New Jewish Theatre Brings New Adaptation of ROMEO AND JULIET to the Stage of the MO History Museum 4/14 - 5/2

The plays of William Shakespeare have been reinterpreted many times over and set in a variety of places and times in order to use Shakespeare's words to tell other stories. Shakespeare has written such universal stories and characters that this can be done without changing the heart of the story. With Romeo & Juliet NJT does exactly this in order to shed light on history. In the NJT production, the setting is the British Mandate of Palestine in 1947-48 during the struggle to create the Jewish state of Israel.

Using the same words and characters but in a different time and place, Shakespeare's classic tale of star-crossed lovers takes on a very different meaning. Instead of the two feuding families of Verona, we have two warring factions in the Middle East, the Arabs and the Jews, fighting over each one's claim to the land. The personal love story in this setting thus becomes a history lesson. The historical aspect of this production becomes even more heightened by virtue of being performed at the Missouri History Museum as part of their Performing Arts Series. As the two young lovers try to cross the political divide, the tragedy of their ill-fated love results in a hopeful lesson for tolerance, understanding and peace in this world premiere adaptation.

In order to help foster the educational aspects of the production and to allow for frank and open discussion, there will be talk backs after most of the performances facilitated by members of both the Jewish and Muslim communities. Some of the participating groups are: members of the Israeli community; members of the JCRC's St. Louis Israel Connection (SLIC)and students from the JCRC's Jewish/Muslim Teen Dialogue Group to facilitate a talk back for a special student matinee on April 20.

The original adaptation of the play is by Robin Weatherall who also directs. The production features Meg Rodd Gunther and Rusty Gunther as the two lovers, David Wassilak, Mark Kelley and Brooke Edwards as the Jewish Montagues, B Weller, Amy Loui, Aarya Locker, Charlie Barron and Michael Perkins as the Arab Capulets and Tyler Vickers, Aaron Orion Baker and Kevin Beyer as the British military governing the Mandate.

The production is part of the Missouri History Museum's Performing Arts Series. Performances are Wednesdays and Thursdays at 7:30, Saturdays at 8 PM and Sundays at 2 PM & 7:30. Tickets are available only through the History Musuem's box office at 314-442-3283 or through the NJT website, www.newjewishtheatre.org. The History Museum is in Forest Park.

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