This November, Pittsburgh Classic Players will tackle William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet as the final show of their season of “Bad Romance.” This show will prove to be Pittsburgh Classic Players most ambitious production to date, with the hope of leaving audiences with a new appreciation for the treasured classic.
For their take on Romeo and Juliet, Pittsburgh Classic Players will look to embrace elements of the play that most productions fail to. “The show is full of laugh-out-loud humor, breathtaking love poetry, [and] heart-wrenching grief,” Marketing Manager, Leo Blake says. So the hope is that by embracing all of these elements rather than just one, it will enhance their production, and bring the beauty of the text to life.
A unique factor to this production will be the very queer-representing cast that will make up the ensemble. Director Harper York is encouraging the actors to consider and explore the identity of the characters: their personalities, gender, and sexuality. Blake believes Shakespeare gives them a lot of room to play and develop, and they are 100% embracing that in their rehearsal process. Their cast will include, Jason Via, who will be stepping out as his usual role of Stage Manager to play the part of Romeo. Olive Schlosser will be taking on the part of Juliet, and is said to be bringing “beautiful energy and great chemistry” to the production. PCP regular Hazel Leroy will be returning to the stage to portray the role of Friar Lawrence; and Pat Nolan will be taking on the role of Lady Capulet. Blake says PCP is excited at getting the chance to shine the spotlight on these actors, and hopes audiences will embrace them as well.
To coincide with the production, Pittsburgh Classic Players will be putting on a one-night-only concert performance of The Duchess of Malfi and ‘Tis Pity She’s a Whore. These plays resonate well with Romeo and Juliet as they are all about forbidden love, obsessions gone too far, and deathly consequences of good intentions. Blake says the idea for these concert performances came from the realization that Duchess would not be able to be a part of their lineup for the year, so it was a good way to honor the show and expand their season a bit. The performances will feature ensemble members from Romeo and Juliet, so many cast members will be taking on double duty for this special event.
Romeo and Juliet and the concert performances will be staged at the Spartan Community Center of Hazlewood, which has been Pittsburgh Classic Players’s home for their entire season. Previously the community did not have a strong theatre presence, so Blake believes it gives them a great opportunity to be able to play and expose an otherwise theatre-less community to great art.
Be sure to check out Pittsburgh Classic Players production of Romeo and Juliet, opening in November of this year. It is sure to be a brilliant new take on the classic play.
Romeo and Juliet runs November 7-23 at the Spartan Community Center in Hazlewood. Tickets are $25 and can be found at their homepage.
Jade Goodes is a graduate of Penn State University where she received her degree in English. While attending Penn State she became the Managing Editor for the school’s literary & arts magazine, Absence. Jade has been involved with the Pittsburgh theater community since elementary school, and has performed in many productions over the years. In her free time she enjoys reading and attending all the concerts she can.