‘Romeo + Juliet’: Latest spin on classic

‘ROMEO + JULIET’: Rachel Zegler & Kit Connor. Photo: Matthew Murphy & Evan Zimmerman.

ROMEO + JULIET
By William Shakespeare
Directed by Sam Gold
Circle in the Square Theatre
235 West 50^th Street
https://romeoandjulietnyc.com/

By Scott Harrah

William Shakespeare’s classics are often revived with modern-day costumes and endless gimmicks to help bring in new, younger audiences. Sam Gold has previously directed two “reinvented” productions of the Bard’s classics, Macbeth and King Lear (which starred the late Glenda Jackson in a gender-bending role as King Lear). Mr. Gold has been more successful putting a contemporary spin on other classics, namely his outstanding revival of Henrik Ibsen’s An Enemy of the People earlier this season (which also played at Circle in the Square).

Back in 2013, David Leveaux directed a dismal revival of Romeo and Juliet, starring the miscast Orlando Bloom and Condola Rashad in which Romeo rode onto the stage on a motorcycle and Juliet delivered the iconic “Romeo, Oh Romeo” soliloquy by rote in American vernacular. This revival of Shakespeare’s popular classic about ill-fated lovers is a far superior production, but that would not be hard.

Mr. Gold’s interpretation of the story of the Capulets vs. the Montagues in Verona, Italy in the 14^th century (or later—scholars cannot seem to agree on the time period) is “modern” in the broadest sense. The circular theatre-in-the-round setting is used as a vehicle for all the madness happening on stage and off. We see overhead catwalks and a bed that goes up and down. Towers of teddy bears are seen on stage (don’t ask) and actors climb up on ladders to shout out their lines.

Need a brief plot summary? Shakespeare himself said it best in the prologue: ”Two households, both alike in dignity, in fair Verona, where we lay our scene, from ancient grudge break to new mutiny, where civil blood makes civil hands unclean. From forth the fatal loins of these two foes a pair of star-crossed lovers take their life.”

Despite the insanity in this production—from the cast dancing provocatively before the show to Enver Chakartash’s outrageous costumes—fortunately there are two solid actors playing the lead roles. Kit Connor (who played the older Elton John in the 2019 biopic Rocket Man) is the perfect teenage heartthrob as Romeo. Although Romeo + Juliet is not a musical, this production inserts short songs throughout the show, with music by Jack Antonoff and movement direction and choreography by Sonya Tayeh. Mr. Connor has a nice voice and the dynamic stage presence necessary to pull off the character.

Rachel Zegler, best known for playing Maria in the Steven Spielberg remake of West Side Story, is one of the show’s standouts. She adds the right mix of vulnerability and determination in her performance. When she sings, Ms. Zegler almost looks and sounds like a younger version of Ariana Grande. She has all the passion, spark and yearning of a young girl who is deliriously in love for the first time.

The other noteworthy performance is given by the marvelous Gabby Beans (Tony nominee for the Lincoln Center revival of The Skin of Our Teeth). She brilliantly portrays three characters: the wisecracking Mercutio (Romeo’s best friend), Romeo’s advisor the Friar and Prince Escalus, who tries unsuccessfully to make peace between the Montagues and Capulets.

Not everything works in this revamped version of the doomed young lovers of Verona. Modernized versions of Shakespeare have become standard fare on Broadway the past few years, and Sam Gold’s Romeo + Juliet is hardly as offensive or a “bastardization” like other 21^st century versions we have seen the past decade. Still, it would be great to someday soon see Shakespeare’s works done the way they were intended to be performed: In period costumes, without gimmicks and in all the original Elizabethan era glory. It was only 11 years ago in 2013 that two amazing British productions of Twelfth Night and Richard III were done in repertory, starring the legendary Mark Rylance and Stephen Fry. What made those two productions so enjoyable was their authenticity in recapturing the mood of that era. When performed in original period costumes, with musicians playing Elizabethan tunes, Shakespeare is much more palatable to modern audiences. With all the characters in his plays and endless subplots, Shakespeare makes for difficult reading, but when his plays are performed as the Bard intended, they are easy to follow and truly delightful. Mr. Gold’s Romeo + Juliet might be bringing in the Gen Z audience, but hopefully in future seasons Broadway will mount a few traditional Shakespeare revivals so the younger generation can judge for themselves whether they prefer a modernized Bard or plays performed in a more conventional manner.

Published October 24, 2024
Reviewed at October 19, 2024 press performance

‘ROMEO + JULIET’: Rachel Zegler & Kit Connor. Photo: Matthew Murphy & Evan Zimmerman.

‘ROMEO + JULIET’: Gabby Beans. Photo: Matthew Murphy & Evan Zimmerman.

‘ROMEO + JULIET’: Rachel Zegler & cast. Photo: Matthew Murphy & Evan Zimmerman.

‘ROMEO + JULIET’: Kit Connor, Rachel Zegler & cast. Photo: Matthew Murphy & Evan Zimmerman.

‘ROMEO + JULIET’: Rachel Zegler & Kit Connor. Photo: Matthew Murphy & Evan Zimmerman.