“Romeo and Juliet” by William Shakespeare is a play that has been performed so many times that almost everyone has heard of it. However, Shakespeare leaves plenty of room for performers to be able to add their own twists and style to the play. The American Shakespeare Center (ASC) decided that they would take their own spin on the play, setting it at the turn of the century. This choice allowed the ASC to put on a wondrous piece full of energy, impeccable acting, and a time filled with fun and laughter.
The time period allowed the actors to speak dialogue from the time of Shakespeare but with the energy from a more modern era. The play is one that can be hard to understand, which may scare away people who want to experience the work. However, watching this performance, it’s clear what the actors are saying. If it isn’t clear, you can tell what’s happening based on the things you see on stage. The actors were able to take the way that modern slang is spoken and simply switch the words in modern interaction for those that Shakespeare wrote, not switching the way they spoke for the way people spoke back then. Because of this, there was a high amount of energy in the play which was able to drive the lines, and also make for a good time. However, this energy didn’t make the play difficult to understand, as the actors were able to also say their lines very clearly.
Another part of the performance that further emphasized the time period that they had set everything in was the costuming. The actors walked in to play some live music for the audience before the play started and as soon as they did, the costumes shined. The costumes perfectly encapsulated the time period and clearly set how they were choosing to do this performance. Another thing that the costumes helped clarify was having the names of the characters on almost every costume. It was very easy to tell who was who, which allowed the viewers to be better immersed in the story without having to question anything. For example, it was not obvious who was the Count Paris and who was Tybalt through the dialogue of the play, but being able to see who they are based on their costume was very convenient. They also had the ability to have individual comedy bits through the costumes such as Romeo using his jacket as camouflage for one scene, utilizing both the space and the costuming for added humor.
The theater’s space was not only good for costuming however, but was good for the play in its entirety. The space is relatively small, but very tall and open. This allowed for some of the best possible acoustics for a play. Being in that space, you have no trouble hearing them despite the actors having no mics! The space is so beautifully designed that the actors are easily able to lightly project and have voices be carried throughout the whole room. There was no need for anyone to be almost shouting thanks to the design of the whole place. Thanks to these acoustics it also felt about as natural as possible and like they were performing just as Shakespeare did back in the day.
Another thing about the space at the American Shakespeare Center was that there was seating on the stage itself. This allows for a few people to interact with the audience and include them as a part of the show. This lets the actors have little quips here and there that are both exclusive to each audience and show. For example Benvolio sat down next to an audience member and said hello. Or how the actors were able to ask a question and treat the audience as if they were a crowd the actors were asking that question to.
The on-stage audience wasn’t only helpful to show the comedic bits, but also the moments of tragedy. This works because “Romeo and Juliet” is both a comedy and a tragedy. The play starts off light-hearted and later becomes incredibly sad and filled with woe. This is clearly seen when you are watching it as the actors are able to convey through rich emotion what their characters are feeling. The play is divided into five acts and for the first three you can clearly tell that everything is light-hearted and fun. However, the play takes a clear shift and changes to a tragedy after the death of a beloved character. After this there is a large, dark time of death and woe as the play reaches its climax and ends. The actors are also able to clearly show this by not interacting with the audience. Where once the actors would have a funny side quip, now they are all too invested in the tragedy occurring for anything to be taken lightly and funnily anymore.
“Romeo and Juliet,” when performed for the ASC, was an exquisite performance and an overall great time. The actors were able to take an old play and give it their own unique twist. Anyone who is thinking about going should absolutely go and see it; the atmosphere is amazing and the actors and experience is a truly wonderful thing. This play was a phenomenal balance of comedy and tragedy and if you haven’t bought tickets already, I would highly recommend you go and buy them now.
