“From forth the fatal loins of these two foes – A pair of star-crossed lovers take their life,” is a well-known quote written by William Shakespeare in the prologue of Romeo and Juliet, a woeful narrative about romance and tragedy. The excerpt briefly summarizes the story’s setting, rivaling factions quarrel as a forbidden love invigorates between them. 

On the 16th of November, the OMHS Theater Department drew the curtains on their rendition of the famous play, starring Junior Tyler Cummings as Romeo and Senior Ava Jefferson as Juliet. Prior to the show’s release, the two of them were more than happy to share insight of how they came together and collaborated in the play. 

“When I saw that I got the lead role, I was honestly surprised. I genuinely thought I bombed my audition, so getting the role just completely surprised me in the best way,” said Jefferson. The idea of portraying herself as a completely different person in front of an audience was a passion she discovered in middle school. “What makes theater, ‘theater,’ is your ability to make things your own, whether it’s making your own screenplay, song, or acting choices. Working with the other performers was, as usual, amazing. They push me to be better and make choices I wouldn’t have thought to,” Jefferson recalled. Her biggest challenge was having to interpret the script of Shakespeare since Juliet is the most prominent role with many lines. Although the task was very intimidating, her director and teacher, Ms. Hoffen, assisted Jefferson in making an accurate interpretation of Shakespeare’s writing. “The advice I would give to anyone who may shy away from getting on stage is that you bring something to the table that no one else does. If you have something that is unique to you… use [it] to your advantage,” Jefferson suggests. Jefferson’s goals include working towards majoring in acting and minoring in screenwriting at AMDA, a performing arts college. Ultimately, she plans to become an actress in the near future.

On the other hand, Tyler Cummings knew what to expect when auditioning for the play since this was his third year performing here. Both himself and his peers knew about his extraordinary strengths which made him undoubtedly suitable for the role of Romeo. “Getting to know the cast was the greatest part of being in theater,” Cummings said. He compared how much quieter and less involved he was before joining the cast of High School Musical, an experience that opened him up to a dynamic environment. Claiming the major role that is Romeo, Cummings had to exercise his lines with a clear understanding of Shakespeare’s literature. Similar to Jefferson’s practice, Cummings was supported by Ms. Hoffen who guided him through tons of rehearsals so he could get the hang of it. In Cummings’ words, “It was fun to play off of each other when going over our lines and acting out. She showed us where specifically to stand on stage and gave us space for physical choices.” Cummings encourages others to give theater a chance too, “It’s always worth a shot. Ninety percent you’re going to enjoy yourself.”

As a person who is unfamiliar with Shakespeare’s pieces, the phrasing used throughout the play was overly complex, but the performer’s movements translated that language and helped me speculate the sum of the story. Knowing some of the members personally as students, I was astonished to see them rendered as entirely different personas, which is the magic of theater.

Altogether, the show couldn’t have been possible without Ms. Hoffen’s leadership. According to Tyler and Ava, she is renowned for being a proficient mentor to aspiring actors and actresses, providing whatever her students need and want to know. The leads described Ms. Hoffen as an influential role model who coaxes inclusion and motivates students to express themselves. Ms. Hoffen would go above and beyond to find what her students are passionate about and encourage them to bring their talent to the stage. As the director of the program, Ms. Hoffen was mainly in charge of choreographing the scenes but left her troupe to use their skills to fabricate the final sequence, allowing them to explore creativity.

We look forward to seeing the next theater production – The Little Mermaid!