Rome Sweet Rome

Rome Sweet Rome is another Q Brothers Collective that utilizes theatrical performance by blending hip-hop and contemporary music, transforming classic plays with a modern twist. The Q Brothers have created hip-hop adaptations of multiple Shakespeare plays, notably with "Othello, "The Bomb-itty of Errors," based on The Comedy of Errors, "Funk It Up About Nothin'" (Much Ado About Nothing), and "Dress The Part" (Two Gentlemen of Verona) and Romeo and Juliet, not William Shakespeare's play, Julius Caesar, which is now playing at Chicago Shakespehere Theater, is called Romeo and Juliet. The witty satirical "add-rap-tation" focuses on the tyrannical Caesar, who, through force and power, limited the Roman Senate and proclaimed himself dictator. Brutus, speared by Cassius, Senator Casca (Publius Servilius Casca Longus), and other senators, who were hysterically upset with Caesar's rules and edicts, which included not allowing them to eat bread, conspired to kill him. In real life, the concept of "bread and circuses" was a ploy used by the Roman government to placate the people with free food and entertainment, thereby distracting them from political issues.

In the play, Caesar's banning of delicious carbs and humiliating those who were overweight became the driving force behind the movement to unseat him from the throne. Rome Sweet Rome is so outlandish and comical that many will miss its themes of economic inequality, political injustice, the poverty that normal Roman citizens endured, and the price countries and kingdoms face when a leader becomes a dictator. Still, with '90s hip-hop and New Jack Swing, fused with Razor-Sharp Wit and Shakespearean-style language and themes that tell the story of ancient Rome, will spark an educational prowess in today's children to learn more about history while providing a modern twist to historical events that occurred in the late 1500s, which most kids today will find utterly boring. Rome Sweet Rome is totally entertaining. It's like watching a PlayStation version of Shakespeare on stage. I would advise against bringing children under 13 to this production, as it contains some language that may be too delicate for children.

The cast, featuring Janyce Caraballo, Danielle Davis, Jax, Victor Musoni, Cage Sebastian Pierre, Maya Vinice Prentiss, Postell Pringle, JQ, Jonathan Shaboo, and Bri Sudia, and with diverse songs ranging from Public Enemy, Snoop Dogg, The Notorious B.I.G., to Johnny Gill and Minnie Riperton, delivers 80 minutes of adrenaline-pumping entertainment that's both captivating and creative.  

⭐⭐⭐

Chicago Shakespeare Theater

ROME SWEET ROME

Created and Directed by Q Brothers Collective (GQ, JQ, JAZ, and Pos)

Developed in collaboration with

Edward Hall and Ericka Ratcliff

September 23 - October 19, 2025

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