The trick to performing a centuries-old hit like Romeo and Juliet is simple, but hard to pull off: pretend you have never seen the script before. Go for it with passion, and spontaneity, so you and the audience can forget that everybody already knows half the lines by heart. Leave audiences on the edge of their seat, wondering whether Juliet, perched on high, is really going back into bed, or whether she’ll rush back to the balcony once more to catch a glimpse of her gorgeous beau.
The beauty of the American Shakespeare Center’s rehearsal methods — drawing on those of Shakespeare’s original company — is that spontaneity is reintroduced, by necessity. And those methods have a huge payoff in this fall’s production of the Bard’s ever-popular romantic classic. It’s bawdy, brassy; it kicks you in the gut (and other nether regions) and gives you a night to remember.
It’s easy to forget that the original romantic couple, the inspiration for this play, were essentially middle-schoolers. Shakespeare makes a point of reminding us, time after time, that Romeo and Juliet are still kids wrestling with feelings over which they have no control. And they’re surrounded by peers who have no ability to control their impulses either. The urges to violence and sex are strong throughout their young cohort, and it is the failure to master either impulse that is at the heart of the tragedy.
What makes this production especially endearing is that Nick Ericksen and Isabel Lee Roden, in the title roles, embrace their inner tween selves. Ericksen’s Romeo is a dreamboat, to be sure, but clearly awkward in his newly-tall, newly-muscular body. No sooner does he make you swoon with a line or two than he falls flat on his face — his pratfalls are priceless, and perfectly timed. And Roden’s physical impulsiveness, coupled with the way she just bursts out with Juliet’s lines, convinces you that she’s never had these thoughts, let alone spoken them, ever before. The couple offer us a truly fresh take on familiar themes, and it’s a joy to watch.
Romance aside, fair Verona has its share of characters; you need look no further than Romeo’s bosom pals, Benvolio and Mercutio. Geoffrey Warren Barnes II and Sara Linares seem to have come straight out of the Montague locker room, with their boozy, bawdy playfulness on full display. Team Montague clearly loves to party, and they’ll run through every sexual metaphor imaginable, and maybe come up with a new one or two. Barnes and Linares rule the stage with their debauched attitudes; even their hangovers are priceless.
Joe Mucciolo’s Tybalt, on the other hand, from Team Capulet, reminds us of the darker side of youth, with its impulse to rage and destruction. When Tybalt discovers that Romeo has crashed the Capulets’ party, it’s everything Lord Capulet can do to avoid a bloodbath right there on the dance floor. What’s fascinating is to realize that even the grownups here have their own impulses. As Lord Capulet, Christopher Seiler has no sooner calmed down Tybalt’s rage than he re-engages with his own inner teen, spontaneously combusting when he discovers that Juliet has no interest in marrying the man he’s picked out for her.
As Paris, the man Juliet is supposed to marry, Britt Michael Gordon gives us a solid dude, who knows he’s entitled to the girl who will get him the right connections and just the right amount of dough in the bargain. In true Renaissance fashion, he also shows off his chops as a troubadour (the song selection owing more to Justin Timberlake, in this instance), and unintentionally plays just the right tune for Romeo and Juliet’s first romantic encounter.
The pivotal figure in any production of Romeo and Juliet is Friar Lawrence, and this production features one of the strongest, most authoritative friars you will ever see. It is tempting, perhaps out of deference to the leads, to play the monk as meek and mild, forgetting the highly politically charged environment in which this Renaissance Italian friar moved. Angela Iannone, thankfully, ditches the meek-and-mild bit, taking hold of the role with a cunning and passion that reminds us how vitally important Lawrence’s decisions are. And as those well-laid plans begin to fall apart, Lawrence is not above subterfuge and deception to make sure this young couple survives; monks in those days had spiritual authority and gravitas, and Iannone doesn’t hesitate to remind us.
Music Director Christopher Seiler has created a tight ensemble for pre-show and intermission, and the evening kicks off brilliantly with a moving rendition of Stevie Wonder’s “Love’s in Need of Love Today,” with Geoffrey Warren Barnes II leading a troupe whose harmonies will give you chills. Maya Danks, this production’s loquacious Nurse, also has a fine turn singing Melissa Etheridge’s “Come to My Window” at intermission. The show features live musical accompaniment throughout as well, with Britt Michael Gordon serenading us as Paris, after his pre-show take on Death Cab for Cutie’s “I Will Follow You Into the Dark.”
Elizabeth Weslar’s costumes here are wonderfully evocative, with richly-textured patchwork jackets and harem pants for the younger folk and straight-laced business attire for the adults — or, should I say, the ones who feel obliged to at least dress as grownups. Her Romeo sports bright yellow jeans, strategically distressed, to offset Juliet’s green sweats and thickly-soled, glittery sneakers, fashion statements that go a little over my head but which I’m sure the younger audience members will glom onto.
As the time approaches for fall foliage and apples by the peck and bushel, the ASC stands ready to welcome you with its repertory. Romeo and Juliet is just the beginning of what should be another great season of classic shows — Two Gentlemen of Verona comes up next, and there will be a world premiere of The Pirate Ballad of Bonny and Read, celebrating the exploits of two of the Caribbean’s most notorious women.
Running Time: Two hours and 15 minutes, including one intermission.
Romeo and Juliet plays through November 15, 2025, in repertory with Two Gentlemen of Verona (September 11 to November 15) and the world premiere of The Pirate Ballad of Bonny and Read 2025 (October 16 to November 16) presented by American Shakespeare Center at the Blackfriars Playhouse, 10 South Market Street, Staunton, VA. For tickets (starting at $39), call the box office at (540) 851-3400 or purchase them online. ASC also offers a Local Rush deal of 50% off tickets on Wednesdays and Thursdays. Learn more here.
Cast and artistic team credits for Romeo and Juliet are online here.
The fall season program is online here.