As I watched my usual 140 bus blow past me on a lovely Wednesday afternoon, I took that as a sign to walk home and enjoy yet another beautiful day in Ireland. I stopped in a little “mom and pop” restaurant on George Street, grabbed some lunch and headed towards St. Stephens Green Park to enjoy a Shakespeare performance by Trinity College students. I was expecting a traditional Shakespeare performance but what I got was energetic college students, looking to have a fun and interactive time with Shakespeare.
I arrived at St. Stephens Green Park twenty minutes before the performance started. I decided to lay down and grab some color, and be named, “the only person to come home from Ireland with a sun tan.” Ten minutes behind schedule, the narrator took the stage and introduced the Shakespeare play, Romeo and Juliet. To my surprise a female played Romeo, and a Male played Juliet. That is when I knew they were turning traditional Shakespeare into a modern comedy.
This performance only included two actors and one narrator, costumes that looked like they were bought from a thrift store, and a few props. This “low budget” feel of the performance created a better frame to just focus on the acting. Although the actors were just young college students, their acting abilities were fantastic. They were able to keep the audience engaged, which made the show even more enjoyable.
The performance space for the show was a small area. The idea of the small space was to allow the two actors to be interactive with the audience. Multiple times throughout the performance the two actors would joke around with an audience member, or make an audience member a part of the show. Since my time in Dublin studying theater I have found the most interesting theater performances are the ones that are interactive with the audience.
I left the performance surprised by how much I enjoyed their “remix” to the traditional play Romeo and Juliet. I would have fallen asleep twenty minutes into a normal Shakespeare play. My favorite part was their interactions with the audience; to me this demonstrated their regard for the crowd. I also enjoyed watching how much fun the Trinity Students were having. So I must say, well-done, Trinity College!