Review: ‘Romeo & Juliet’ Find Too Little Love in the Park

Key Points:

• The Public Theater’s Shakespeare in the Park production of "Romeo and Juliet," directed by Saheem Ali, uniquely sets the play along the Mexico-U.S. border wall, using the fence as a symbolic balcony and backdrop.
• The set design by Maruti Evans features a desert landscape with grave markers and towering statues, adding a haunting atmosphere enhanced by animal-masked spirit figures representing death.
• The production incorporates a bilingual script with the Capulets speaking English and the Montagues primarily speaking Spanish, reflecting New York City’s linguistic diversity and adding depth to character interactions.
• Despite the innovative setting and bilingual approach, the production struggles with pacing and coherence, with some scenes feeling disjointed and lines losing clarity due to editing choices and faint sound design.
• Romeo (Daniel Bravo Hernández) delivers a powerful performance, skillfully navigating the bilingual text and conveying the character’s emotional range, while Friar Lawrence (Francis Jue) offers a strong supporting role.