited seating)

Saturday, March 28 at 1:00 pm:

Raleigh Library, 3452 Austin Peay Highway; no reservations required

Saturday, March 28 at 7:00 pm:

Collierville Town Square’s Historic Train Depot, 125 N. Rowlett St.; no reservations required

Sunday, March 29 at 3:00 pm:

Hillwood at Davies Manor, 3570 Davieshire Drive, Bartlett; no reservations required

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Half-price tickets for Romeo and Juliet indoors on TSC’s Tabor Stage are $22 (Students $10/Seniors $15). 

Tabor Stage tickets may be purchased online here or by calling the Box Office at (901) 759-0604; open Tuesday-Friday from 9:00 am – 5:00 pm, and one hour prior to curtain. TSC is located at 7950 Trinity Road, Memphis, TN 38018-6297. No refunds/exchanges. The house opens 30 minutes prior to curtain. Credit Card charges require a $2.00 per-ticket fee. Free Tabor Stage parking and covered drop-off at the front door are available at TSC.

Tickets to the Elmwood Cemetery performance are $15 at the gate and $16.88 when purchased online before the performance here. 

All other performances are outdoors and free to attend; and no reservations or purchases are required. Seating outdoors is first-come/first-seated. Please bring your own chairs.