(RED BANK, NJ) -- Two River Theater concludes its online benefit reading series with Shakespeare’s classic story of two young star-crossed lovers, Romeo and Juliet. This modern verse translation by Hansol Jung will be live on Wed, September 30 with Act 1. Act 2, followed by a Q&A with the artists, will take place on Thurs, October 1 at 7:00pm EDT.
“To most theater lovers, Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet is a dramatic palimpsest; resonant and complicated, it remains a core myth for many. Itself layered with borrowed stories and cultural appropriation, R&J beats with a universal heart of love and hate. The play still has much to teach us and I love the echoes and layers that Hansol has added to it,” says Two River’s Artistic Director John Dias.
Last year Two River Theater announced a partnership with Off-Broadway’s NAATCO (National Asian American Theatre Company) and their Artistic Director Mia Katigbak (Two River’s I Remember Mama).Two River is also working on an ambitious project to produce a festival built around Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. As part of that project, we plan to produce, in partnership with NAATCO, this modern verse translation of the Shakespeare classic by South Korean playwright, Hansol Jung (Wild Goose Dreams, Cardboard Piano). The translation was originally commissioned by Oregon Shakespeare Festival as part of “Play on! 36 playwrights translate Shakespeare.”
The reading will feature: Tina Chilip (Much Ado About Nothing, Marvel’s Jessica Jones), Joel de la Fuente(Comedy of Errors, The Man in the High Castle), Stephanie Hsu (Be More Chill, SpongeBob SquarePants), David Huynh (Mysterious Skin, Henry VI), Vanessa Kai (Henry VI, The Pain of my Belligerence), Mia Katigbak (The Headlands, The Trial of the Catonsville Nine) Andrew Pang (Thoroughly Modern Millie), Jon Norman Schneider (Edith Can Shoot Things and Hit Them, Awake and Sing!), Mitchell Winter (Alcatraz, Chaos) and Jeena Yi (Judgement Day, Network).
All proceeds from this reading and the entire series will support Two River Theater. In addition, proceeds will be matched by a generous donor to benefit five organizations with a pressing need due to the impact of systemic racism and COVID-19. The beneficiary partner for this reading is to be announced.
Online benefit event tickets are $25 and include access to Acts 1 and 2 of the reading and a live post-reading Q&A with the artists, hosted on Zoom. Sponsorships start at $1,000, and include additional benefits such as an invitation to a private virtual event with reading artists.
Two River Theater will also stream the reading on YouTube from Thursday, October 1 at 7:00pm EDT through Sunday, October 4 at 7:00pm EDT. Streaming is free and donations of any amount from viewers will be greatly appreciated.
For more information on the Romeo and Juliet reading click here.
A special program has been launched for our reading of Romeo and Juliet to help support educators during the start of an unprecedented academic year. Teachers and students are eligible for free access to the reading with an option to add on a free post-show workshop for their class. A limited amount of workshops will be scheduled on a first-come, first-served basis with a Two River teaching artist.
For more details on free Educator access and to RSVP your class, click here.
Two River Theater produces a theatrical season that includes American and world classics, new plays and musicals, programs for young people, and festivals of new work. Each year, we also offer 40+ events that reflect our diverse community of Red Bank, New Jersey. Two River produces work on two stages—the 350-seat Rechnitz Theater, and the flexible 110-seat Marion Huber Theater. The theater’s recently opened Center for New Work, Education and Design is a three-story facility that includes two rehearsal studios, artist labs, classrooms, expanded shops and centrally located offices. Two River Theater has commissioned and premiered original projects including Be More Chill by Tony Award nominee Joe Iconis and Joe Tracz (the theater’s first Broadway production) and Hurricane Diane by Playwright-in-Residence Madeleine George (which won an Obie Award for its Off-Broadway run). In June 2019, Two River was nationally recognized by USA TODAY as one of “10 great places to see a play” across the U.S. Two River serves thousands of students and community members through arts and humanities programs at the theater, in schools and throughout its region. Two River Theater is led by Artistic Director John Dias and Managing Director Michael Hurst.
