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| Orlando Bloom and Condola Rashad are the sweetest Romeo and Juliet |
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Romeo and Juliet is the first Shakespeare taught in
school. We saw this black and white R&J,
David Leveaux’s gorgeous production, at a Wednesday matinee full of school
groups. You could hear a pin drop when Condola Rashad (Juliet) and Orlando
Bloom (Romeo) kiss. They seem to be truly in love.
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| Jensen and Tracy Sallows after the show |
Jesse Poleshuck’s
contemporary set reflects their star-crossed passion and creates beautiful
moving pictures — accented with a graffiti-tagged Fra Angelico painting, a screen
of jumping flames, big balloons for a banquet, and touches of red (Romeo’s
socks and shoes). The lovers are on fire, myopic and indulgent. We almost
forget what’s to come: Juliet on a floating bed perched between life and death.
The audience was
enraptured with Mercutio, Christian Camargo, a mesmerizing actor like a young
Bill Nighy. Jayne Houdyshell adds welcome ballast and laughs as the Nurse, with
a red handbag and a bicycle. (A lot has been written about Orlando Bloom’s
entrance on a motorcycle, in a helmet.) Tracy Sallows as Lady Montague and Roslyn
Ruff as Lady Capulet do so much with their parts. It’s
hard not to fall in love with the entire cast.
An all-female Julius Caesar from London, presented at Ann’s
Warehouse in Brooklyn is another stunner in this Shakespeare-heavy season,
directed by Phyllida Lloyd as a comment on male behavior.
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| Clam linguini at the Becco bar |
You might want to book if you plan to go to Becco pre-matinee, but last-minute
seats at the bar are comfortable. A prix fixe with three pastas,
appetizer and dessert makes this friendly Italian restaurant very
popular, with a selection of wine at $25 a bottle. Handsome, theatrical
waiters appear with platters, offering second helpings (which can be wrapped up to go). Since we were here a year ago,
the prices have gone up slightly, but Becco remains a fun place to eat
and one of the best deals on
Theatre Row.
