Over the weekend of March 5-7, Kean’s Theatre Conservatory held a showing of their very own production, The Misadventures of Romeo and Juliet. This work was a modern approach to one of William Shakespeare’s most famous plays and was put together through the hard work of Kean students, staff and faculty.
The Theatre Conservatory aims to create and share compelling stories through acting, directing and other theatrical aspects. Those majoring in theatre have the opportunity to work and star in a variety of productions while sharing their passion among colleagues. Theatre Conservatory works to help students find their passion whether it is on or off the stage.
This production of The Misadventures of Romeo and Juliet was directed by Rick Sordelet. Sordelet is a Broadway fight director known for staging 72 Broadway shows. Outside of this production, he has worked on many Disney productions such as Beauty and the Beast and The Lion King.
The story of The Misadventures of Romeo and Juliet follows the character of Leanne, an intrepid director who is excited to produce her version of Romeo and Juliet for her theatre thesis project. However, due to the pandemic, the theatre is shut down and the only way to perform would have to be through Zoom. Determined to see the play come to life, Leanne tries her best to motivate her fellow crew and cast members into making the best out of a bad situation.
This show was very unique because it took place in a Zoom call. Within the show, the characters had to come up with creative ways of using the platform in order to perform Romeo and Juliet. Throughout the play, they utilized different aspects of Zoom such as changing their backgrounds and using breakout rooms.
This production was shown to the audience through Zoom. In this showing, it contained a chat feature which allowed audience members to communicate with each other during the show and to share their thoughts on the different scenes. Additionally, it contained a separate Q&A chat, allowing audience members to ask the panelists questions.
At the end of the performance, the panelist held a live Q&A panel where audience members could ask them questions about how the show came to be. The panelists consisted of Sordelet as well as some of the actors and actresses within the performance.
When asked about their favorite part of the performance, actress, Tisa Harriot, said, “A lot of the show was improv…and the best experience is when we were going through the exercises with Rick [Sordelet].”
Actress, Jennifer Pillaga, adds, “Having those exercises to get comfortable with each other was so awesome because it brought us closer together.”
After viewing the performance, many attendees found the show to be quite humorous and enjoyable all around. At the end of the Q&A panel, the Theatre Conservatory spoke of new events that are sure to come in the future, including a production of Sister Act.
Many new projects are coming up in the future, so one can look on Cougar Link for upcoming events. Additionally, if one wants to contact the Theatre Conservatory, they can be reached at theatre@kean.edu.
