Kenan Theatre Company puts a modern spin on classic "Romeo and Juliet"

Shakespeare’s classic love story has transcended time periods and settings — now two student directors are playing with the show’s gender roles.

Kenan Theatre Company’s “R&J,” a modern interpretation of “Romeo and Juliet,” opens tonight.

“R&J,” written by Joe Calarco, follows a group of Catholic school students as they begin to read “Romeo and Juliet” for the first time, breaking school rules.

The script was originally written for a male cast, but co-directors graduate student Nathaniel Claridad and junior Katie Chelena thought two casts — one male and one female — would bring a unique dynamic to a familiar story.

A single-gender, four-person cast means that each actor is responsible for more than one character in the show.

“There are no costume changes, so it’s all up to the actor to drive the show,” Claridad said.

The show will also be done in-the-round, with the audience surrounding the stage, creating a more intimate atmosphere between the audience and the actors.

Chelena said audience members will hear Shakespeare’s words in a new and exciting way.

“It’s fresh,” she said. “It takes something that’s very old and stale and makes it fiery and brings it back to life.”

In addition to the proximity of the audience and the small casts, the show will also only have one prop: a giant piece of red fabric.

“That’s my favorite kind of work,” Chelena said. “When you strip down your resources to only the bare basics, suddenly the most simple thing becomes so beautiful and I think that’s the most exciting thing for me.”

Junior Abigail Coryell, one of the show’s actresses, said the challenges of the minimalist play made it extremely fun to work on.

“It’s been really rewarding to try and understand how Juliet and the student in the story can become the same story,” she said.

Coryell also said she thinks students in the audience will be able to relate to the students in the show.

“The fact that we are students at the same time — that they are just sneaking off and doing something they are not supposed to be doing and they start believing in this story — it just brings the beauty and the poetry and the danger of Romeo and Juliet closer to home,” she said.

Claridad said having two separate casts has helped show the variation in gender dynamics more clearly, but each cast also helps make Shakespeare more acceptable.

“People are usually very frightened of Shakespeare or think he is boring, but he’s not,” he said. “He actually taps right into who we are as human beings.”

Junior and actor William Foote said audiences should look forward to being intrigued by the show.

“It encapsulates the comedy aspect of it hugely, but at the same time, it is really a tragedy as well, so it is a really good balance,” he said.

Coryell said this performance of Romeo and Juliet is for those who may not frequent the theater often.

“This would be the production for them to see, because it’s (students) up on stage,” she said.

“It’s four students playing around and getting burned by the fire that they are playing with.”

arts@dailytarheel.com