The show is a modern retelling of Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet”
On Jan. 17, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, spectators are invited to come see the classic tale of two star crossed lovers re-imagined, set “against the backdrop of America’s racial reckoning, ignited by George Floyd’s murder,” according to a statement. “I’m at Your Window” is a hip hop musical version of Romeo Juliet, a What Fray Is Here?: Social Justice Shakespeare production. It is adapted and directed by Jay Are Adams and features music by Dan Pomfret and Adams. Singers will perform five scenes in a “staged reading” format, and there will also be an audience talk back with the artistic team. The show begins at 7 p.m., and tickets can be purchased here.
Adams spoke to his inspiration for the production:
“At the core this project is the start of my contribution to the BLM movement. I didn’t know where I stood or where I could put my stamp, until this project. The next goal is to make Shakespeare’s work more accessible, using Hip-Hop as the medium. Shakespeare was built for Hip-Hop. Dynamic (polarizing) characters, sophisticated hyperbole, extreme sarcasm, an endless supply of sexual jokes, made-up words/jargon, and a ‘down with the ‘man’’ mentality, Shakespeare and Hip Hop are a marriage of beats and meter.”
The performers are:
@TabiBaez-Bradway
@AudreyLavinCrawley
@ErikaFayGreenwood
@BrayamFazeOneRenovales
@JacobScott
The location is as follows:
Alchemy, 171 Chestnut Street
Providence, RI 02903
Shira Laucharoen is a reporter based in Boston. She currently serves as the assistant director of the Boston Institute for Nonprofit Journalism. In the past she has written for Sampan newspaper, The Somerville Times, Scout Magazine, Boston Magazine, and WBUR.