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Rob B. Kellogg and Melissa Molano in Alley Theatre’s production of “Romeo and Juliet.” (Photo by Lynn Lane)
Chris Hutchison and the cast of Alley Theatre’s production of “Romeo and Juliet.” (Photo by Lynn Lane)
Melissa Molano, Rob B. Kellogg, and Christopher Salazar in Alley Theatre’s production of “Romeo and Juliet.” (Photo by Lynn Lane)
Elizabeth Bunch, David Rainey, Allison Pistorius, and Orlando Arriaga in Alley Theatre’s production of “Romeo and Juliet.” (Photo by Lynn Lane)
Melissa Molano and Rob B. Kellogg in Alley Theatre’s production of “Romeo and Juliet.” (Photo by Lynn Lane)
Melissa Molano and Michelle Elaine in Alley Theatre’s production of “Romeo and Juliet.” (Photo by Lynn Lane)
Rob B. Kellogg and Melissa Molano and the cast of Alley Theatre’s production of “Romeo and Juliet.” (Photo by Lynn Lane)
Rob B. Kellogg and Melissa Molano in Alley Theatre’s production of “Romeo and Juliet.” (Photo by Lynn Lane)
Alley Theatre managing director Jennifer Bielstein, Council Member Sallie Alcorn at Alley Theatre Opening Night Dinner (Photo by Jacob Power)
Associate producer Stephen McCauley, artistic director of Alley Theatre Rob Melrose, associate producer David Peavy at Alley Theatre Opening Night Dinner (Photo by Jacob Power)
Tom Mays & Orlando Zayas at Alley Theatre Opening Night Dinner (Photo by Jacob Power)
George & Lois Stark at Alley Theatre Opening Night Dinner (Photo by Jacob Power)
Yuki Nakase Link at Alley Theatre Opening Night Dinner (Photo by Jacob Power)
Maria & Jorge Romo at Alley Theatre Opening Night Dinner (Photo by Jacob Power)
Phil & Josephine John at Alley Theatre Opening Night Dinner (Photo by Jacob Power)
Laura & Bruce Miller at Alley Theatre Opening Night Dinner (Photo by Jacob Power)
Taylor Jackson, Ivona Jackson at Alley Theatre Opening Night Dinner (Photo by Jacob Power)
There was more than one reason to celebrate at the Alley Theatre on opening night. A festive dinner marked the theater’s 80th anniversary, and the season kicked off with William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet.
Shakespeare is a tall order. With a classic that has survived more than four centuries and countless reinventions, a director faces a choice: Mount a creative, perhaps innovative, version designed for the run — or reach for a defining production of his tenure?
Luckily for Houston audiences, Alley Theatre artistic director Rob Melrose has hung the sky with a constellation of vivid performances and carried off a remarkable achievement that will follow you home to ponder.
Like a sculptor working in bas-relief, the director selects which elements to bring forward and which to let recede. So, in this “Romeo and Juliet,” has Melrose turned the spotlight on its supremely beautiful language, allowing it to dazzle and chill us, even bring us to our knees? Or does he try to bridge the centuries with its story of a love struggling to survive in a world governed by hate — told through characters whose speech patterns and mannerisms feel contemporary and relatable?
Rob B. Kellogg and Melissa Molano in Alley Theatre’s production of “Romeo and Juliet.” (Photo by Lynn Lane)
Interestingly, Melrose has blended a largely traditional approach to the production’s visual world with a contemporary, conversational style of characterization.
He eases us into the story in modern-day Verona. Tourists stroll before weathered stone walls, a golden sculpture of Juliet perched on a balcony. Through an archway comes a band of merry-makers, only to encounter rowdies spoiling for a fight — Melrose says he was inspired by football fans after Italy won the 2006 World Cup.
With the brawl in full swing, Melrose deftly moves us to medieval Verona. Servants of the feuding Montague and Capulet families trade swordplay and bawdy insults as only Shakespeare can create them, until Prince Escalus intervenes.
The Prince’s warning that another disturbance of the peace will be punishable by death brings a frisson of what’s to come: Death will indeed end the feud, but it will fall upon the innocent.
From the Prince’s warning, scenic designer Michael Locher’s revolving stage takes us into a magnificent set of a Renaissance-inflected world, rich in hues of jewel tones and burnt orange, reminiscent of the richly colored paintings of the era.
At the Capulets’ masked feast, Romeo and Juliet meet, fall instantly in love, and only then discover that each belongs to the enemy house. The story is so familiar it scarcely needs retelling — the violence, fatal miscommunication, and their own desperate actions, which bring their love to tragedy.
Rob B. Kellogg and Melissa Molano and the cast of Alley Theatre’s production of “Romeo and Juliet.” (Photo by Lynn Lane)
Costumes by designer Alejo Vietti are sumptuous in their exquisite detail, with Juliet swathed in diaphanous fabrics that seem to float around her, and the ladies crowned with fanciful hennins and gilded horned headdresses.
Lighting designer Yuki Nakase Link is known internationally for her work spanning opera, theater, dance, and art. Her artistry in this production is notable for its intelligence, subtlety, elegance, and understanding of the script — she allows it to lead, rather than imposing a mood.
Her pure white light on Melrose’s scrupulously designed final tableau — with Juliet draped in white atop her tomb, an arm reaching down to Romeo, dead on the ground beneath her — is seared into memory.
If the production’s design elements coalesce into a remarkably unified whole, its human landscape is more individualized. Melrose appears to have given his actors considerable latitude to create distinctive characters within the familiar outlines Shakespeare provides, most notably Mercutio, the Nurse, and Friar Lawrence.
Chris Hutchison and the cast of Alley Theatre’s production of “Romeo and Juliet.” (Photo by Lynn Lane)
The result is a gallery of sharply drawn performances, several so accomplished and commanding that Romeo and Juliet’s love story sometimes recedes in their presence.
Matthew Amendt, who doubles as the Prince of Verona and is no stranger to Shakespeare, plays Mercutio, Romeo’s friend. It’s one of Shakespeare’s great supporting roles, giving a skilled actor ample opportunity to steal every scene he’s in. And Amendt does just that.
Shakespeare gives him plenty to work with: verbal thrusts and parries, sexual wordplay, volatility, imagination, and his famous Queen Mab speech, a teasing flight of fancy that turns dark.
Amendt takes these and adds his own qualities — a mature athletic presence and assured verbal command, supported by a charisma that separates an accomplished performance from one infused with star power.
Michelle Elaine brings larger-than-life starshine to the Nurse, playing her less as servant than mother hen. With an effortless, contemporary warmth, she draws the audience toward her woes about Juliet, her teen charge. ‘What,’ she seems to want to ask, ‘am I going to do with that girl?’
Christopher Salazar is a delight as Friar Lawrence, a medieval cleric as relatable as a youth chaplain today in a church down the street. Salazar seems to work at not outshining a hapless Romeo, but one can’t help but notice when he does.
Elizabeth Bunch, David Rainey, Allison Pistorius, and Orlando Arriaga in Alley Theatre’s production of “Romeo and Juliet.” (Photo by Lynn Lane)
What of Melissa Molano as Juliet and Rob B. Kellogg as Romeo in this production? Melrose’s lovers are impulsive and headlong, yet possess the charming innocence, ardor, and tenderness of youth. Melrose follows the recent trend toward emphasizing the lovers’ youth. Juliet is not yet 14 in the text; Romeo’s age is unstated.
Two real pros bring the tragedy home as Lord Capulet and Lord Montague: David Rainey and Orlando Arriaga, both playing with assured authority throughout.
Standing over their children’s bodies, the old enemies finally understand the terrible cost of the hatred they have sown. Capulet offers Montague his hand, and the fathers reconcile — too late for Romeo and Juliet, but not, perhaps, for Verona. Or for us.
The Alley Theatre’s production of Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare runs through Sunday, October 18. For more information, go here.