#101
Posted: 8/28/13 at 12:19am
Hello, Verona-phone. Oh yes Mr Romeo, Juliet Capulet called. The message is to avoid getting married to other fellow and playing dead. This Friar Lawrence gave me a great big sleeping pill, but when I wake up we'll head for the border. Oh don't thank me. It's all in the day's work! See what I could have done? Maybe I'm right, maybe I'm wrong, but if I got that message through on time I'm telling you those two kids would be alive today!!
So, is this production a crime? While it doesn't commit any felonies, the rap sheet has plenty of misdemeanors.
I'll start with the good though, and three giving the strongest performances are Christian Camargo, Chuck Cooper and Orlando Bloom. They all share three things in common too: they project, they enunciate and they don't rush the text. Every other actor, at one point or another, fails to do one or a combination of these things.
I've seen Camargo in a few Shakespeare productions now and he really is great. His performance is already comfortable and self-assured. Chuck Cooper somehow turned the small role of Lord Capulet into a powerhouse, and his work in act two is very solid.
Bloom surprised and impressed me. He handles the language well, has spark and is quite lovable. I was worried about his age going in, but it's really not an issue. (Despite the references to prepubescent ages in the text it has never bothered me to see older actors play the roles; the best Juliet I've ever seen was 42 and she didn't even open her mouth: Julie Kent.)
I wasn't so impressed with Condola Rashad. Her lines were sometimes too quiet and/or rushed. In the early scenes I missed any of the "Je veux vivre" in her character; she fared better in the later scenes.
The direction and the production were the biggest problems. So much of it I just asked "why?" Why are they in modern dress? (I don't mind that they are, but give us a reason.) Why does Romeo make a C-O-O-L R-I-D-E-R type entrance on motorcycle? Why are the Capulets dancing a hip-hop version of the Electric Slide at the masquerade? Why is sand strewn in the wings and around the edges of the stage? Why was the music SO LOUD? Why did Houdyshell have a Mary Poppins bag that she endlessly pulled stuff out of? Why were the costumes so ugly- Molina would never have approved of what Friar Lawrence had on!
It all felt so arbitrary and without cohesive vision. I'm all for transporting Shakespeare to different times and eras, but there must be reason behind it.
I know some people complained about the sound at the first preview, and it's still kind of bad. The actors really are fighting an uphill battle though because of the underscoring. The music during the opening fight sequence is so loud that you can't hear anything anyone is saying. As the evening progresses, without fail about 45 seconds before the end of a scene some underscoring will begin. This drowns out the dialogue and the music only continues through the scene change and then swallows the first few lines of the following scene. There is a live cello player and a percussionist in two of the boxes, plus there are plenty of pre-recorded sounds. The sound designer has a lot of work left to do before the critics come.
This all sounds negative, but really Bloom goes a long in grounding the piece and off setting the problems. I hope they get things cleaned up and I look forward to seeing what CSC will do with the play in a month.
So, is this production a crime? While it doesn't commit any felonies, the rap sheet has plenty of misdemeanors.
I'll start with the good though, and three giving the strongest performances are Christian Camargo, Chuck Cooper and Orlando Bloom. They all share three things in common too: they project, they enunciate and they don't rush the text. Every other actor, at one point or another, fails to do one or a combination of these things.
I've seen Camargo in a few Shakespeare productions now and he really is great. His performance is already comfortable and self-assured. Chuck Cooper somehow turned the small role of Lord Capulet into a powerhouse, and his work in act two is very solid.
Bloom surprised and impressed me. He handles the language well, has spark and is quite lovable. I was worried about his age going in, but it's really not an issue. (Despite the references to prepubescent ages in the text it has never bothered me to see older actors play the roles; the best Juliet I've ever seen was 42 and she didn't even open her mouth: Julie Kent.)
I wasn't so impressed with Condola Rashad. Her lines were sometimes too quiet and/or rushed. In the early scenes I missed any of the "Je veux vivre" in her character; she fared better in the later scenes.
The direction and the production were the biggest problems. So much of it I just asked "why?" Why are they in modern dress? (I don't mind that they are, but give us a reason.) Why does Romeo make a C-O-O-L R-I-D-E-R type entrance on motorcycle? Why are the Capulets dancing a hip-hop version of the Electric Slide at the masquerade? Why is sand strewn in the wings and around the edges of the stage? Why was the music SO LOUD? Why did Houdyshell have a Mary Poppins bag that she endlessly pulled stuff out of? Why were the costumes so ugly- Molina would never have approved of what Friar Lawrence had on!
It all felt so arbitrary and without cohesive vision. I'm all for transporting Shakespeare to different times and eras, but there must be reason behind it.
I know some people complained about the sound at the first preview, and it's still kind of bad. The actors really are fighting an uphill battle though because of the underscoring. The music during the opening fight sequence is so loud that you can't hear anything anyone is saying. As the evening progresses, without fail about 45 seconds before the end of a scene some underscoring will begin. This drowns out the dialogue and the music only continues through the scene change and then swallows the first few lines of the following scene. There is a live cello player and a percussionist in two of the boxes, plus there are plenty of pre-recorded sounds. The sound designer has a lot of work left to do before the critics come.
This all sounds negative, but really Bloom goes a long in grounding the piece and off setting the problems. I hope they get things cleaned up and I look forward to seeing what CSC will do with the play in a month.
Marie: Don't be in such a hurry about that pretty little chippy in Frisco.
Tony: Eh, she's a no chip!
