A new Broadway musical has arrived this fall: “Romeo + Juliet.” This will mark the official Broadway debut of actor Kit Connor, popular from the Netflix show “Heartstopper,” and actress Rachel Zegler, notable for Steven Spielberg’s “West Side Story,” who stars in this production.
A modern take on the famous 400-year-old play by William Shakespeare and directed by Tony Award-winner Sam Gold who is best known for “Fun Home” and “An Enemy of the People.” Previews for this show started on Sep. 26 and it officially opened on Oct. 24. The show will run for only 20 weeks and showings will close on Feb. 16, 2025.
The tagline for this show declares, “The youth are f**ked.” Furthermore, the description on the Playbill states, “Left to their own devices in their parents’ world of violent ends, an impulsive pair of star-crossed lovers hurtle towards their inescapable fate. The intoxicating high of passion quickly descends into a brutal chaos that can only end one way.”
Zegler, starring as Juliet, revealed to Vanity Fair “This play is about generational trauma and the world we leave behind for our children.” She highlights how significant the death of five characters in Shakespeare’s play is, and how this is telling of the “world we are leaving behind for the next generation.” The actress ends her statement passionately, declaring, “I cannot emphasize enough, as an American citizen, the importance of exercising your right to vote.” With American politics being a theme within this innovative musical and Election Day approaching, this autumn was a timely release for Sam Gold’s production.
According to the customer reviews on the official Broadway website, satisfied viewers are prominent, with little to no negative feedback published. A four-and-a-half star review given by Martin B on Oct. 16 praises the show, describing the spectators as mesmerized and impressed. He writes, “… how on earth the actresses and actors succeeded in [memorizing] such an enormous number of linguistically and emotionally highly challenging dialogues … this was a night to be truly remembered and to be recommended to all who have not given up on love in its most romantic form. ”
Another pleased reviewer gave the performance the same score and stated the same day on the same website, “I thought it would be hard to understand with the original text, but they made it so easy.” However, on Show-Score created for reviewing Broadway experiences, one individual gave this show two and a half stars. Disappointed in how they modernized Shakespeare’s play, the critique states, “director Sam Gold’s modernized production brings little insight or emotional attraction to this most-famous love story.”
Finding scant emotional depth in the characters or now-contemporary plot, this person also declares that the “main attraction” is “clearly” the two leads — Connor and Zegler — who they believe were “miscast.” Although there is some condemning commentary, a majority of reviews eclipse the dissatisfaction.
With an original score by well-known producer Jack Antonoff and movement by professional choreographer Sonya Tayeh, this show is experiencing high demand and the first three preview performances sold out in advance. These performances were located at the Circle in the Square Theatre, located on West 50th Street in New York City, and tickets are available to purchase now on the new musical’s official website. The prices currently range from $119 to $249, depending on the day and time in which you desire to go.
As their website proclaims, “Shakespeare’s timeless tragedy now belongs to a new generation on the edge.”
rross1@ramapo.edu
Featured photo courtesy of @PRGlive, X
