Ah, Romeo and Juliet. Although some would disagree, I say it is the classic poster child of Shakespeare. When we think of Shakespeare we think "Oh Romeo, Romeo where for art thou Romeo", right? I recently saw a Romeo and Juliet production put on by Daytona State College. Although, it didnt stray too far from the image of what I thought it was going to be in my mind, it did keep me entertained. With the fight scenes, the parties, dialogue, and costumes it showed they told the story in a "traditional" and rigid form. There was no twists or creative ways of telling the story, but then again I wasnt expecting that. The costumes were elizebethan era clothing, consisting of tunics, cloaks, hats with feathers, ruffs, stockings and pantyhose, codpieces, corsets, doublets, breeches, everything you would expect to be in Romeo and Juliet. The thing is, is that it was expected. I would absolutely love to see a play on Romeo and Juliet done in a different light, same story, different way of telling it. Much like Jude Law's version of Hamlet, with the modern clothes and specific portrayal of the story, more dark in that case. If a school would do that, step out of the box and rigid templates and create their own version, I bet it would be fun and exciting. It would be well recieved I'm sure.
The set was true to the Elizabethan era image and consisted of a castle looking balcony. There were torches on the front of the castle and stairs on the side. Very predictable. Also their were bedroom scenes that called for a daybed and a chair. Please, dont think that I am "cutting down" the production, because thats not my objective. I am merely saying that it would be SO refreshing to see a new creative version.
The weapons used were the rapiers and daggers. The fight scenes were entertaining and had good foot work. I liked it when Romeo and Tybalt had the sword fight. I didnt realize it but actually a lot of people die throughout the play. Romeo has his share of kills, including himself and by proxy Juliet.
The acting was good, but the one that stood out to me the most was the actor who played Mercutio. He did a fantastic job in the role and portrayed him perfectly. He took the character and put his own style into it, you could just feel it, he owned the character, not the other way around. I had seen him in the other play, all in the timing, and liked him in that as well, but I really developed an appreciation for his style in this play. The thing I like most is his use of different facial expressions, different tones, and different personalities for both characters. Although, it may be a bit early to give him too much props, he has done a nice job so far. The one I was least impressed with and began to become annoyed with was the actress playing the role of Juliet's mother. It was her worn out boring facial expressions and poor use of body language that began to get to me, they were so out of place feeling. Imagine this: you are supposed to be portraying someone who is surprised or irritated and you use the same face for both emotions...the face is this: suck a lemon, cross your eyes, and open your mouth really wide as if taking a deep breath. Thats almost the look you got from her. And yes I am being sarcastic but you get the point. Also, her accent was out of place, a typical southern accent pushing southern drawl. Speaking old english without announciation and a southern accent is suicide! But maybe I'm coming down to hard, but probably not.
In conclusion, I did enjoy the production and as always I look forward to the next one. Until next time friends (Kershner) support local theatre!
