Shakespeare in the Park: Romeo & Juliet ★★★★

Years from now, when and if this production of Romeo & Juliet is discussed, what will be remembered with greatest affection will be the costumes by Oana Botez. Splendorous and radiant under the lights at the Delacorte Theater in Central Park, her sartorial magic commences with the show’s very first stage picture in the prologue — a startlingly beautiful statue of the dead lovers, portrayed by living actors — then ascends to unexpected heights when everyone assembles in their finest habiliments for the Capulet ball, engendering understandable gasps of appreciation from a thrilled audience.

This isolated praise is not meant as a bite of the thumb to the first Shakespeare in the Park entry of the season, but Botez’s contributions are the clear highlight. Nonetheless, when considered as a whole, the production strikes a solid balance between pros and cons, with a lovely lagniappe at the end that makes the evening worthwhile.

As one might surmise from the ampersand in the title, this is not your garden-variety classical take on the two young Veronese lovers. Much of this Public Theater production directed by Saheem Ali is performed in Spanish, with translations by Alfredo Michel Modenessi. And no, it’s not translated for those who no habla español. Ali, the resident director of the Public, has envisioned the division between Romeo and Juliet as linguistic in addition to familial, but the cross-cultural idea is largely ineffective because it’s not sufficiently developed. We see Juliet learning a bit of Spanish here and there, but when that big balcony scene arrives, she’s already pretty agile with the lingo.

ROMEO

With love’s light wings did I o’erperch these walls,

For stony limits cannot hold love out

Es tan grande la audacia del amor,

Que tus parientes no pueden detenerme.

JULIET

If they do see thee, te matan.

ROMEO

¡Bah! Hay más peligro_en tus ojos que_en veinte

espadas suyas. Con sólo_una mirada

de cariño, me resguardas de su odio.

JULIET

No quiero que te vean ni por el mundo_entero.

DuoLingo couldn’t ask for a better spokesperson. But if you don’t know Spanish at all, or don’t know the play well, stretches of the evening may leave you bored or confused.

Ali’s also devised — with set designer Maruti Evans — an impressive border wall that fills the stage to further separate the Capulets and the Montagues, but no one’s ever seen upstage of the wall except for Juliet, briefly, and from her balcony. As a result, the symbolism falls flat and feels incomplete. Toss in a bevy of security guards in ICE-like uniforms and the dramatic unveiling of some daunting flags, and you can feel the uncertain state of the nation being crammed into Shakespeare’s tragic love story. It’s all visually striking but ultimately doesn’t serve the play.

Nor does the production’s loooooooong running time. Songs and dances have been added, and because Lady Capulet is played by the glorious LaChanze, no one minds when she gets the mic. But with all the bilingual back-and-forth, in addition to stirring theatrical moments where no text is uttered, the show extends past its welcome. Cuts were needed and were not made.

Fortunately, the play’s leads shine and energize the proceedings. Ra’Mya Latiah Aikens and Daniel Bravo Hernandez bring the star-crossed lovers to beautiful life; Aikens oozes charm, Hernandez the passion. Excellent as they are, they’re almost overshadowed by Francis Jue and Deirdre O’Connell, the two Tony winners playing Friar Lawrence and Nurse, respectively. Jue and O’Connell are such commanding performers they consistently threaten to steal not just their scenes but the play itself.

This up-and-down production does have a trick up its glamorous sleeve, and saves the best for last. New York’s summer nights can be magical, and no more so than the delightful and moving surprise that happens at the show’s curtain call each night. Won’t spoil anything here except to say that when it occurs, the generosity and importance of community emanates from all gathered, a reminder of the specialness of sharing an experience that is both important and ephemeral.