Romeo and Juliet in Arviat
Drama club returns to Shakespeare for end-of-year performance
Darrell Greer
Northern News Services
Wednesday, May 24, 2017
ARVIAT
The John Arnalukjuak High School (JAHS) Drama Club will be turning to the Bard for its season-ending performance this coming month.
The club will perform William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, a play the young Arviat thespians under the guidance of Gord Billard haven't attempted in more than a decade.
Billard said he didn't really have any idea of what play to perform to mark the end of the season after the club did A Christmas Carol during the holiday season.
He said he was looking for something new or with a Northern theme, when JAHS principal Judy Connor suggested he go back to Shakespeare, as the club hadn't done of any of his works in a long time.
"I thought about Romeo and Juliet, and I still have four swords I brought to Arviat with me about 16 years ago that haven't seen any action except for in the classroom," said Billard.
"The scripts were already in place and everything we needed was readily available, so the timing seemed right to revisit that play now.
"I threw it out to the students and they were a bit slow warming up to it - for the longest time I only had about half the cast - but, right from the start, I had a really strong Romeo and Juliet in Cheryl Nibgoarsi and Dorian Ussak, who are the anchors for the whole show.
"Then I had some strong actors show up for the rest of the major roles in the play, so I have a really strong core of main characters, and the minor characters are starting to come together now, as well."
Billard said it was a nice treat to have Shelby Angalik and Innosar Issakiark return home for the summer from post-secondary in time to be able to take on two minor roles in the production.
He said it's kind of ironic to see Angalik and Issakiark play small parts, with only a couple of lines, when they always had the lead roles during their time in the JAHS Drama Club.
"I'm just thrilled that they're back in town and want to help us out and be a part of this.
"It's cool to have them here because the other actors look up to them because they know what excellent work they've done in the past here."
Romeo and Juliet will feature a cast of about 15, and the JAHS Drama Club will perform two shows, a matinee and an evening performance, on June 13 and 14.
He said, hopefully, this show will go over as well as the original did in Arviat.
"I actually found the old VHS tapes of the first Romeo and Juliet production we did, and I've been showing this cast some of the scenes we did in that play.
"The crowds were really good for this play back then, as I remember filling up the gray steps in the old school for every show.
"So, the original went over very well, despite the Shakespearean language and, hopefully, this production will, as well.
"As for next year, I am coming back, so I'll wait until my return to Arviat following the summer holidays before deciding what we may tackle in the coming year."
