Shakespeare Tragedy Opens up the HITW Season
By Lawrence James Kellum | Entertainment Correspondent at September 30, 2023 | 11:15 am | Print
On Sept. 23, the Hole-in-the-Wall Theater downtown launched its current 2011-12 season with what is perhaps William Shakespeares’s most popular masterpiece “Romeo and Juliet”. As always with this adventurous company, it was “Romeo” with a twist — the action taking place in Louisiana’s Bayou instead of Renaissance Italy. The reaction from the opening night audience was mixed.
Be it Gounod’s celebrated French opera, the gorgeous, now legendary Zeffirelli movie, or the actual play itself, “Romeo” is a long show, full of secondary characters, and one that doesn’t really get moving until the famous duel scene between Mercutio and Tybalt midway in Act 2. Trying fresh new concepts are one thing, but flagrant deviations from the original are something else again. This unorthodox production adds extra incidental characters and even more dialogue that the great Bard never wrote, and thus, drags an already long evening out to 3 1/2 hours! Conservative as this reviewer may be, the straight play updated to modern Louisiana would have been sufficient, especially since all of that extra, tricky dialogue (in Southern drawl no less!) wasn’t being executed by, with all due respect, world class thespians.
That said, Mary Roane’s plummy, compassionate Nurse towered over the huge, youthful cast like the Colossus of Rhodes. She teaches English and Drama at New Britain High, and all that professionalism and expertise was fully evident. On the same level was Mia Morton’s Cajun herbal soothsayer Maman Laurent. Her booming voice and commanding stage presence made one quickly forgive that she was portraying a role originally written for a man — the Friar that marries the star-crossed lovers. Roy Donnelly and Doug Seelye are probably the best, seasoned actors in town — too bad Shakespeare gave them so little to do!
As for those teenage lovers, kudos are deserved for undertaking such large assignments at such a young age! However, in this reporter’s opinion, they were not an ideal match. John Marinelli had all the sensitivity and boyish exuberance that Romeo requires, and he enunciated the text very well, but his androgynous looks and Rapunzel-like long hair made one wish for a more virile, “matinee idol” type hero. Rachel Cabaniol’s heroine was the opposite. Visually, her ingenue looked fine, but many of her great lines, especially in the famous balcony scene, were lost and barely audible. Speaking slower and with more volume would definitely enhance her future performances.
Those future remaining performances are scheduled for Fridays (Oct. 7 and 14), Saturdays (Oct. 1, 8 and 15), plus a special Sunday matinee Oct. 2 at 2 p.m. For tickets and/or more information on the other five offerings this season (including the classic “Death of a Salesman”), please call either 860-223-9665 or 860-223-9665, or visit www.hitw.org.
