'Romeo and Juliet' to be performed this Saturday

Two sets of lovers pose for the Putnam County Playhouse's "Shakespeared" Youth Group. Two versions of Romeo and Juliet will will take place during the workshop. From left to right: Alice Moore as Juliet and Kelsey Prevatt as Romeo in the High School version and Jessica Watson as Juliet and Ashley Holmes as Romeo in the Middle School version. The young players will perform on Saturday, June 30 at 7:00 p.m.

People who like their Shakespeare straight or with a twist will enjoy both, for one night only, during "Shakespeared" at the Putnam County Playhouse.

Two versions of the Bard's play Romeo and Juliet will be presented at 7 p.m. Saturday, June 30 at the Hazel Day Longden Theatre. General admission tickets are $3 and will be available only at the door.

The performances culminate two weeks of a theatre workshop in Shakespeare acting and production designed and conducted by Tim and Caroline Good. Working as assistants to the directors are Tim Fox and Clay Spencer.

The workshop was partially funded by the Putnam County Community Foundation.

Middle school age students will perform a short adapation of the tragedy. Those appearing in the cast include Alice Moore and Kelsey Prevatt as the star-crossed lovers; Emma Powers and Chauncey Baker play the Capulet parents while Cy Spencer and Rachel Custis are the Montague parents.

The large cast also includes Taylor Runnells, Hanah Homler, Lauren Good, Jenna Kirk, Olivia Humphreys, Hannah Gellman, Kourtnee Vickrey and Sydney Cassida. They are joined onstage by Fiona Kater-White, Quincy Hayes and Jenna Berry.

Then it's time for the twist, as the older group takes the stage in a comedy version of Romeo and Juliet that was improvised during the workshop. It includes music such as "La Vida Loca", "Everybody Have Fun Tonight", and "The Heat Is On."

In this version, Romeo and his Juliet are played by Ashley Holmes and Jessica Watson. The elder Capulets will be Sarah Tran and Michael Walters, the elder Montagues are James Like and Nicole Roddy. Deborah Armitage plays "dream" Juliet.

This ensemble includes Hayden Shrewsbury, Tim Fox, Nick Johnson, Heather Owens, Sarah Dory and Jessica Watson. The 46th season of Putnam County Playhouse continues in July with a production of "A Midsummer Night's Dream."