Travel back with the Southside Theatre Guild to the Depression era of the 1930’s and Harlan, Kentucky for a unique look at a familiar story, William Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet.” The Appalachian Mountains replace “fair Verona” as the star-crossed lovers backdrop, but the volatile situation of the Montagues and Capulets is not far from feuding mountain families.
Co-directors Jared Wright and Peter Morgan updated the centuries old play in hopes of reaching audiences who are averse to the Bard’s flowery prose. Although the words remain, the set and costumes may help shed new light on the classic tragedy of unrequited love.
“Shakespeare’s hard to take sometimes, so we’ve updated the situations. It’s just a matter of understanding.” said Wright. He went on to point out that couples were married at a young age in 30’s Kentucky and that fueds between families were a common occurance.
The Guild’s “teen show” drew a lot of area students looking to play one of the theatre’s juciest dramatic roles, Juliet.
“A lot of girls tried out for the part, but in the end it came down to two,” Wright said. Jessica Unker, a college student from the Atlanta area got the coveted role.
The role of Romeo went to Aron Hall of Peachtree City. Hall has been in other Southside productions such as “It’s A Wonderful Life” where he played Ernie the mailman.
Andrew Puckett, a student at Fayette County High School, waltzed in and stole the role of Mercutio with a cold reading that blew the directors away. The cast includes over 30 actors in all. They have been in rehearsal since before the holidays.
“Romeo and Juilet” opens tomorrow night and runs each weekend through March 5. Curtain time is 8 p.m. The play is approximately 2 1/2 hours long with one intermission. Tickets are $15 Friday and Saturday evening and $12 Thursday evening. Tickets for students and seniors are $12 for all showings. For more information phone 770-969-0956 or visit stgplays.com.
