Saturday's performance of Romeo and Juliet by the Yale Repertory Theatre was my introduction to Yale's well-known theatre. I knew about Yale Rep's reputation while I was a student here, but I never managed to attend a production. That was a mistake, only realized in retrospect when the offerings of a world-class university are no longer at your disposal.
For those of you that have never heard of Yale Rep, here are some important highlights. The Rep is a professional theatre that produces both new plays as well as interpretations of the classics. It was founded in 1966 by Robert Brustein, then dean of the Yale School of Drama. When it comes to new work, Yale Rep has produced over 100 premiers. Two have won Pulitzer Prizes, four have been nominated finalists, eight have received Tony Awards after transferring to Broadway and more than 40 have received Tony Award nominations. Eleven Yale Rep productions have gone on to Broadway and countless others have been produced at theatres across the country. Yale Rep also received the Tony Award for Outstanding Regional Theatre in 1991. And, of course, not to mention all of the well-known actors who have performed at Yale Rep, such as Meryl Streep.
So there you have it -- how can I have missed this when I was a student? Although I may have been a fool my first time around, I am happy that many of our law school students are taking advantage of Yale Rep. One of our students, in fact, won a part in Romeo and Juliet and made her Yale Rep debut as part of the cast -- for those who missed it, here's a link to her blog post about the experience.
This production of Romeo and Juliet was a modern take on Shakespeare's classic. The parts of Romeo and Juliet were played by a former and current Yale MFA student, and the set was also designed by a third-year student. Although the fight sequences felt a little staged, and I was not a huge fan of the gorilla costume worn by Romeo, the performances were engaging and a treat.
After Romeo and Juliet finishes its run on April 2, the final production of the 2010-11 season will be the U.S. Premiere of Autumn Sonata by Ingmar Bergman. The 2011-12 season promises to be every bit as exciting as this one with three world premiers -- check it out.
I wrote a few years ago in my post, The
$42,000 All-You-Can-Eat Buffet, about the abundance of free food at the Law School. Three years later everything I
mentioned in the post, except the price, still holds true. To help illustrate the importance of free
food at YLS, here's a clip
from last year's Yale Law Revue, our annual sketch comedy show. Sustainability (which I also wrote
about a few years ago) and free food came together recently in a fun way
when the YLS Green Team organized a vegetarian cook-off in support of Meatless
Mondays in the Dining Hall.
Members of the Law School community were encouraged to
compete for the title of YLS's Top Vegetarian Chef by entering their favorite
vegetarian entrée recipes in the cook-off.
A panel of students, faculty, and staff reviewed the submissions. The top eight recipes then went on to the
final round of judging. In the final round, the
contestants had to prepare their dishes for evaluation by our resident panel of
foodies. The entire school was also
invited to sample the dishes and vote on their favorites. Below are some photos of the event. Please excuse the poor quality; I'm still
working on taking decent shots with my iPhone.
In the end, only one person's cuisine could reign
supreme. First-year student Jonathan
Siegel wowed the judges with his entry: roasted butternut squash with harissa
vinaigrette. For his culinary
skills and creativity, Jonathan won a $50 gift certificate and will have his
dish added to regular rotation in the Dining Hall. Congratulations to Jonathan, YLS's first Top
Vegetarian Chef!
