To commemorate the 460 birthday of William Shakespeare on April 23, the John Carroll University Theatre Club staged, “The Complete Works of Shakespeare (abridged) [revised]” in the Little Marinello Theatre. The Theatre Club started during the fall 2023 semester and previously staged cabaret shows featuring everything from Shakespearean monologues to scenes from the film “Crazy, Stupid, Love.”

Vice President Maddie Jarosz ‘25 reflected on the journey when she told The Carroll News, “It has been an incredible process! We didn’t think that we would be able to put on a full two act show after only being in the club for six months. I am amazed by the passion and effort given by everyone in the club. We have left our mark in JCU theatre history and I cannot wait to see how we build from this show,creating bigger and better!”

“The Complete Works of Shakespeare (abridged) [revised]” aims to condense all 36 of Shakespeare’s plays into a tight two hour runtime. The play spirals with multiple diversions into madness as the characters hilariously interpret plays from the oft forgotten “Titus Andronicus” to mainstays of the classical stage like “Macbeth.”

Kimberly Blake ‘26, Jonny Shell ‘24 and Becca Diller ‘27 acted as guides for the audience, leading them deeper into Shakespeare’s oeuvre while chaos and hijinks ensued. Whether it be a brief recap of Shakespeare’s historical plays told through an on stage football game or a condensed interpretation of all 14 comedies into one brief scene, there was something for everyone.

The culmination of the play featured the company thrown into disarray when they presumably finished covering all of Shakepeare’s plays… only to realize they forgot “Hamlet.” After a few minor hiccups, the company completed “Hamlet” and for an encore, they performed the play three times faster and backwards.

Shell, who also played the role of Hamlet, elaborated on the pivotal role of the arts when he told TCN, “The Theatre Club is important for the John Carroll community because it empowers students to create and perform. This recent production was entirely student-run—student crew, student cast and student directors. We created something amazing all by ourselves, and the importance of that cannot be overstated.”

Audience members were enthralled with the story playing out on stage and were thoroughly impressed by the performances of each actor. Academic Success Advisor Ed Mish was in the audience and said, “‘The Complete Works of Shakespeare (abridged) [revised]’ was an utter delight. The Little Theatre was filled with big laughs, compliments of Theatre Club’s big talent. It’s stunning such a charming, hilarious show was put together in a mere few months.”

Despite the end of the spring semester rapidly approaching, the Theatre Club has made its mark on the John Carroll community and it doesn’t plan on going anywhere.