ADRIAN — For its third annual Shakespeare in the Park production, the Adrian Shakespeare Co. turns to one of the Bard of Avon’s most widely performed plays: “Romeo and Juliet.”
The show takes place at the amphitheater in Adrian’s Trestle Park. Performances are at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, July 30; 6:30 p.m. Friday, July 31; 6:30 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 1; and 2:30 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 2.
Admission is free, but donations to support the production via the Lenawee Community Foundation are welcome.
Patrons are invited to bring their own chairs, blankets, umbrellas, and picnics. This year, for the first time, golf cart rides are available for transportation to and from the parking areas.
As the Adrian Shakespeare Co. was getting off the ground in 2024, “we knew we wanted to start things off with some lighter fare,” producer John MacNaughton said. And so, he and director Stephen Kiersey chose “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” as the company’s first production and “Much Ado About Nothing” for 2025.
“Romeo and Juliet,” however, was always in the cards as a next step.
“We would like to eventually do some more serious plays,” Kiersey said, “and this is a warmup. It’s a romantic comedy up until halfway through, and then it turns very tragic.”
It’s also one of Shakespeare’s most enduring stories. Over time, it’s been turned into opera, ballet, multiple movies, and even adaptations such as “West Side Story.”
What accounts for its popularity?
While most young lovers don’t come from families who are sworn enemies, as Romeo and Juliet do, “the fact of falling in love with someone you aren’t supposed to is pretty universal,” Kiersey said.
Besides that, “it’s got everything — romance, fights, dancing. Shakespeare knew what the public wanted.”
MacNaughton thinks that part of it, too, is the “innocence and honesty” of both Romeo and Juliet. “They didn’t do anything wrong,” he said, and yet circumstances lead to tragedy for both of them.
The play also has some of the Bard’s most lyrical writing. “Shakespeare was kind of at the beginning of his career, but the language is so beautiful,” Kiersey added.
The production stars Eli Stachowske as Romeo and Ella Flumignan as Juliet. AJ Landingham is Benvolio, Rob Flumignan and Pam Adair are Lord and Lady Montague, Kyler Mattoon is Tybalt, Nate Adams is Mercutio, and Bryan Shane and Cassidy Giddens are Lord and Lady Capulet.
The Nurse is played by Makana Luana, while Eric Huffman plays Count Paris, Justin Kohlruss is Prince Escalus, Max Ruff plays Friar Lawrence and Aiden Leake plays Friar John. Mark Schersten is the Prologue and the Apothecary.
Capulet and Montague servants are played by Aiden Leake (Balthasar), Nate Adams (Abraham), Max Ruff (Sampson), and Eric Huffman (Gregory). The roles of various citizens, servants, dancers and guards are filled by Anika Lindstrom and Dallas Barringer.
Having several of the actors play multiple roles “is actually very true to life” for a Shakespearean troupe all the way back to the earliest days of these plays, Kiersey said, and he thinks it could be interesting for audiences to see that unfold on stage.
In addition to Kiersey and MacNaughton, the production team includes Doug Miller (scenic designer), Jessica Briggs (choreographer), Mark DiPietro (fight choreographer), Pam Adair and Amy Lillywhite Sturtevant (costumers), Sabriyah Davis (intimacy coordinator), Elizabeth Olgren (stage manager) and Brad Marowelli and Red Letter Sound (sound design).
Nicholas Trevino, a local resident who’s currently a composition major at Bowling Green State University, has written original music for the show, including dance music for the Capulet ball.
While Kiersey adapted last year’s “Much Ado About Nothing” by bringing the story into modern times, “Romeo and Juliet” will have its traditional Renaissance-era setting. To that end, “I wanted Renaissance music but I wanted it to sound modern,” which is where Trevino comes in, Kiersey said.
Additionally, the play ends with a dance, which may seem unusual given the fact that the young lovers have just died tragic deaths, but Kiersey said it’s the way the Globe Theatre —England’s home for all things Shakespeare — has staged it.
“A lot of Shakespeare’s plays ended with dances,” he said. “And if the Globe can do it in London, we can do it on the banks of the River Raisin.”
For more information on the production, go to adrianshakespeare.org or search for “Adrian Shakespeare Company” on Facebook.
