Margin Notes: Romeo and Juliet

Nicholas Amodio, Sandy Gladstone-Karpe, and Christine
Newberry as Romeo, Friar Lawrence, and Juliet. Photo by
Zui Gomez.

Romeo and Juliet

Seen on: Sunday, 11/12/23.

Plot and Background

EPIC Players presents a contemporary lens on Shakespeare's classic tragedy about the star-crossed lovers Romeo and Juliet, whose passion is not enough to survive their feuding families. EPIC Players is NYC's premiere neurodivergent theater company.

What I Knew Beforehand

I knew Romeo and Juliet, of course, and that EPIC Players is a neurodivergent theater company.

Thoughts:

Concept-wise, I think directors Max Baudisch and Meggan Dodd's vision is strong and cohesive: this is a world mirroring our world today, where the geopolitical conflicts are presented in soothing-voiced podcasts, and debated online in pithy 280-character hot takes and inflammatory videos posted out of context. This is a world where the Nurse (a brassy and delightful Sandy Gladstone-Karpe) can scroll through a Hot Men of Verona dating app, where Mercutio can post a dis video, and where the answering retort is a selfie of a Capulet biting his thumb. And in a world like this, it makes all too much sense for the duel between Mercutio (a seedily charismatic Miles Butler) and Tybalt (a full-voiced, 'roided up Dante Jayce) to be fought with extended selfie sticks--until Tybalt breaks out a weapon dealing more lasting damage than a tweet or a reel. There is even thought put into how, in a world of instant information via smartphone, both Romeo and Juliet miss some crucial status updates as the story veers toward its tragic end.

And in a world this focused on the frame of the shot or the filter of the take, even the melodramatic nature of the Capulet-Montague feud feels rightly performative in its OTT nature. Of course Tybalt will put on a show fighting the Montagues--his fans expect it. And while Friar Lawrence (a marvelously earthy Kylie Hogrefe, mining every moment of comedy and humanity out of what is sometimes a throwaway role) cares about protecting the privacy of the two young lovers marrying in secret, that won't stop him from using his ring light to get a proper iPhone film of the whole ceremony. The obvious youth of Romeo and Juliet (a perfectly emo Nicholas Amodio and an alternately sullen and giddy Christine Newberry) flavors this equally well. Every emotion is extreme at that age, and the social media performance of it all only exacerbates this.

If the concept for the production demonstrates a clear vision, the design doesn't always reflect it consistently. Samuel Biondolillo's projection design perfectly illustrates the social media lens of the production, showing various tweets, posts, and videos; however, the scenic design by Matt Imhoff, though minimal, is trying to do enough that it starts to undermine the elegant simplicity of the projection design, and might be better served by going fully minimal, and letting the actors carry the rest (especially as regarding the transitions, which should either be activated more fully or dropped completely). Nicole Zausmer's costume design, which I suspect is sourced from the actors' own wardrobes, perhaps doesn't have a central vision but also perhaps doesn't need one: if this is a contemporary setting, the actors can wear contemporary clothing (and, since they're their own clothes, they all look fantastic in them). But I will say, when Zausmer's design is making strong choices, they're always good ones: from Tybalt's graphic hoodie with cutoff sleeves (our fitness influencer), to Mercutio's flamboyant blue blazer over his naked chest, these are two characters who know exactly who they are; or rather, exactly who they want the internet to think they are.

***

Running: Now playing at ART/NY Gural Theater (EPIC Players) - Opening: November 10, 2023. Closing: November 19, 2023.
Category: play
Length: 2 hours, 15 minutes, including intermission.

Creative Team

Playwright: William Shakespeare
Co-Directors: Max Baudisch & Meggan Dodd
Designers: Aubrie Therrien (Producing Director), Dante Jayce (Fight Choreography), Matt Imhoff (Set), Nicole Zausmer (Costume), Monee Stamp (Lighting), Madisen Frazier (Props), Sean Ramos (Sound & Composer), Samuel Biondolillo (Projections), Cassidy Kaye (Stage Manager), Travis Burbee (Associate Art Director), Carol Hoverman (Assistant Stage Manager), Katie Rosin/Kampfire PR (Publicity). 
Cast: Nick Amodio, Christine Newberry, Eric Fegan, Miles Butler, Dante Jayce, Gideon Pianko, Lai Williams, Sandy Gladstone Karpe, Kylie Hogrefe, Travis John Martin, Whitney Blythe, Gianluca Cirafici, Gerard Riley, Jesus Chevez, Andrew Kader, Bre Baron, Harrison Gottfired.

Jesus Chavez, Eric Fegan, Miles Butler, Bre Baron, Andrew Kader, and Dante
Jayce as Abram, Benvolio, Mercutio, Gregory, Sampson, and Tybalt. Photo
by Zui Gomez.