Hello Beautiful People,
It’s been over twenty years, but Romeo and Juliet is back on Broadway. Recently, I was invited to see this production, and had a very memorable evening, to say the least.
Here’s what the official site will tell you:
Orlando Bloom(Pirates of the Caribbean, The Lord of the Rings) and two-time Tony Award® nominee Condola Rashad(Stick Fly, The Trip to Bountiful) turn up the heat this fall as Broadway’s hottest, rule-breaking, heart-aching couple, ROMEO AND JULIET.
Jealousy. Prejudice. Betrayal. And the chance that true love could actually conquer all. It could only be the greatest love story of all time, and now, for the first time in over 36 years, you can see it live on Broadway in a stunningly modern production from five-time Tony® nominee David Leveaux. The acclaimed cast of 25 includes Tony Award® winners Brent Carver (Kiss of the Spider Woman), Chuck Cooper (The Life), two-time Tony® nominee Jayne Houdyshell (Follies) and Christian Camargo (All My Sons).
Here’s what I will tell you:
There’s a reason Condola Rashad is a two-time Tony – Award nominee. She’s brilliant. She’s vibrant. And in this production of Romeo and Juliet, she’s transformed into a giggling school girl teenager onstage – which is absolutely perfect for Juliet. Her delivery, her mannerisms, and her ease with Elizabethan speech is, for me, a theatrical delight. And lets just touch on her Romeo for a mere moment…
For someone who has never graced the Broadway stage, it’s rather brave to tackle a Shakespearian role for one’s debut, so I must admire Orlando Bloom. He was a lovestruck man. He was a posturing teenager. He found the comedy within the pages and pages of tragedy and drama, and for me, that was refreshing.
But when all is said and done, I thoroughly enjoyed watching every move and every nuance and every interaction of Christian Camargo as Mercutio. I could gush a great deal about his performance, but, I’ll spare you. Just know that he is splendid, and his portrayal of Mercutio is an example of acting at it’s finest.
But here’s the most the important thing to take away from all of this, and it’s the most important reason why you should go to see this Limited Engagement of Romeo and Juliet. And it’s not to see Orlando Bloom with his shirt off. It’s not even to see Condola Rashad, or Brent Carver, or Chuck Cooper, or Jayne Houdyshell, or, my personal favorite, Christian Camargo. No, you should go see this play because it’s a classic. It’s one of the greatest love stories of all time. It’s the root of many films and books and musicals that you adore. It’s a classic piece, a timeless story, and still, after all these years, it resonates with audiences.
So, I urge you to go. Whether you are a Shakespeare aficionado or not, go. Expand your cultural horizons. Learn something new – your brain will thank you for it. It’ll probably be another twenty something years before this comes back to the Great White Way. And, for my teacher readers, I promise if you take your students to see this, they’ll have a new appreciation of the Shakespearian texts that you are “making” them read. There’s nothing quite like introducing students and young people to the world of live theater – the possibilities are endless.
Live, Love, Learn,