Have a Ball with the Capulets

As if to underscore the timelessness of Romeo & Juliet, Shakespeare’s tragic tale gets a different site-specific spin through Westmont College’s John Blondell as part of a mini festival this weekend. The veteran professor of theater arts has cut and refashioned Shakespeare’s play into something called The Capulet Black-and-White Ball, refracting the classic through a contemporary lens using modern staging techniques to bring audiences into the heart of the play. The immersive staging lets the audience move in and about the space between the Capulet house, Friar Laurence’s cell, and the street to involve them directly in the action for the performances that take place in and around the Community Arts Workshop on February 29 – March 3. Go even deeper as the mini festival also includes a single performance of a new play, The Romeo and Juliet Senior Citizens Project — A Comedy, written by Jami Brandli and directed by Ann Hearn Tobolowsky, from L.A.’s Road Theatre. Visit westmont.edu/boxoffice.