Arts Society King presents Romeo and Juliet in ‘A Night to Behold Love’

July 9, 2014 · 0 Comments

By Brittany Spencer
Arts Society King will begin its ninth annual ASK Festival with a night of romance as it welcomes to the stage William Shakespeare’s infamous “star-crossed lovers” in the Humber River Shakespeare Company’s production of Romeo and Juliet.
ASK and the HRSC invite the King community to the gala grand opening of the company’s York Region Tour, with the event “A Night to Behold Love” beginning at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, July 10 at the Country Day School Performing Arts Centre.
The HRSC has been performing across the York and Peel regions since 2008, showcasing their talents and unique style dedicated to the production of “theatrically engaging work with a focus on actors, not elaborate sets, to tell Shakespeare’s timeless stories.” The company prides itself on its commitment to outdoor theatre, allowing productions to adapt to their performance spaces across a variety of settings as they tour along the historic Humber River.
For this summer’s opening performance the company will transcend their traditional outdoor stages, bringing audiences indoors to celebrate the magic of professional theatre with one of Shakespeare’s most iconic love stories.
HRSC’s co-founder and artistic producer Sara Moyle described this year’s event as a brand new way for the company to “bring a romantic summer experience to our local communities.” The evening will include a champagne and strawberry reception hosted by ASK, followed by the King debut performance of this season’s play.
The HRSC is no stranger to King’s ASK Festival, as this summer’s production marks its seventh consecutive touring season as well as its seventh year of partnership with ASK. Moyle and fellow HRSC co-founder Kevin Hammond, regard the support they’ve received from ASK as key to the establishment of their “dream of bringing outdoor theatre to the King Township.”
“ASK has been a sponsor for the HRSC, and a true partner in every sense of the word – helping secure partners, opportunities, venues, and general artistic friendship,” Moyle said. “The warm reception and enthusiasm we received from ASK in [our] first meeting has since been paralleled by the community audience in King.”
For Moyle, these partnerships are the foundation behind the HRSC’s overall vision to “work with communities to build audiences and support, starting from the community up. We like to see what arts groups exist and are active and build lasting partnerships with them and their communities.”
The HRSC is thrilled to commence yet another season of production and a chance to carry out its mission to provide people with access to professional theatre within their own communities. The company seeks to give people with the opportunity to experience Shakespeare’s works as they was originally heard, while also becoming active participants in the shows as they are preformed.
In addition to seasonal performances, the HRSC will be running acting workshops that are open to the public and provide both beginner and veteran actors with an opportunity to come together in a community of theatre to practice their craft. Workshops cover a variety of material including Shakespeare’s plays and sonnets as well as many non-Shakespearean plays.
Hammond, the artistic director of this year’s production, shared his vision for this season’s modern adaptation of the classic story.
“As a director, you want to find a way into the play,” Hammond said. “For me, this was the stunning speed at which the events and world of this play progress. It comes down to people, human nature and our love affair with haste.”
He explained that in order to reorient Shakespeare’s traditional plot within a contemporary setting he has focused on the modern, yet timeless, idea of haste and the speed at which our society consistently accelerates.
“Everyone is making a mad-dash through life, acting according to the first thing that comes to their mind – allowing rage and hate to erupt instantaneously and overtake ideas of love, which take time … To me, it’s all about slowing life down so we can smell the roses … When we control our own personal time we can control fate itself.”
The play will include a collaboration of both classic and current artistic tastes. Romeo and Juliet will be brought to life through contemporary music, dance and setting while upholding its theatrical legacy that is centuries in the making.
The HRSC production of Romeo and Juliet will run through August 3 with performances in Aurora, Caledon, Newmarket, Mississauga, Etobicoke and Toronto. Information concerning other performance locations and upcoming acting workshops hosted by the company can be found on the HRSC website.
Tickets sales and further information for this year’s opening gala can be found online at www.artssocietyking.ca or www.humberrivershakespeare.ca.