Behind the scenes of the fall play: Shakespeare in Hollywood

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Story by Emily Pravel, Copy Editor

Boca High’s own Troupe 2564 has done it again. They will perform a production titled “Shakespeare in Hollywood.” The production was written by Ken Ludwig and received an award in 2004.

Shakespeare in Hollywood” debuted on September 5, 2004 on the Arena Stage in Washington D.C. The setting takes place at the Warner Bros studio in 1934 and “A Midsummer’s Night Dream” is being produced. And no, Shakespeare himself isn’t in Hollywood.

Boca High’s production of Shakespeare in Hollywood will be performed on October 27th-29th. “Shakespeare in Hollywood” is about two fairies, Oberon and Puck, which magically appear on a Hollywood movie set in the 1930s.

“They bring a flower with them that makes everyone fall in love with the wrong people and it’s a giant mess of celebrities, fame, stardom and magical powers from an awesome Shakespeare land. All wrapped up in one Hollywood studio,” according to Joseph Piccin.

Oberon falls for Olivia causing a love triangle and Puck gives the flower to everyone making more people fall in love with the wrong person. The fairies cause a bunch of chaos in Hollywood. The leads of the production are Tina Lorenzo as Puck, Lorenzo Sostre as Oberon and Val Castano as Olivia.

This show is very similar to last year’s performance of “Leading Ladies” because it’s “a really big comedy, there’s a lot of laughter and really funny jokes.” The show won’t be in the Shakespearean language and in the show Shakespeare is made fun of a lot. All cast members expect the house to be brimming with students and teachers every night it’s offered to the public.

“We have publicized like crazy. We go all over Boca spreading flyers, newspapers, articles, and postcards. We send everything out we can around the town and we try to get the students involved to come see the show,” said Piccin.

Ms. Mapes is making the actors push past their limits to make sure that this production is perfect on opening night. The cast of the play practices everyday directly after school until 5-6pm, normally, and when it’s closer to the show’s date they extend practice until 9-10pm, to make the show seem magical as it should be.

 “At Boca High we’ve done Shakespeare and we’ve done comedies, but we’ve never done a show where actual Shakespearean characters magically appear in real life. You can see characters in the show who actually existed as real people in the past such as James Cagney and the Warner Bros. There’s comedy, there’s drama, there’s romance, and there’s glamour. This show has it all!” said senior Christina Lorenzo. 

The play runs through October 27th-29th starting at 7pm, but also on October 29th there is a matinee show at 2pm. Tickets are able to be purchased in the courtyard during the week of the production for $10 for general seating and $15 for the VIP seats, but VIP is usually all bought by the week of the show. Students who purchase tickets don’t have to wait in a long line and are able to get a good seat before anyone else takes it. However, on October 28th the price of the tickets is lowered to five dollars, for both students and teachers, but you must have your ID. On the nights of the show, there’s a ticket booth to buy last minute tickets in with the same pricing.

This spectacular display of  hard work is evidence of turning dedication into a beautiful final product. The cast has made this comical performance come to life for the student body. 

 

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