Five Baldwin Wallace Music Theatre alumni returned to Cleveland in the national tour of the hit Broadway musical “& Juliet,” which recently ended its three-week run in the Connor Palace on March 23.
Written by Emmy winner David West Read, “& Juliet” reimagines the story of Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet” and answers the question: what if Juliet didn’t end it all and decided to live on after Romeo? This jukebox musical features the music of Swedish pop songwriter Max Martin, who wrote hits such as ‘Since U Been Gone,’ ‘Baby One More Time,’ and ‘I Want It That Way.’”
Three BWMT alumni are part of the production’s principal cast: Corey Mach ‘10 as William Shakespeare, Nick Drake ‘20 as May, and Mateus Leite Cardoso ‘23 as Francois. The other two alumni perform in the ensemble and understudy principal roles: Camille Brooks ‘24 and Shelby Griswold ‘20.
Camille Brooks, whose ensemble name is Judith and understudies Juliet, began the audition process while still a student at BW. She said that a few months after her senior recital was posted to YouTube, she saw the audition pop up in her Actors Access, which is an online platform where actors maintain a professional profile.
Brooks described her first audition as a “huge risk” because she had to pay her own fare to New York and miss a day of classes, and her callback was the morning of her senior showcase in New York. Three weeks after the showcase, she was offered the role.
While this is Brooks’ first professional role after graduating from BW, Shelby Griswold is no stranger to professional theater—especially not “& Juliet”.
Griswold, whose ensemble name is Lucy and understudies Anne Hathaway and Angelique, initially auditioned for “& Juliet” when the show was moving to Broadway. She made it close but eventually was not cast in the Broadway production.
Griswold went back to the audition room a few years later for the national tour, now more familiar with the material from her last audition and the confidence to portray characters who were much older than her. She was then cast in the ensemble with fellow alumna, Brooks.
“Coming back to the material later, having experienced more life [and] done more jobs, it just felt so much more confident,” Griswold said. “I don’t have to do it like other people. I’m going to do it my way, and if they like it great, if not, you know, I did my best.”
During her time at BW, Griswold had the opportunity to portray many different types of characters, such as Sally Bowles in “Cabaret” and Chloe in “Be More Chill.” These experiences showed her that, especially as a plus-sized actress and a “big proponent for body diversity,” there were roles for her in theater.
“How exciting that casting just was open to the opportunity to let me … show people in the audience that it doesn’t matter what you look like—” Griswold said. “All of that definitely morphed and shaped me as a performer today.”
Brooks described her experiences as an understudy during her time at BW and how it helped her learn to cover two tracks: an ensemble and a lead role. Additionally, she highlighted the importance of master classes with industry agents, in which she would always write down and incorporate any feedback given to her.
“One of the things that has been super helpful, and that I hope that they continue to do, is the Master Class series with the agents,” Brooks said. “Having that exposure to the industry ahead of time and bridging the gap between being in an education setting versus being in the professional world is so important because some things just cannot be taught at school.”
For Griswold, bringing “& Juliet” to Playhouse Square and being in proximity to BW feels like a “coming home,” and she has been able to teach master classes to current BWMT students and share her experiences with them.
Griswold said: “Every time that I get to go on for Anne Hathaway and I get to share and do scene work with Nick, it’s so nostalgic to sort of be like, ‘Well, I did shows with you when we were 18 years old, and now we’re doing it at essentially the most elite level that you can be doing professional theater.’”
“& Juliet’s” next stop is Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and they will continue touring the United States of America through August 2026. Cleveland audiences can further experience BWMT with their upcoming senior showcase on March 30 and the April production of “[title of show]” at Playhouse Square.
