HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WHNT) – Alabama A&M’s theatre troupe, the “Bulldog Bards”, performed a modern retelling of Shakespeare Twelfth Night at the Orion Amphitheater on Friday. The show is interactive, family-friendly, and full of laughs.

“I think it’s a great opportunity for people who are our age who don’t understand Shakespeare when they can see our twist and version to it,” said Twelfth Night Actor Ansley Joseph. “It’s going to be good for them to see and understand.”

The Bulldog Bards worked to make the performance accessible and fun for all ages. The show is shorter than the original Twelfth Night performance at just an hour long. It incorporates modern language and has interactive elements.

Twelfth Night actor Jaycie Coleman said she hopes to inspire others to participate in theatre.

“Besides acting, there’s other parts of theatre that people don’t realize you can do, sound, mics, setup, it’s just something for everybody to do,” Coleman said.

Many hours of preparation went into the show, and because many of the actors involved are students, they juggle acting with classes and jobs.

“It’s a task and a half, I will say that,” said Twelfth Night actor Niles Clavo. “From getting out of the theatre late and going home to have to come back and do it all over again. You know you’ve got classes, and you know you’ve got other stuff going on, but it’s always fun with this group of people.”

The Bulldog Bards is a new program at Alabama A&M, but this performance may be the first of many to come.

“We hope to have tours and things in our future, and hopefully we’ll be working with the Orion yearly to bring Shakespeare in the park to the community,” said Alabama A&M Assistant Professor of Performance Jill Balch-Coon.

The final performance of Twelfth Night will take place at 6:00 Friday night at the Orion Amphitheater. Admission is free. They will also put on the Wiz from November 8-11.