The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey celebrated a very special season opening on Saturday, June 11 with Matthew Barber’s play Enchanted April. It was the first time in two years they have opened a new season. It is also significant because the Madison based theater group also celebrates their 60th Year Anniversary this season.
Sound of cicadas cutting N.J. theater’s outdoor season short
Updated 12:12 PM;
Today 12:00 PM
The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey holds a rehearsal of Julius Caesar at the Thomas H. Kean Theatre Factory in Florham Park. Monday, April 19, 2021Patti Sapone | NJ Advance Media
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For a regional theater, performing during a pandemic brings plenty of challenges: Actors in face masks. Smaller casts due to social distancing. Moving performances outdoors.
But this summer there’s something else the Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey expects to face as well: cicadas.
In
a few weeks, billions of cicadas from Brood X are expected to go from quietly feeding on roots underground to emerging on the surface throughout the country, including in New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania. Residents will notice their presence arriving for the first time in 17 years by a distinctive shrill they emit to draw mates.