“Romeo and Juliet”

Highly Recommended **** When people ask “How can you see a play over and over”? I always say, “A play is never the same.” It is the story and the music ( if a musical), but each director brings something different to the stage. It could be a different interpretation, or perhaps a unique staging, and of course with different actors, with their own special something, a little difference can be seen. When it comes to the works of William Shakespeare, there is none so fine as Barbara Gaines of Chicago Shakespeare Theater to do the job. Gaines is like a “master chef” creating something unique from the same ingredients that others have used for centuries to create something tasty for the younger theater audiences!

“Romeo and Juliet”, Shakespeare’s true love story/tragedy set in Verona with two families at odds with each other is one that we all know the outcome of and for the most part everyone knows the basic story. In fact, the musical “West Side Story” is a modern version of the story with the feud being the color of the skin ( Puerto Ricans vs White America) and gangs. Gaines’ “Romeo and Juliet” has been modernized to almost feel as if she combined some of the element of  “West Side Story” to tell her version. The play opens in a playground ( Scott Davis has created a great look) with the young people shooting baskets. That is The Capulets. Enter the Montague young people and the rivalry begins. The feud has been ongoing forever and by now, it appears that no one recalls how it first came to be, BUT, it is and it is real!

Juliet ( deliciously played by  Brittany Bellizeare, a newcomer to the CST stage) meets Romeo (solidly played by Edgar Miguel Sanchez) and they fall in love. Gaines has incorporated a dance into this where one will have the feeling that one had when Tony met Maria at the high school gym. All else fades out as we see the couple gaze at each other and feel the sparks in their eyes. FYI- Gaines has set the time for this version to next summer ( August 2020). The heat of the summer is when tempers flare and young people find themselves seeking change.

Romeo and Juliet seal their love and meet with the Friar ( Darlene Hope, another newcomer to the CST stage is a delight with a wonderful voice, yes there is some music). They are secretly wed.

Understand that both of these families have been warned about the violence and hate between them. If any more events take place, there will be a stiff sentence, death! In spite of that, they show their hate and when  Tybalt ( Sam Pearson) and Mercutio ( deftly handled by Nate Burger) get into it despite Romeo trying to break them apart, Tybalt slays Mercutio and then Romeo has no choice but to kill Tybalt. Think Riff and Bernardo from “West Side Story”.

Mr. Capulet ( James Newcomb) arranges for Juliet to wed Paris ( Julian Parker) despite her begging him not to and they set the wedding date. The rest of the story is the same. The Friar gives her a drink that will make it appear that she is dead, and give Romeo an opportunity to come to her and steal her away where they will leave Verona and their families far behind. This is where the tragedy falls. Romeo is unaware of the plan that the Friar has created and comes to view her body. Paris, also comes to see her on her coffin in the family crypt and the two of them fight, Romeo slaying Paris and then taking his own life. As he does this, the potion wears off and Juliet wakes to find her husband dead, and so she takes his dagger and kills herself.

Both of the families arrive at the crypt as do the police.

In the next scene, we are back at the playground and we see the chain link fence decorated as a memorial to the two teens as a memorial. This is a scene that Chicago and every other major city sees all to many times. As the family members come to memorialize their lost loved ones, a garbage can is placed in front and one by one, each of the two families stops and tosses their weapon into the can. The fight appears to be over!

It is the same story that we have witnessed a dozen or more times, but this energized cast and the brilliance of Barbara Gaines makes it a treat to watch. Not for the story, but for the way this “master chef” has taken to ingredients and prepared them with her “special flavoring”. Great work by Amir Abdullah, Betsy Aidem ( who offers some great comic touches), Bobby Bowman, Brianna Buckley ( Mrs. Montague), Byron Coolie, Danielle Davis, Rassell Holt, Kearston Keller,, Lia D. Mortensen ( Mrs. Capulet), Cage Sebastian Pierre, Dale Rivera (Mr. Montague), and Jaq Seifert. Bravo!

On the technical side, the lighting (Aaron Spivey) and sound (Mikhail Fiksel, who also wrote the musical compositions) and the costumes (Mieka Van Der Ploeg) are all perfect. The choreography (Steph Paul) and fight direction (Rick Sordelet) truly add to the solid movement of the story being told. Since this is 2020 there are many things that will seem out of place and one thing that was mysteriously missing. There was only once when a character ( in this case Paris) remotely started his car with his fob, which stood out because it was the only time, and yet, there was not one cell phone used for communication. I guess I let that go and didn’t feel that it would have changed the story, so will not hold that against a wonderful production that will continue at Navy Pier thru December 22nd with performances as follows:

Stage: Courtyard Theater

Show Type: Drama

Box Office: 312-595-5600

www.chicagoshakes.com

Tickets range from $35- $90

ACCESSIBLE PERFORMANCES: Thursday , December 12th BOTH at 1 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. OPEN CAPTIONED

Friday, December 13th at 7:30 p.m. ASL Duo-Interpreted

Sunday, December 15th-Audio Described with a touch tour at noon and performance at 2 p.m.

Discounted parking is available at Navy Pier, so bring your stub to the box office for validation.

To see what others are saying, visit www.theatreinchicago.com, go to Review Round-Up and click at “Romeo and Juliet”.