‘& Juliet’ comes to the Wharton Center; there’s life after you know who

Acting is the one thing Paul-Jordan Jansen did in his youth that he truly loved. 

“It has brought me so much joy,” Jansen said. “I’ve been acting since I was a kid, but professionally for nearly 20 years. My voice teacher was the one who believed in me before I believed I could do this.”

Jansen plays Lance du Bois in “& Juliet,” a script-flipping take on William Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet,” running at the Wharton Center Tuesday through June 28. 

In the show, rather than killing herself upon learning her beloved Romeo is dead during the final act of perhaps the greatest love story of all time, Juliet embarks on a journey of new beginnings and second chances, realizing there’s life after Romeo.

“& Juliet” premiered in England in 2019 and made its Broadway debut in 2022. The North American tour began in 2024. The show has won three Laurence Olivier Awards and earned nine Tony Award nominations. It features songs by Grammy-winning songwriter/producer Max Martin, who wrote many hit singles in the 1990s, most notably Britney Spears’ “Baby One More Time,” the Backstreet Boys’ “Larger Than Life” and “I Want It That Way,” and Celine Dion’s “That’s the Way It Is,” all of which are featured in the show.

“There’s truly something for everyone,” Jansen said of the musical. “People from all walks of life come to see our show and walk away feeling inspired. It’s the burst of joy everyone needs.” 

Jansen has played Lance for nearly two years. His character is a stern, traditional ex-soldier and widower living in Paris. He is notably the only character in the production who speaks with a thick, exaggerated French accent. During the course of the show, Lance encounter Angélique, Juliet’s nurse, who’s also his long-lost former lover. Their rekindled romance softens his hardened demeanor.

“Lance is something fun and less brooding than what I usually do,” Jansen said. “Ultimately, it was his character arc that attracted me the most — his ways of communicating love and his personal journey of acceptance. I won’t give too much away so that folks take the time to come see us.”

He spoke about how his portrayal of Lance differs from other actors who have played the character. 

“I think there’s a firmness to what I do that you don’t often see associated with this role,” he said. “It helps offset the more comedic and tender moments you see with Lance.”

He also spoke about working alongside 2025 Jimmy Award-winning actress 

Fabiola Caraballo Quijada, who plays Juliet. 

“Fab is a force to be reckoned with!” he said. “This woman graduated from high school and immediately stepped into this role, having never performed in a professional production before. She has been leading us for the past year, and it has been incredible to see her grow. Fab will do all eight shows, plus press events, and never complain. Beyond that, her Juliet is thrilling, compassionate, funny and powerful. Working with her has been my privilege.”

Jansen was born and raised in Berea, Ohio, outside of Cleveland. He earned a bachelor’s degree in musical theater from Pennsylvania State University. He made his Broadway debut in the 2023 revival of “Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street.”  Other notable regional credits include “Beauty and the Beast,” “The Wizard of Oz” and the world premiere of “The Prince of Egypt.”

Jansen is deeply passionate about mentoring young artists. He has taught masterclasses at Penn State, the University of Utah, Utah State University and the University of North Carolina Greensboro. He created a musical theater institute at the Paramount School for the Arts in Illinois and served as theater director at Hathaway Brown School (the oldest surviving private girls’ school in the Cleveland area, founded in 1876) and at Aurora University in Illinois. 

“I enjoy helping young folks like myself discover the immense joy of theater, in the hopes that they walk away with a deep appreciation for the art form,” Jansen said.  

Next week will be his first time at Wharton, but his second time at Michigan State University.

“I love Michigan. I’ve been coming here my entire life to visit family in Detroit, go to Ann Arbor … it’s a great state,” he said. “I’m excited about bringing this show to MSU. I’ve always been a huge Spartan fan and grew up supporting MSU from Ohio. MSU has a great theater department — I actually looked at becoming a Spartan myself. Maybe one day!”