Ice The Beef Presents ROMEO AND JULIET at The International Festival of Arts and Ideas

The youth group stars of Ice the Beef tackle Shakespeare's classic tragedy with the help of Elm Shakespeare Company. Ice the Beef is a Connecticut nonprofit committed to gun violence prevention through education, creative expression, and amplifying community voices. With a focus on cultural diversity and accessibility, Elm has been breathing new life into timeless stories for the Greater New Haven community since 1995.

Education Director, Sarah Bowles has been working since September with Chaz Cameron and members of Ice the Beef to mount their unique production of Romeo & Juliet. The work is created using techniques from Augusto Boal's Theatre of the Oppressed. This practice places theater at the crosshairs of lived experience, present-day conflict, and restorative justice.

In pulling the show into New Haven's present, Carmon and Bowles have also made a series of artistic decisions that honor both Shakespeare and the young people taking on his words. No toy guns appear in the play, given the history of state-sanctioned violence on young Black kids playing with them in public parks. For the young actors, almost all of whom are in high school, this performance comes in a year that has seen a rise in citywide gun violence, including four homicides in under two weeks this May.

The work will premiere June 26 on the New Haven Green and take place again during Elm Shakespeare's first-ever outdoor youth theater festival in August. Find out more here and here.

The Elm Shakespeare Company ignites a spark in our humanity, enriches people's lives from widely diverse backgrounds, and strengthens the artistic and educational landscape of the Greater New Haven region. We are committed to offering accessible theater and innovative educational experiences in our parks, classrooms, neighborhoods, and now to your computers!