Last month, I had the opportunity of seeing Romeo + Juliet on Broadway. A month later, following the results of the presidential election, I kept reflecting on how the story of Romeo and Juliet, published in 1597, is still relevant to this day.
Reintroduction to Romeo + Juliet
Romeo + Juliet, directed by Sam Gold, features Rachel Zegler as Juliet and Kit Connor as Romeo and music by Jack Antonoff. Romeo and Juliet is a story that has been reproduced more than any other. It is categorised as a love story. However, the reason it prevails throughout time is not because of the “foolish” teenage love between our main protagonists. It is because of the message it sends.
The current play on Broadway takes inspiration from Baz Luhrmann’s 1996 film, Romeo + Juliet. The influences are remarkable in the outfits, the personalities, the script, and most importantly, the atmosphere. Romeo + Juliet (1996) is revolutionary in the way it adapts the classic play, and turns it into a modern story. What I have witnessed last month follows the footsteps of the film, by making it coincide with our present.
With a marketing tagline of “The youth are fucked”, they lean into the irony of what has been said of Gen Z and millennials over the past couple of decades. Older generations have been putting the blame on us for the way the world is today, ignoring how they are the ones that made the world we have today. They left us to fend for ourselves and then when we started forming opinions and organising protests for a better world, they resorted to criticising us.
Entering the Experience
Romeo + Juliet takes place at Circle in the Square Theater. It is a circular stage that leaves a lot less separation between the public and the actors. Before we get into the setting of the play, we should talk about the welcoming atmosphere. First and foremost, the audience is mostly young people. What the production did well is knowing who they were catering towards, and partnering with Voters of Tomorrow.
Before entering the Circle, there is a stand where Voters of Tomorrow encourages young people attending to register to vote. It is primordial to inform and educate on the importance of voting. We’ve been told that our voices don’t matter. This perspective makes us believe that our vote couldn’t change the outcome. That’s what the people who don’t want change are counting on. Although I was merely a visitor of the United States, I appreciated seeing the involvement of the people at the stand. They took up the initiative to talk to everyone.
While in the lobby, the music caught my attention the most. The playlist was full of artists that most of my generation listens to, queer artists with upbeat rhythms. It reminded me of the music used for the marketing, who fits in the electronic genre. Throughout the entire experience, I kept thinking how modern the production was. It was emotive to have our times represented.
Fiction Imitates Reality
My friend and I had second row floor seats, which made us very close to the scene. We were next to one of the actors’ exits, so we had a particular immersive experience. The actors would often be right next to us or right in front of us. They appear on scene before the beginning of the play to get into character. We see the Montague’s clan, who are acting like regular teenagers by dancing, smoking, and vibing. The circular scene’s decoration includes a cart full of plushies. The actors use the cart to push each other around. This further reinforces the youthful aspect of the play. They are just teenagers, who are living in a world of conflict set by their predecessors.
The play begins with the original “Two households, both alike in dignity in fair Verona, where we lay our scene”. Throughout the play, we will find most of Shakespeare’s original text. However, we also have the inclusion of new lines that make it more up-to-date with the modern culture. The added lines, alongside the Shakespearean text, diffuse the tension by bringing comedy into the picture. It is reflective of Gen Z’s tendency to make light of difficult subjects.
Nonetheless, the tragedy of Romeo and Juliet is still there. With the two being on separate sides of the stage most of the time, the conflict is evident. The message of not engaging with the other clan is clear, with fights breaking out between the youths of each respective side. Defending a grudge that is older than imagination, the parallels between fiction and reality blur as we see no end in sight to the division.
The Outstanding Performance
The supporting actors all have double roles, and they excel at each one of them. We feel the immersive aspect of the play throughout the entirety of the performance. The characters perform within the audience, even interacting by asking questions sometimes. The emotions they convey are transmissible and showcase the talent of the cast.
When Romeo and Juliet meet, they are just as soon separated. Their chemistry is electric, feeling the golden string of fate that ties them to each other even when they aren’t near one another. Rachel Zegler and Kit Connor are portraying the tragedy of the couple incredibly well. They steal the spotlight whenever they are on their own as well.
Towards the end of the play, the deaths of the side characters multiply as they get caught in the crossfire of the conflict. Romeo and Juliet are separated. They find themselves at a dead end where they can’t communicate with each other, despite the efforts of their allies. As the plan to run away from the bloodshed of Verona, the main tragedy strikes.
There is no escaping the environment that is set on keeping them apart. The message is clear — leaving is not an option. The purpose of the play is not to despair, or to hide behind a false deep perspective of “they should’ve just talked”. It shows there must be a collective effort to bring an end to the division. If we don’t lead with communication and understanding, both sides become affected. Simply put, there are no sides when it comes to humanity.
The price of the lack of empathy is far too expensive. It is not worth the lost lives. That is how a story written ages ago still reflects the reality of the nation that hosts the Broadway performances.
Where Do We Go Now?
There is also a deep, deep sickness in this country that is shown in the sheer amount of people who showed up for this man who threatens our democracy. It is terrifying the amount of people that stand behind what this man preaches. It is a foolish subscription to a false sense of security, of masculinity, of intelligence, of patriotism and of humanity.
Rachel Zegler on Instagram
The results of the presidential election in the United States are devastating, for more reasons than can be numbered in this analysis. There is no doubt who will be affected first — the same people who the newly imagined play represents. Young people’s futures are at risk. We are also the ones that have to organise and find community within our collective empathy before the hatred gets to us. History might repeat itself, and although it is not our fault, it is our responsibility to make sure we save as many people as we can. Remember, the point of Romeo and Juliet isn’t despair. It is showing the consequences, and giving us the hope we need to make sure there won’t be more lives lost.
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