Hatred, love, desire death and a plague on both your houses. Of course, these themes refer to the timeless love story, Romeo and Juliet. The Dallas Hub Theater was able to successfully modernize a classic Shakespearean love story and make it feel hip. The young cast and minimal set give the production had a timeless feel.
Rachel Bower and Travis McClung are excellent as the two leads. They have fantastic chemistry and were able to easily slip into the Shakespearean dialogue. Other cast members seemed to stumble on their words at times or to be stating lines instead of becoming their characters. Although this version is in present day, Texas twangs are never acceptable during a Shakespeare performance! David Jeremiah (Mercutio) and Manson Thoma (Benvolio) manage to make up for pitfalls of other players
The direction, choreography and staging were all excellent and Shakespeare fans will enjoy the retelling. The Hub Theater’s casual, low-key environment and small performance space enhanced the evening and made for an intimate experience.
Grade: B-
Posted 8/8/09
