Tag: Review

Two Gentlemen of Verona

I attended the premier of Two Gentlemen of Verona last night with my daughter, Bridget. It was a very fun evening. At the dinner in advance of the play, the director described his vision of the play, saying that he sought to depict adolescence in all its choas, raging hormones and irrationality. I think he succeeded.

The play was very creatively produced. The set was somewhat spare with metal stairs and bridges criss-crossing the stage. Lots of running about and up and down stairs. There were also hints of modern day like a huge Campari sign and and Apple logo. At one point, the familiar IPhone Marimba ring is heard and some of the lines are spoken into the device. At various points in the play, modern pop songs are either played or sung, including at the finale of play. In the director’s dinner remarks he seemed almost apologetic for the liberties he took. And I think sometimes these kinds of things can get out of hand and you lose the “Shakespeare-ness” of the play. But I thought it worked. There were many hearty laughs. And the real dog that had a role was a big hit, particularly with my daughter. I think I got the message Shakespeare intended, even with the all the non-Elizabethan elements, including the occasional gunshot.

So, I recommend the play strongly. It was fun and accessible. If you are a purist, however, you should probably stay away. As Bridget and I got on the elevator to get to our car, there was one other attendee with us. He asked how we liked it. Both Bridget and I said we liked it a lot. When I asked him what he thought, he paused and said slowly, “Different…”