Everything comes back into style if you wait long enough.

It’s a truism so written into our culture as to be unchallengeable, and one proven again — and quite stylishly so — by the latest production of the Bainbridge High School theater, which combines the eternal themes of love, violence and fate with the already returning trends of the ‘90s and the slang of Shakespeare’s day into a very different take on “Romeo and Juliet.”

Perhaps the Bard’s best known work, the classic romantic tragedy has been reworked by the show’s cast and crew to feature the music of Nirvana and Green Day — performed by the high school band Overcast — and also to take a stab at some truly topical themes like parental ambivalence and the impact of gun violence on teenagers.

“This production is Shakespeare’s script, with a contemporary twist and a few surprises,” said Karen Polinsky, who is helming the project as both the show’s director and the new school theater director.

Changes abound, beyond even soundtrack and setting.

For example, Shakespeare’s comic character “The Nurse” has been exchanged for Rosaline (Romeo’s initial crush), who is now cast as Juliet’s bodyguard and confidante. The scheming Friar Lawrence is now Bill Nye the Science Guy, the ‘90s Disney/PBS TV scientist.

The staples of the story, however, remain the same. The young angst-ridden paramours still come from rival families — or gangs, in this case — and are supposed to be archenemies when they fall in love.

Both Romeo, BHS senior Trent Craighead, and Juliet, sophomore Emery Anderson, are making their BHS stage debut in this production, though Craighead has performed with both Bainbridge Performing Arts and Ovation! Performing Arts Northwest. He was originally slated to be the production’s sound engineer before landing the part of Romeo.

“The story really, really intrigues me,” he explained. “It’s set over the course of three or four days and all of this happens in so small of a time span and it’s so detailed and so in-depth.”

Anderson agreed, adding that she had originally tried out for a different part in the show before being cast as Juliet.

“They experience love, sex and death so quickly,” she said of the titular couple.

“And, I think it’s really a testament to how much teenagers feel and how little the adults feel in this play, which is something we’re really trying to focus on, which is [that] their parents are barely noticing this is happening and these kids are going through these huge changes and emotional turmoil and they’re just so young.

“I really like the story because I kind of see it as like an example of just how dramatic teenagers can be,” Anderson laughed.

The prep work to get immersed in the style and trends of the ‘90s wasn’t actually as hard as they thought it would be at first, both leads agreed.

“The ‘90s are making a comeback, fashion-wise,” Anderson said. “So a lot of what I’m wearing on stage is my own clothes. I did do a little bit of ‘90s fashion exploration and I found I have a lot of what was being worn. I have the chunky white shoes. I have the scrunchies.

“All this is coming back,” she laughed.

Craighead said, for him, inspiration was more sonic than sartorial.

“I listened to a lot of grunge music these past couple of weeks,” he said. “More so than I probably ever have.”

The final decision to change the setting to something a little closer to home, Polinsky said, was a popular one early on in the show’s production.

“We brainstormed and it kind of came out of a group process,” she explained. “We talked about the play and about what it really meant and we had the best discussion. I’m an English teacher and, after I left, I was like, ‘Wow. If my English classes could be like that every day I would be so happy.’ Because they cared so much. They’d all read the play very carefully and there was a very active debate about what kind of spin to put on the play.”

Though most of the play’s original dialogue is still there, the BHS version makes allowances for more modern jokes and, of course, the main social issues the students were looking to address, the director said.

“I’m surprised at how it all came together and I think the kids are really proud of it,” she said. “They all know what we’re doing and why we’re doing it.”

The BHS production of “Romeo and Juliet” will run on Fridays and Saturdays through Saturday, Nov. 14 at the high school theater.  Performances are at 7:30 p.m. Tickets will be for sale at the door. Admission is $12 ($8 for students).