Twelfth Night, by William Shakespeare, is a Shakespearean comedy that follows all the conventions of a Shakespearean comedies. There are mistaken identities, a wedding, and a (spoilers) a happy ending. However, with the help of a Shaina Taub score, the Jenkintown Music Theatre takes the conventional and makes it contemporary. You can see the results at Gratz College Theatre in Melrose Park beginning this Friday, April 1st through Sunday April 3rd and then again, the next week, Friday, April 8th through Sunday April 10th. The Friday and Saturday shows are both at 8 pm, and the Sunday shows are at 2 pm. Click here for tickets.
The Jenkintown Music Theatre is a non-profit and has been part of the Jenkintown community for over 70 years. Any proceeds the theater makes go into a scholarship fund that is offered to a graduating senior at Jenkintown High School that excels in the Arts.
Originally staged in 1602, Twelfth Night is one of Shakespeare’s most performed comedies. It tells the story of of a woman who pretends to be man and then gets caught-up in the courtship of two local aristocrats. It upsets standards of romance and gender roles.
These performances of Twelfth Night were originally slated for two years ago but had to be postponed due to COVID. Two weeks before opening night, the theater went dark.
“It’s crazy to be here two years later, finally getting to do it,” said Jennifer Corsanico Berger, co-director, and producer of the show. “We have a mixture of some original cast members, but we lost some of them due to various circumstances. So, we’re really excited to have some new people joining the cast.”
While the play itself is faithful to Shakespeare’s text, the score is a mix of different genres of music including Jazz, Funk, 80’s Pop, with contemporary lyrics that move the plot forward in a way the help people understand what’s going on. Originally performed in New York City at the Public Works Theater, Twelfth Night was composed by Shaina Taub, an up-and-coming composer who is currently working with Elton John scoring The Devil Wears Prada Broadway adaptation.
“The themes, identity, unrequited love…apply still today,” Jennifer continued. “Shakespeare was ahead of his time or just really honest about the times he was living in. The show is really fun”
Deb Schrager is the other co-director and has been directing musical theater for about 15 years. This is her fifth show directing for the Jenkintown Music Theatre.
“It is a wonderfully funky funny musical version of Twelfth Night,” Deb said. “The music is contemporary; the dancing is upbeat, and I think people will have a lot of fun watching it…We’ve been having a great time performing together.”
Although some of the actors did come back from the original production, the company had to start from the beginning when putting together the show for this upcoming run. Deb sees the show as being a “happier” version than its predecessor:
“I think it’s gotten happier and that is a result of the cast is happy to be together and having a new perspective on doing Community Theater after not being able to do Community Theater for so long,”
Tickets are $20 and can be purchased online here.