Romeo and Juliet
Written by William Shakespeare
Revised by Veronica Dang

DIrected by KM Jones
Produced by Veronica Dang
Production Manager: Horacio Gutierrez
Stage Manager: Emilia Smart-Denson


Starring
Veronica Dang, Raul Luna, Ariel Estrada, Angela Chew, Jon Okabayashi, Susanne Pinedo

Raul Luna - Romeo

is a theater artist recently based in Harlem. He has performed regionally in the North Texas area. Noteworthy roles include Orpheus in Eurydice and Nurse in The Seussification of Romeo and Juliet. He will be making his film debut in A Life to Come starring Janeane Garofalo which films next year. Education: BFA, University of Texas at Arlington. Raul is also a seamstress and is currently teaching himself piano and French.

Angela Chew -
Mrs. Capulet, Tybalt, Cop 1

is grateful and excited to be part of this reading.  Past favorite roles have included Brutus (from “Julius Caesar”), Anne Frank, Helen Jones (from “Machinal”), and Juliet (from “R&J”).  She has worked with such companies as Hudson Shakespeare Company, Kings County Shakespeare Company, and George Street Playhouse.    

Her family participates in AAFILMLab’s 72 hour shootout annually. Their film “Heroes-in-Training” placed #4 this summer.  Check out thechewtube.weebly.com  to view this and other shorts as well as Angela’s cooking tutorials like how to spatchcock a chicken and make lo mai gai the easy way 🙂.   

​

In addition to acting, she has written two screenplays, and is currently editing her grandfather’s novel set during the Sino-Japanese war and follows the rise of Communism in China.  Much love to Kevin, Sienna, and Skylar.  Special thanks to Veronica, KM and team for making this production a reality.

Veronica Dang - Juliet

is very thankful to be a recipient of the New York City Artist Corps grant to make her dream of creating a modern and diverse NYC version of Romeo and Juliet that highlights the importance of mental health, especially among communities of color, possible. Veronica is an award-winning actress/writer/director/producer, creator of acclaimed webseries Subway: The Series and founder of NYC’s premier all Asian sketch comedy team Model Majority. Theater: 4000 Miles, Richard III, Much Ado About Nothing, All's Well That Ends Well, Midsummer Night's Dream. TV: Law & Order: SVU, The Last O.G.,The Following, Hostages, Saturday Night Live. 

@iVeronicaDang on IG and Twitter

 www.iVeronicaDang.com

Jon Okabayashi -
Mr. Montague,
"Friar" Lawrence, Benvolio

An actor, painter and event production multi-hyphenate, Jon is the crazy uncle who told you Navajo ghost stories, keeping little, young you scared and awake; the one who taught you to slow play pocket aces and catch trout on a fly.  He will drink whisky with you until sunrise.  He is his own evil twin.  He has travelled the globe scuba diving and surveyed coral reefs in the Indian Ocean and the Straits of Hormuz as a citizen scientist for ReefCheck. He was recently part of the Mixed Asian Media Festival in Scott Sickles’ KNOWN UNIVERSE. www.jonokabayashi.com

Ariel Estrada -
Dr. Capulet, Mercutio, Cop 2

is an actor, producer, writer, and advocate in support of Asian American equity in the performing arts. As an actor, he has performed on television, film, commercials, digital media, and Off-, and Off-Off-Broadway. As a producer, Ariel is the Founder and Producing Artistic Director for Leviathan Lab, a nonprofit creative studio for Asian American performing artists. As an arts advocate, he is the Marketing & Membership Director for the Consortium of Asian American Theatres and Artists and the Diversity & Inclusion Coordinator for Actors’ Equity. He was designated an Emerging Arts Leader by New York Foundation for the Arts, a Rising Leader of Color by Theatre Communications Group, and a member of ArtEquity’s 2021-22 BIPOC Leadership Circle. As a grant writing consultant, he has won over $190K in grant funding  for small NYC nonprofits of color. He is also a Fortune 500-level graphic designer. arielestrada.com

Susanne Pinedo - Nurse, 
Mrs. Montague, Apothecary

In 2011, Susanne jumped into her car and drove from her home town of Miami, Florida to have a love affair with NJ/NYC and the relationship is still going strong. She is an actor and writer and obtained a BFA in Theatre from Florida International University. Some credits include Lola in Ghosts of Bogota by Diana Burbano, Simone in Caplata by Margo Rofe, as part of The Covid Monologues, Carmen in Have to Believe We Are Magic by Sara Guerrero and the short film, Bela Lugosi Meets Edna St. Vincent Millay by Jordan R. Young. She can also be heard as the Spanish voice on several telephone systems for IT companies and medical offices. Susanne’s family is originally from Colombia.