Romeo and Juliet

Last night, I went to a newly rennovated theater downtown and watched the Aquilla acting company's version of Romeo and Juliet. It was wonderful, the theater and the performance both.

The theater is a part of a downtown rennovation project. The Grand Opera House was built just before the turn of the last century, and in its heyday, it was one of the premiere entertainment destinations in the southeast. It fell into disrepair, was closed down, and because it was on the second floor, also suffered the indignity of having a shoe store put in what was once its lobby. I remember going with my mom to the department store of which the opera house was a part. It was such an old-fashioned building that the elevators still required an operator to run them. While Mom shopped, I rode the elevator, and the kindly lady who worked it would tell me stories of the opera house. I always dreamed of going to a performance in it.

I saw it briefly in high school. A local theater company had reopened it and was trying to use it for amateur performances. It was in very bad shape, though, and I wondered then if anything would ever be done to save it. About five years ago, Mississippi State University and a local group of philanthropists bought the property and started massive rennovations. They have combined the old department store and the theater into one large center. The department store became a conference center, and the theater was restored to its full late Victorian glory. It was absolutley wonderful. I was so proud to see the care that had been taken to preserve what was already there and the additions that will allow it to be useful for professional performances. I don't think this town has ever had anything like it, or at least, not since the opera house was open in its original incarnation.

Romeo and Juliet was different again. The company consisted of six actors, and to figure out which roles they'd be playing, the actors went to the audience and had them draw roles out of a sack. We managed to wind up with a male Romeo and a female Juliet, but some nights, depending on the luck of the draw, they don't. The costumes and sets were stark and simple, but the wonderful language had the same power. I really enjoyed it. The character who played the Nurse as one of his three roles was a riot. He milked every innuendo and seemed to be having a good time with it.

Overall, it was a night of what I needed. I desperately needed something that wasn't teaching or taking classes, something with beauty and art. I am looking forward to more performances at our new theater.