Suburban Oregon Theater Wades Calmly Into the National Shakespearean Fray

In the wake of national controversy around the "politicization" of Shakespeare, specifically reflected
in The Public Theater's production of "Julius Caesar," one small, suburban theater company in
Hillsboro, Oregon is calmly wading into the fray. Bag&Baggage Productions is presenting a world
premiere adaptation of Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet" fused with the 12th century Muslim
Persian poet Nizami Ganjavi's masterpiece "Layla and Majnun."

Hillsboro, OR, June 24, 2017 --(PR.com)-- In the wake of The Public Theater's politically charged Julius
Caesar, in which a Trumpian-clad Caesar faces the assassin's daggers, death threats are being levelled
against Shakespeare-producing theaters across America. In Boston, Massachusetts, New York, and Texas,
theaters with summer Shakespeare in their repertoire are experiencing backlash against the
politicization and liberalization of Shakespeare's works.

Meanwhile, in sleepy suburban Hillsboro, Oregon a small professional theatre is quietly taking
Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet back to its Islamic roots in a production being embraced by the
community. The world premiere adaptation from Bag&Baggage (B&B) Productions features text from
12th century Sunni Muslim poet Nizami Ginjavi's epic Layla and Majnun, often ascribed as an indirect
influence on Shakespeare's tragedy.

In Nizami's 4,000 verse poem, two young lovers reject the edicts of their parents, embrace their forbidden
love, and pay the ultimate price. Along the way, there are banishments, arranged marriages, bad advice
from spiritual figures, and 'love as madness' metaphors aplenty. The B&B production relocates the action
of Shakespeare's play to 12th Century Persia, immediately prior to the European Crusades.

The story of Layla and Majnun has been called the single most important poetic work in the literary
history of the Middle East, says Scott Palmer, B&B's Founding Artistic Director and the adaptor of the
work. Scholars note that Nizami's 12th Century masterpiece was, in fact, influenced by earlier Arabic
folk stories from the 6th and 7th Century. Tracking the journey of Layla and Majnun from ancient Iran to
Strattford-Upon-Avon is tricky, but the parallels are too numerous to ignore. In many ways it is possible
to argue that Romeo and Juliet were born not in Verona but rather in the deserts of Arabia in the 6th
century.

The cast and crew of the production, called Romeo&Juliet (Layla&Majnun) features three artists of
Persian decent, including Melory Mirashrafi, a 20 year old first-generation Iranian-American as the
Assistant Director, Avesta Mirashrafi, her 17 year old younger brother who is a junior at Hillsboro High
School, and Mandana Khoshnevisan, a second generation Iranian-American.

The script is more of a mash-up of the two stories, said Palmer. What we have tried to do is explore
the similarities between the two poetic and highlight them for our audiences. For example, Juliet's 'gallop
apace' speech from Shakespeare's has numerous corollaries in the Nizami, so we blended those images
and that text together. It isn't Shakespeare, and it isn't Nizami; it is a blending of the two.

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While audiences in New York may be poised for interruptions and catcalls from protesters during
performances, the broader community in Hillsboro has more than embraced the B&B production.
Performances will take place outdoors in Hillsboro's Civic Center Plaza, in the heart of the city's historic
downtown and on the doorstep of the City Hall.

Over the past few weeks, our cast and crew have been invited to Ramadan dinners, engaged in
conversations with communities of faith, and talked with patrons about the debt that the greatest romantic
tragedy in Western literature owes to the Middle East and, in particular, to a Muslim poet from ancient
Persia, said Assistant Director Mirashrafi, who is working on translating some of the text into Farsi and
training the actors on pronunciation and cultural norms. For me, being a part of a production that
celebrates the history and literature of Persia, that embraces intersectionality, the connection between the
cultures of the east and west, and that shows our audiences Iranian faces that aren't painted by extremism
or terrorism is absolutely crucial.

Performances take place outdoors at the Tom Hughes Civic Center Plaza in downtown Hillsboro on
Thursday, Friday, and Saturday evenings from July 20th - August 5th. Patrons may visit bagnbaggage.org
for more information and to purchase tickets. The Bag&Baggage box office can be reached at 503 345
9590.

Romeo&Juliet (Layla&Majnun) is adapted and directed by Scott Palmer, with costume designs by
Melissa Heller, and lighting and set design by Jim Ricks-White. The cast includes Nicholas Granato as
Romeo/Majnun, Arianne Jacques as Juliet/Layla, Lawrence Siulagi as The Sayyed, Signe Larsen as
Tybalt, Eric St. Cyr as Ibn Salam, Colin Wood as Nawfal, Gary Ploski as The Storyteller, Mandana
Khoshnevisan as Lady Capulet, Cassie Greer as Benvolia, and Avesta Mirashrafi as Abram.

About Bag&Baggage Productions: Bag&Baggage is committed to provocative, innovative interpretations

of classical works of American and English Drama. Through the use of major literary adaptations and
inventive stagings, the company seeks to reconnect the great works of drama to new audiences.
Bag&Baggage is the only professional theatre in Hillsboro, Oregon and was a recipient of an American
Theatre Wing National Theatre Company award in 2015. www.bagnbaggage.org.

Editor's Note: Interviews and additional promotional photos available upon request.

Professor Michael Malek Najjar of the University of Oregon (focus on Arab-American Theatre and
Performance) is also available for comment upon request.

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Contact Information:
Bag&Baggage Productions
Scott Palmer
503 345 9590
Contact via Email
bagnbaggage.org

Online Version of Press Release:

You can read the online version of this press release at: http://www.pr.com/press-release/721173

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