‘Romeo and Juliet’ uses teenagers to play title roles

“Romeo and Juliet”

April 17-25

Friday and Saturdays 8 p.m.,… “Romeo and Juliet”

April 17-25

Friday and Saturdays 8 p.m., Sundays 2:30 p.m.

New Hazlett Theater

$10 for students

Pro Arts Tickets 412-394-3353, proartstickets.org

Friday and Saturdays 8 p.m., Sundays 2:30 p.m.

Prime Theatre’s production of “Romeo and Juliet” tries something a little untraditional — 17-year-olds Jeremy Hois and Jenna Lanz, who are still in high school, play the title characters.

Director Lora Oxenreiter said when she agreed to direct the play that she wanted teenagers for the roles.

“[That is] hardly, if ever, done because the roles are so iconic and so deep in the range of emotion that they have to play that most companies will go with adult actors,” Oxenreiter said.

The age of the actors does not matter as long as they excel in their roles, she said. Oxenreiter works mostly with high school students as an acting coach and director of high school musicals. The process is the same at any age, she said.

Aside from a few nights in rehearsals and performances and choosing homework over hanging out in their spare time, Lanz and Hois face the same challenges all actors face. As modern teenagers, their lives are very different from those of their characters.

“We wouldn’t be as rash in our thinking today. They jump to conclusions really quickly. Romeo, hours after he finds out Juliet is dead, kills himself. Sorry, I wouldn’t do that for [Lanz],” Hois said jokingly.

Instead, they relate to their characters by trying to imagine how they would react as a 13-year-old girl and 16-year-old boy. If the events happened now, they feel the story would turn out differently.

“The biggest thing with Juliet is that her parents are trying to set her up with a person that she doesn’t want to be with. Which I don’t think that happens [anymore]. My parents probably wouldn’t expect to be married at the age of 13. Or 17. Or 20. Or 22. I think it’s different now that it’s not expected,” Lanz said.

Arranged marriages and confrontations at the point of a sword might be uncommon nowadays, but love is not. The actors gave advice to young lovers, based on their experiences playing these iconic romantic roles.

“Don’t be afraid to love young. I think it’s possible, but parental consent is key.” Lanz said. Had characters Romeo and Juliet received their parents’ consent, “things would have gone a whole lot better,” she said.

Don’t let your story end in tragedy, they both said.

“Think about it for a second. Take a minute. It’s like how they say write a letter and don’t send it until the next day if you really mean it,” Hois said.

Relating to the events of the day might be easier than you’d imagine for a Shakespearean play.

“The way that Lora directed this — even if you’ve seen this show a million times — it will be different,” said Lanz.

Oxenreiter said she wanted the play’s language to be very accessible to her twenty-first century audience. Everyone should understand the words, even if they are unfamiliar. She also combined modern and Renaissance-era elements to create an accessible, unique production.

“The concept is that really, this is a timeless story and as such, I have set it in an indistinct time period. You will notice that there will be elements of the costumes when you see them that are very Renaissance. There’s a lot of lacing, for instance, on the costumes. There will be some silhouettes that look sort of Renaissance, but the guys are wearing jeans,” said Oxenreiter.

The play focuses on the beliefs of Shakespeare’s original audience which had a heavy interest in astrology. Set elements and what Oxenreiter called, “branding,” of the actors with tattoos signifying their affiliation with either the Capulet or Montague family.

“The only one we haven’t branded or tattooed is Juliet because she’s 13 years old and she hasn’t yet been tainted by the feud. She is the innocent. The show really is her show,” Oxenreiter said.

Oxenreiter returned to an aspect of her production that remains a unique draw for audiences.

“Most companies will avoid teenage actors completely because of the lack of experience,” she said. “It is very rare to see actors playing the [teenage] roles that are their own age. You’re not going to see this very often.”