Shakespeare Musical defies classic style

The music is original, but the lyrics are pure Shakespeare in the latest Bloomington Playwrights Project production, “Romeo and Juliet: a Shakespearean Music-Drama.”

“It’s not opera. It’s not Broadway. It’s somewhere in between,” said director Jack Johnson.

The play runs about two and a half hours, with two 10-minute intermissions. As with an opera, the play is entirely sung, though composer and Jacobs School of Music composition professor Don Freund opted to make the melodies more relatable than arias when he began work on the project in the spring of 2006.

“It started out by thinking I hadn’t ever seen an opera or musical that really caught me,” he said. “I wanted it to feel like a real play ... always wanted to write something people could sing to.”

Freund said most productions he’s seen of Shakespeare set to music have been grand operas, while his approach is comparatively minimalistic because he wanted a smaller focus. In his production, there is no orchestra; the sole instrument in a piano, played by Freund himself.

“We wanted it to be intimate; that’s why Don did it here,” Johnson said.

Freund’s goal was to make music worthy of the beautiful language he had to work with.

“I love the words so much, and I wanted to share the glory of them,” he said. “I like the audience to feel like they’re right there, watching it happen.”

While the lyrics are dialogue from the play, they have been excerpted and cut to fit the music, such as Act 1 Scene 3, in which the music alternates between Benvolio and Romeo in the town square and Juliet, the Nurse and Lady Capulet in Juliet’s room.

“I’m intrigued that he’s using the actual dialogue from the play,” said Bloomington resident Barbara Carlson. “The music and drama are really well-balanced and very complementary.”

The opening-night audience seemed receptive to the combined vision of the composer and designers.

“I would definitely recommend it,” said sophomore Melissa Mellinger, who particularly enjoyed sophomore Nathan Mittleman’s humorous portrayal of Capulet servant Peter.
Senior Lauren Hall came because a professor mentioned the production.

“It’s neat to see IU Jacobs School of Music students and hear them,” Hall said. “Juliet’s voice is beautiful.”

Though he obviously loves the music, Freund said he wants the audience to feel the words, and thus, the essence of the play.

“I hope it’s really a divine experience,” he said.