A reimagination of William Shakespeare’s tale has Juliet wanting to fall in love while fighting for her independence. She treads through deepening waters over romance and relationships, among and between families, but can she live with the consequential decisions she is making?
Playwright Kimberly Patterson updates the classic tragedy of star-crossed lovers with “Romeo and Juliet, Class of ‘97,” presented as a staged reading at 7 p.m. June 11 at the Boscov Theater in GoggleWorks Center for the Arts, 201 Washington St., Reading.
Set in what was a slightly more innocent age; before 9/11 and Columbine, and in an era of youth having less reliance on cellphones and social media, playwright Kimberly Patterson, gives this classic tale, a more relevant and resonant treatment.
Inspired by the playwright’s rejection of the young couple’s ill fate, Patterson sought to synthesize the Bard’s traditional manuscript, the 1597 bad quarto, and Arthur Brooke’s 1562 “Romeus and Juliet”, to create a protagonist with more dimension and agency to “convincingly be the catalyst of the action from the Capulets’ party onward. Maybe finally Juliet could have a new ending, one that would empower young women instead of steeping them in tragedy.”
“Romeo and Juliet, Class of ’97” is directed by Andrea Kennedy Hart. A talkback follows the performance, with audience members invited to share their feedback on the play.
Tickets are a suggested $10.00, or pay-what-you-will, and can be purchased at rtp.ludus.com.
Patterson’s work includes the plays Welcome to Leisureville, Faithless, and Arachnothology, as well as the musicals Oedipus for Kids! And Douchenozzle, a comedy about linguistic misogyny. She holds an MA from NYU’s Gallatin School, an MFA in Playwriting from the Playwright’s Lab at Hollins University and is a member of the Dramatists Guild.
The Reading Theater Project is a locally-focused, professional theater company, based in Greater Reading/Berks County, PA. We value collaboration and creative challenges and believe theater is an inclusive experience that can reveal our shared human condition. For more information, visit readingtheaterproject.org
