Armenia Makes Its First-Ever Appearance in the Verona Shakespeare Fringe Festival

The Verona Shakespeare Fringe Festival is an international and multilingual platform in Verona aimed at fostering a new creative dialogue around William Shakespeare’s plays and poetry.

This prestigious festival was created as an intercultural platform to bring together artists, researchers and theater groups from all over the world to reinterpret Shakespeare’s works in new ways. The festival is one of Verona’s significant cultural programs.

This year, for the first time in the festival history, Armenia is introduced in Verona with “Romeo and Juliet” of the G. Sundukyan National Academic Theater. The performance premieres at the Verona Shakespeare Fringe Festival on July 23. The private preview of the performance in Armenia took place on May 24.

The performance is directed by John Blondell, a participant in the Talent Pool program of the Keron Development Foundation. As a result of cooperation with the Foundation, the American director moved to Armenia and today works at the National Academic Theater after G. Sundukyan, introducing his experience and creative approaches to the Armenian theatrical environment. Blondell’s portfolio includes more than 110 productions that have been staged and liked by audiences across the United States, Europe, and Asia. 

One of the distinctive features of this production of “Romeo and Juliet” is its strong emphasis on female characters, with the Capulet and Montague families portrayed through a matriarchal structure. 

The scenography and costumes were created by the artist Blagoj Micevski, an invitee from Macedonia who chose a modern and multi-style artistic solution.

The performance incorporates modern stage play styles and creates an unexpected and direct way of presenting one of the world’s greatest tragedies.

Armenia’s participation in the Verona Shakespeare Fringe Festival marks an important step toward strengthening the international presence of Armenian theater. It not only provides an opportunity to showcase Armenian theatrical art on a prestigious European cultural platform, but also highlights the value created through the fusion of international experience, local theatrical traditions, and creative collaboration.