The Bard Goes On : Young Actors’ Labors Won’t Be Lost as Firm Rescinds Its Cancellation

Was it a matter of all’s well that ends well, or simply a case of much ado about nothing?

Those questions plagued a group of inner-city teen-age actors who nearly experienced a real-life Shakespearean tragedy when a company canceled their permit to perform “Romeo and Juliet” at the Citicorp Plaza.

The permit was revoked just as the teen-agers were in the midst of intense study of the play while earning $5.47 an hour through the city’s summer youth employment program for economically disadvantaged youths.

For six years, the Shakespeare Festival/LA has put on professional productions at the plaza. But this year the festival ran short of funds and was rejected when it tried to schedule the young actors instead of the professional production.

That is when Prudential Realty Group, which manages 7th Street Marketplace at 7th and Figueroa streets, learned of the switch and called off the performance.

“They told me this was not the kind of production they were interested in,” said Ben Donenberg, artistic director of Shakespeare Festival/LA. “It attracted a different kind of audience than what they were interested in.”

The decision to cancel the performance angered City Councilwoman Rita Walters, whose district includes the downtown plaza.

“This production is something we should all applaud,” Walters said. “But rather than embracing the youngsters and being proud of their achievement, the company rejected them because they didn’t like the color and economic status of the students and their friends and family who would like to attend the event.”

Prudential officials denied that charge.

Rolf Kleinhans, vice president of Prudential Realty Group, which manages Citicorp Plaza, said his company dropped the production because it was concerned about the costs, not because of fears about the audience the production would attract.

“I’m astounded at these comments,” he said. “Prudential is extremely sensitive to the need for diversity, and allegations of discrimination are unfounded.”

Comparing Prudential’s response to the recent decision by Cineplex Odeon Corp. to delay the opening of the movie “Poetic Justice” by director John Singleton, Walters complained to the company and then called a news conference to express her outrage at Prudential’s decision.

But before the news conference, she received a fax from Prudential calling the cancellation a misunderstanding and offering to reschedule the performance.

Donenberg described the teen-age production of “Romeo and Juliet” as an earnest, heartfelt production that will be appreciated by any audience.

In the meantime, organizers have scheduled two productions of the play Friday and Saturday evenings in the California Plaza’s Spiral Court at 350 S. Grand Ave. Donenberg said that if the money is available another production will be given at Citicorp.

Walters welcomed the change.

“I think we have a victory here. I think we have a great victory. . . . It’s a wonderful victory for these students,” Walters said.

But despite the cries of victory, some students still felt the pain of the initial rejection.

Fabian Moreno, a 15-year-old actor, said: “The whole thing sounded a little racist to me.”

“I’m happy about the decision,” said Archie Hernandez, a 19-year-old who is playing Romeo. “But the message seems to be that people should stay in their communities. It’s OK to build Los Angeles but stay home. I’d like to see these companies reach out more. If they reached out more, they’d understand more.”