Brick Woman Rules Castle As Queen At Medieval Times

BRICK, NJ — When Erin Zapcic was little, she loved to pretend she was Princess Ariel from "The Little Mermaid."

"I would run around the house singing," Zapcic, 34, said. "And when we got a pool, I would sing there, too."

These days, the Brick Memorial High School graduate has traded her princess role for a that of queen: She is now the lead character in the current show at Lyndhurst's Medieval Times, the dinner theater that is set in the Middle Ages, complete with a four-course feast, jousting and swordplay.

And the actress, who spends free time producing her own web series and small films, couldn't be happier. Queen Doña Maria Isabella is the first lead female role in the company's existence and marks a significant change for the company; kings have ruled the castles — there are nine Medieval Times around the country — for 34 years, including the 28 years of the New Jersey castle's existence. It's a move, Zapcic said, that came in response to audience requestst to see women have larger roles in the production.

Zapcic, who has been with the Medieval Times cast for seven years, had been the princess prior to becoming queen in January, when the new show — first rolled out at the Dallas castle last fall — was unveiled.

But Queen Isabella doesn't just sit and look pretty, Zapcic said. And unlike many of the Disney movies, where the strong queen more often than not is cast as evil, Isabella is a positive character.

"Queen Isabella isn't just a figurehead presiding over the tournaments," she said. "She does have moments where her authority is challenged." But when she is challenged, she rules with a kind hand.

Zapcic has played strong female characters before: as a senior at Brick Memorial, she was cast as Amalia in the school's performance of "She Loves Me." It's the story of a young woman who work as a clerk in a parfumerie and has fallen in love with an anonymous pen pal — only to discover it's the co-worker who drives her crazy on a daily basis.

"You usually think of an ingenue as a shrinking violet. Amalia was not that," Zapcic said. "She was a very strong woman."

Queen Isabella's combination of strength and kindness is important, Zapcic said, because it gives younger audience members the chance to see women in that strong leading role.

"When they see a woman in charge, that's going to influence how they view women in charge," she said. At the same time, however, she's quick to point out that the company wasn't trying to make a statement about the role of women.

The queen, according to the Medieval Times story, has ascended to the throne following the death of the king, who was her father. And while the queen remains the only female speaking role, Zapcic said there are women who are visible in other roles in the show.

"We have female horse trainers," at the Lyndhurst castle, and at other castles there are female falconers, she said.

Performing has been part of Zapcic's life since before she was born.

"My parents met when my dad came to review my mom's performance" with the Spring Lake Theatre Company, she said. Her first community theater performance was in a Spring Lake production of Arthur Miller's "The Crucible," but her love was singing.

"She would sing 'Part of Your World' over and over and over," said her mother, Brick Councilwoman Andrea Zapcic, of Erin's "Little Mermaid" phase.

It wasn't until Erin Zapcic was introduced to the forensics team during her senior year at Brick Memorial when she fully fell in love with acting.

"In high school productions singing and acting go hand-in-hand," she said. "But when I started winning forensics tournaments, that's when I first thought of myself as an actor who could sing."

Still, she initially majored in music at William Paterson before changing to theatre before getting her degree from there in 2005. After living at home and working in the township clerk's office for a three years — "I signed a lot of dog licenses," she said — Zapcic picked up and moved to North Jersey, where she could be close to the New York acting scene but without being right in the city. She worked on a few different productions in what she calls "actor survival jobs" before getting hired by Medieval Times "as a wench in the gift shop," she said.

Zapcic was promoted to cast member a few months later, and had been in the role of the Princess — the only female speaking part in the previous show — before the decision was made to change the New Jersey show to the current one with the queen as the lead.

Zapcic, who also is part of the marketing team at Medieval Times, said she loves being part of the cast because the performances three to five days a week allow her the flexibility to pursue other projects, including her dream of landing a permanent role on a television series.

"I would absolutely love to be a series regular on a critically acclaimed TV show," she said.

She has worked on and created short films including "Daydreamer," in which she starred as well as produced, and web series. "Some are topical, some are just fun," she said of the projects, which are written and directed by women. "We're working on a series of sketches calling out the 'everyday jerk' — the person who shows up at a store right before closing, tries a bunch of stuff on and then doesn't buy anything, or the one who keeps soda cups in their car just to get free refills. Just fun everyday people kinds of things," she said.

But for now, she's relishing the role of Queen Isabella, from the energy that rises backstage as she and the main cast await their entrance into the arena on horseback — a skill she had to learn — to the moment when Isabella must assert her authority.

"From a performer's point of view, the audience reaction gives me chills every time," she said.

"It's not just an actor survival job," Zapcic said. "I call it my thrival job."

Tickets are available at www.MedievalTimes.com or by calling 1-888-935-6878. Medieval Times is located at 149 Polito Avenue in Lyndhurst, NJ.

Photos provided by Medieval Times