The actors — many of whom will play dual roles to bring the script’s 25 characters to life —boast a range of experience. Four are Carroll Community College students, while others range in age from their 20s to their 50s.
Katie Keddell, a semi-professional actress from the Baltimore area, will play the part of Juliet. Her first time performing both in the iconic role and with the theater troupe, the actress said she is enjoying it so far.
‘‘I think it’s great,” she said, adding that working with college students is also broadening her learning experience.
Always a fan of the playwright, Keddell says this show has been challenging, especially since the troupe is ‘‘doing one of the most famous shows in Shakespeare.”
Although the costumes are a little shaken up for this production, the show stays true to the original Elizabethan script. The Shakespeare Factory’s mission is to try to recreate the acting conditions of Shakespeare’s time.
‘‘We have strict performance visions of all of our performances,” Delise said.
Actor Nick Pepersack, a law student at the University of Baltimore, is also having fun with the show. A serious student who dabbles in acting on the side, Pepersack plays the show’s second lead, Romeo.
‘‘It’s been a challenge with the amount of lines that I have and finding a balance between acting and law school, but it’s been worth it,” he said.
Having acted throughout high school, Pepersack said he has performed many Shakespeare plays before, but never ‘‘Romeo and Juliet.”
‘‘Being one of the most popular Shakespeare plays, I thought it would be interesting to perform in it,” he said, adding that he’s been in shows under the direction of Tommy Rinaldi before and wanted to work with him again.
The Shakespeare Factory consists of three troupes including the high school group known as The Rude Mechanicals and the elementary and middle school-aged Touchstone Players.
‘‘Romeo and Juliet” is being presented by the Factory’s adult troupe, The Distracted Globe Players, which performs twice a year.
A huge fan of Shakespeare and a teacher of the subject at Century High School, Delise formed the organization after he saw that the area was hungry for a Shakespeare troupe.
‘‘I started to see that people really liked the performances and started to think about expanding,” he said.
Audience reaction has been great so far, he said, adding that the Distracted Globe Players are already planning their next show for the summer.
The actors are also looking forward to opening night.
‘‘It should be a lot of fun. We’re doing things different but we’re staying true to what Shakespeare intended,” Keddell said.
‘Romeo and Juliet’
When: 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday; 3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday
Where: Carroll Community College Scott Center, 1601 Washington Road, Westminster
Tickets: $12 for adults; $8 for children and seniors; Free for Carroll Community College students, staff and faculty with ID
For information:410-218-1479
www.theshakespearefactory.com
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