Ropes and chains, the music of Queen and Shakespeare all appeared at the Village Theatre Saturday night.

Eastern’s theater department presented Shakespeare’s “As You Like It” with a twist.

Although the actors spoke in Iambic pentameter, the stage and costumes for the show were contemporary.

The stage was simple. Ropes and chains hung from the ceiling on the perimeters of the stage; a disco ball glinted from the ceiling; and little more than a few tree stumps and tin garbage cans served as the set.

The floor of the stage was padded and allowed actors to perform barefoot. This also helped highlight the wrestling theme of the set and the costume design.

Rather than traditional Elizabethan garments, the actors wore costumes that alluded to rock music and wrestling. Half the cast wore costumes of black and red leather-like material garnished with chains, while the other half wore green, brown and purple for more earthy attire.

“There are so many ways to approach the script. You can see the same play in about 10 different versions,” said director Jean Wolski.

Rich Aguilera, who plays Orlando, said his character was based off Shawn Michaels. He said the wrestling aspect brought back memories.

“I grew up on wrestling,” he said.

Bailey Murphy, senior theater major and lead of the show as Rosalind, said she was skeptical of the new angle at first, but thought it helped her fellow students enjoy the show more in the end.

Although the lines of the play were spoken in Shakespearean English, the crowd followed the play and laughed at the humorous lines.

Celia – played by Aubrey Wiggs, sophomore English major – along with Touchstone the fool – played by senior theater major Jake Senesac – inspired the most laughter from the audience with their lines and body language.

Although Murphy and Aguilera had never performed in a Shakespearian play before, they found the show enjoyable.

Aguilera said he was a little nervous before the show, but once he got out there, “Rich doesn’t exist.”

The contemporary aspects of the show did not end with the stage and costumes. During a wrestling match in Act I, lights around the stage lit up and “Let’s get Ready to Rumble” blared out of speakers.

Cast members also sang some of their lines to the tunes of the Queen songs “We are the Champions” and “Bohemian Rhapsody.”

In the final scenes of the show, the cast danced to “Love Shack.”

Audience members had different opinions on the contemporary style of the show.

“I wasn’t sure how the wrestling thing would go, but I think it got the attention of the crowd and was hilarious. It hasn’t lost the true Shakespearean soul,” said Nathan Leitner, junior political science major.

He said he liked how Charles (the wrestler) wore a professional wrestling outfit because he was seen as the villain of the play.

“I think the costumes worked perfectly. Charles as the wrestler was great because he is the killer, or ‘bad guy,’ of the play. You can also tell who is important and who is not because of their outfit,” said Leitner.

Others thought the costumes were a little over the top.

“I thought the play was interesting and had good acting. The costumes were a bit outrageous, though, but they put a different spin on things,” said Lisa Myers, freshman English major with teacher certification.

Wolski said she chose “As You Like It” because the department had not done Shakespeare for a while.

She said after meeting with the designers, she wanted to emphasize the battles in the script. She said she liked the twist because the set design was not complicated and she thought the audience would recognize some of the props used.

“If they relax and have fun, the audience will really get into it. You do have to be active and pick up on the language, but Shakespeare has a lot of humor,” Wolski said. “Some are intimidated by his writing, but Shakespeare wrote for the actors. It is easier to digest his plays in a performance than in an actual reading.”

She said the turnout for the show has been good so far.

Sunday’s performance was sold out. Performances will continue today and tomorrow at 7 p.m.