New zombie rock musical ‘Romero and Juliet’ features local actors

A new musical is set to hit the stage at Saint Vincent College in Unity next month. But according to its lyricist and co-creator Scott Logsdon, the whole concept is the result of a typo.

Several years ago, while corresponding with a friend about auditions for a showing of Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet,” Logsdon said he misspelled Romeo as “Romero.” But he said the error reminded him of famed horror director George Romero, who set several of his pioneering zombie films in Western Pennsylvania.

Toying with the idea for years, Logsdon and the show’s composer, Aaron Gandy, finally began work this year on what Logsdon described as Shakespearean sci-fi horror meets 1980s rock power ballads.

Raised in Somerset, the lyricist acted in several Broadway shows, including Les Misérables, and toured throughout the country for several years.

His latest show is set in a world where the existence of zombies, who now seek acceptance among humans, has been recently revealed through the films of George Romero.

It follows the love story of Romero, son of local anti-zombie authorities and distant relative to the director, and Juliet, a zombie. Rather than Shakespeare’s Italian Verona, the show is set in Allegheny County’s riverside borough of Verona.

Playing Romero’s zombie-skeptic father, Sergeant George, is Vince Tresco, 43, of Plum. Tresco said Logsdon initially approached him with the show after encountered him at a showing of “Jersey Boys” last year.

Intrigued by the local setting, Tresco said he felt the show was a “good opportunity to bring it home.”

“(The show) could be intriguing on so many levels, but it’s just something new and raw on that love story,” he said.

Starring several local Slippery Rock University students as well as recent Slippery Rock graduate Veronique Chayer as Juliet, Logsdon said he was impressed by the local talent he encountered.

“We really lucked out and got to have our first picks for every role, and they were all people we were really excited to work with,” Logsdon said.

Shea Curran, 23, of McCandless plays Romero.

A Lincoln Park Performing Arts Charter School and Shenandoah University graduate, Curran described his character as a “lovesick puppy.”

Though he is working his way toward the Broadway stage, Curran said he is excited to be part of a show centered in the Pittsburgh region.

“I think it’s cool that there’s something new and original happening locally,” Curran said. “It’s cool to create something with local people and local talent.”

In the end, Logsdon said, he hopes the show can become like the cult classic “Rocky Horror Picture Show” or “Little Shop of Horrors,” which he described as his template for the musical.

But for now, he said he is seeking the guidance of theatergoers as he refines the show.

“You don’t know what the show is until you see it in front of an audience,” he said.

For Tresco, a longtime local actor, he said he appreciates the novelty of the show, calling it “new, raw and edgy.” He said he has high hopes for “Romero and Juliet.”

“I’ve seen a lot of new works. This more than anything has a chance (to go big),” Tresco said.

“Romero and Juliet” will premiere on May 17 at Saint Vincent College with production by Split Stage Productions of Greensburg. There is a matinee at 2 p.m. and an evening performance at 7.