Friend Images Black Friar Musem of Performing Arts Images of Romeo and Juliet
In my personal experience every bit a young person growing up in Virginia, a trip to the American Shakespeare Center'south Blackfriars Playhouse almost felt like a part of the schoolhouse curriculum. In middle schoolhouse, I saw The Comedy of Errors; in high schoolhouse, there was a trip to see Hamlet; in higher, I had the joy of seeing a close friend in Julius Caesar. And after all this fourth dimension, ASC can yet entertain me like I'1000 11 years quondam. I know this from their latest: Romeo and Juliet.
Information technology's safe to say that just about everyone knows the tale of the star-crossed lovers, and if not, I'll non spoil the ending; I'll just say it'due south about two young lovers from feuding families. This iteration of the prove is running through May xiv at the Blackfriars Playhouse, tucked away in the mountains of Staunton and modeled later on Shakespeare'due south Blackfriars Theatre (which burned downwards in 1666). ASC seeks to perform shows much the way they would have been when Shakespeare was alive. That means the lights stay on, the set is minimal, and the shows are played on a thrust-type stage with the audience on three sides. This doesn't mean that ASC doesn't like to experiment — they added some modern-sounding lines to Romeo and Juliet — but they are conscientious to adhere to Shakespearean principles that maintain the actors' relationship with their audience.
With that in mind, it'south no wonder that on a snowy Saturday, smack in the eye of the twenty-four hours, ASC put on a spirited testify that defied the stereotype of depression-energy matinees. This began with the music sung and played by members of the bandage, a staple of Blackfriars productions. Lovingly chosen, the pre-show tunes lyrically set the tone for Act I, and the vocalists, energetic as ever even at 2 PM, embodied the bear witness's budding passion, with an particularly remarkable performance from Tevin Davis (Prince) that I may exist talking nigh months from now. Then I was stunned to come across the stage break out in one of the largest, almost meticulously choreographed fight scenes I've seen (Benjamin Reed). It is a consummate about-face where Montagues and Capulets are emphatically kicked in the face and thrown to the flooring, and besides, I would imagine, a similar setup to how Romeo and Juliet experience as they fall palms-first into love, only to learn each other's last name.
It is this kind of relationship between the audition and Romeo and Juliet that the production sets upwardly then well, as every actor brings their high-stakes character to life. One thousand thousand Rodgers, whose Juliet is a clever brawl of fire, is both feisty and perceptive, and it is clear that she sees an equal lucifer in Brandon Carter's Romeo, as he captures both the hilarity and deep feeling in the character'due south total conviction. Erica Cruz Hernández (Nurse) and Jessika D. Williams (Lady Capulet) are also standouts, stepping into two iconic characters and still bringing their ain compelling, funny, heart-wrenching interpretations. And so, of course, there is Tevin Davis (Prince), who so commands the stage that he is impossible not to scout.
Each actor feels equally fresh in their role, simply they also come up back to punctuate the play with their own musical score, and props (Rhi Sanders, Thomas Prater, Sarah White), when the evidence calls for it. Piano and bowed bass ground the devastating 2nd human activity, just it is all the more than interesting to watch the actors watch each other as everything falls autonomously. Information technology adds a new level of nuance to the play, reminding us that in that location is bear upon far beyond Romeo and Juliet alone, and also confirming that José Zayas (director) has breathed new life into the script, really moving us to root for the young lovers like never before.
Under his direction, I became and then attached to the show, so attached to the characters, that I felt farthermost joys and farthermost sorrows, but I was as well left wondering what it was all for. Romeo and Juliet triumphs by sweeping united states of america up in the naive, lusty feelings of young romance, then revealing itself as a true tragedy, but this version felt like information technology halted with the tragic twist to leave me pondering what I should accept away. Is there a greater purpose to the play? What was the indicate? Once again, it'due south rather similar to office of what Juliet's and Romeo's families may be feeling at the terminate of the show. It is that subtle impact that makes Zayas's Romeo and Juliet so compelling, and then worth seeing. Even though the tale feels old as time at this point, it nevertheless leaves its audience with feelings to unpack, with nuances to talk near, and in doing so makes the lofty globe of Shakespeare more than reachable.
Running Time: Two hours 10 minutes with one intermission.
Romeo and Juliet, a part of American Shakespeare Center's Actor's Renaissance Season, plays through May 14, 2022, in repertory with The One-act of Errors opening March 31, 2022. All performances are at the Blackfriars Playhouse, ten South Market Street, Staunton, VA. For information and tickets ($27–$threescore, with an selection to sign upwards for the pay-what-you lot-volition guild), visit americanshakespearecenter.com.
The Romeo and Juliet program is online here (click on "cast list" and on "bandage, artistic team, and staff").
COVID Safety: Proof of vaccination and masking are required. American Shakespeare Center'southward consummate Safety Visitor's Guide is here.
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