USI Theatre will be perform “Shakespeare’s R & J”  Oct. 14-21 in the Mallette Studio Theatre in the basement of the Liberal Arts building.

The play is an adaptation of William Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet” by Joe Calarco. “Shakespeare’s R & J” is the story of four boys who rebel against their strict boarding school and retreat to the attic to read and recite “Romeo and Juliet” which is banned by the school.

It is a “re-imagining” of Shakespeare’s work, Director Elliot Wasserman said.

There are only four male roles in this play, each role only given a number, Wasserman said. Wasserman currently teaches directing and acting classes and is also the artistic director of New Harmony Theatre.

He has been involved with plays and productions since high-school and has previously directed over 100 different plays, but this is the first time for “Shakespeare’s R & J.”

Each actor has a big responsibility, and among the four of them they play all of the main characters of Shakespeare’s original work, Wasserman said.

“All four of us are on stage the whole time except for the intermission,” said Kaleb Sullivan, sophomore theatre major.

“It’s more difficult to play a character playing another character,” Sullivan said. He is playing the student who plays Juliet.

“There are a lot more lines to memorize,” sophomore theatre major Julian Velasquez said.

“Another challenge is conveying the Shakespearian language,” Velasquez said. “We find ourselves using more gestures than normal.”

“Shakespeare’s message changes over time,” Sullivan said.

Rehearsals for the play take place five days a week. The beginning weeks of rehearsal consist only of the actors.

Closer to the time of live production lights are added, and then the technical details. One final dress rehearsal will take place preceding the live production, Wasserman said.

Previously USI productions ran from Thursday to Sunday for two weekends, consisting of eight productions. This play will run from Friday to Friday, consisting of the same number of productions.

This decision was made to account for students who would rather attend the play during the weekdays rather than on the weekend, Wasserman said.

Tickets are available through the USI box office.