A ‘Romeo and Juliet’ filled with passion, heart and humor

Jay Handelman, Sarasota Herald-Tribune
·4 min read
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Each spring, the FSU/Asolo Conservatory reliably offers solid proof of why the plays of William Shakespeare are so enduring. A new production of “Romeo and Juliet,” which closes the program’s 50th anniversary season, is just the latest example.

Moving inside after several years outdoors at Selby Botanical Gardens and the Ringling Museum, the Conservatory finds new life and spirit, as well as a surprising amount of humor, in this romantic tragedy about young lovers from rival families who are prevented from being together.

Director Jonathan Epstein knows the plays intimately and he gets the most out of the story through his student actors.

Caitlin Rose as a youthful Romeo with Ashley McCauley Moore as Juliet in a scene from the FSU/Asolo Conservatory production of “Romeo and Juliet.”
Caitlin Rose as a youthful Romeo with Ashley McCauley Moore as Juliet in a scene from the FSU/Asolo Conservatory production of “Romeo and Juliet.”

For “Romeo and Juliet,” the Conservatory introduces a new two-story Elizabethan-style stage set that will become a staple of future productions. It provides plenty of playing space in front, a balcony for one of the most romantic conversations in literary history and an attractive backdrop as it stands in for different settings.

Epstein and his cast get to the heart of the story about the battling Montagues and Capulets, with a diverse cast that sometimes plays around with gender traditions without getting in the way of the intellectual and emotional aspects of the play.

Romeo is played by the wonderfully expressive Caitlin Rose, who brings so much youthful passion, desire and teenage awkwardness. Romeo, we may forget, is a 15-year-old boy experiencing his first romantic feelings. Rose speaks Shakespeare’s words as if they are part of everyday conversation (the way they should be spoken), something that others in the cast achieve with varying degrees of success.

There is a wonderful chemistry with Ashley McCauley Moore, who plays the 14-year-old Juliet as sweetly innocent while just discovering her own feelings of sexual attraction and awareness. The balcony scene is full of nuance and suggestive in ways I haven’t heard in years.

Moore sometimes sounds as if she’s reciting poetry in a kind of monotone way, but there’s no denying the feelings behind the words in the way she undulates her body or bats her eyes. And there’s the ever-present reminder of youth when she pouts (and plots) to get her way with her demanding parents.

Jonathan Acosta as the Nurse and Ashley McCauley Moore as Juliet in the FSU/Asolo Conservatory production of “Romeo and Juliet.”
Jonathan Acosta as the Nurse and Ashley McCauley Moore as Juliet in the FSU/Asolo Conservatory production of “Romeo and Juliet.”

They are played by Rickey Watson Jr. (alternating with Ibukun Omotowa) and Elle Miller, and there’s one horrific but captivating scene in which Lord Capulet slaps and torments Juliet, that is almost too real to watch.

I’ve never seen the Nurse played quite the way she is by Jonathan Acosta, as a comically busty and lusty woman, someone who has had her own romantic adventures and perfectly understands Juliet's new feelings.

Romeo’s friend and confidant Mercutio is played by the dynamic Jasmyn Ackah, who engages in a riveting sword fight with the easily-triggered Tybalt, played by John Leggett. As tense as Leggett is as Tybalt, he is loose and free in a hilarious scene in which he plays a vision-challenged aid trying to remember which members of the community should be invited to a Capulet ball (the one where a masked Romeo first spots Juliet).

Benvolio becomes Benvolia in a fine performance from Ayda Ozdoganlar, and Catherine Luciani is a supportive and caring Sister Laurence (no friars here), who does her best to help Romeo and Juliet be together.

A climactic sword fight between Jasmyn Ackah as Mercutio and John Leggett as Tybalt (as Caitlin Rose and Ayda Ozdoganlar look on) in the FSU/Asolo Conservatory production of “Romeo and Juliet.”
A climactic sword fight between Jasmyn Ackah as Mercutio and John Leggett as Tybalt (as Caitlin Rose and Ayda Ozdoganlar look on) in the FSU/Asolo Conservatory production of “Romeo and Juliet.”

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The cast, which also includes Brian Zane as Duke Paris and Falcian Page in several different roles, looks terrific in Andrea Herrera’s costumes, which have a modern yet period touch, and Chris McVicker’s scenic and lighting design adds to the emotions of key moments.

The gender shifts don’t fuel some kind of far-out concept for the play, but enhance Epstein’s more tradition-bound telling of the story and its universality. Shakespeare may not be easy to perform, but the Conservatory cast makes this “Romeo and Juliet” easy to watch.

‘Romeo and Juliet’

By William Shakespeare. Directed by Jonathan Epstein. Reviewed April 6. Through April 28 in the Cook Theatre, FSU Center for the Performing Arts, 5555 N. Tamiami Trail, Sarasota. Tickets are $32. 941-351-8000; asolorep.org/conservatory/season

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This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Asolo Conservatory finds heart and humor of ‘Romeo and Juliet’