A Theatre-Goer's Thoughts

  Cole Taylor as Romeo and Caro Reyes Rivera as Juliet in William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet , directed by Raymond O. Caldwell, on stage at the Folger Theatre, October 1-November 10, 2024. Photo by Erika Nizborski. Entering the Folger Theatre for its current production of Romeo and Juliet , we see (and hear) a variety of clips of characters in the play giving what appear to be political speeches drawing distinctions between the “red state” (conservative) Capulets and the “blue state” (liberal) Montagues. Their sound is somewhat unusual, not the “normal” sentence structure and syntax that we might expect. The program notes that, with the help of artificial intelligence (AI), these speeches have been adapted from recent speeches by contemporary politicians. In essence, then, we are hearing Shakespeare-ized language, making it clear that the Capulets and Montagues are bitterly divided. As the play begins, we plunge right into the combative relationships between the families port...

  The cast of Babbitt at Shakespeare Theatre Company (L to R): Matt McGrath, Ali Stroker, Ann Harada, Matthew Broderick, Nehal Joshi, Judy Kaye, Mara Davi, and Chris Myers. Playwright Joe DiPietro (a two-time Tony winner as librettist and lyricist for his musical Memphis ) has adapted Babbitt from the satirical Sinclair Lewis novel of the same name. Originally the result of a brainstorming session more than a decade ago among himself, actor Matthew Broderick, and director Christopher Ashley, to come up with a project that would give them a chance to work together. DiPietro scanned his bookshelf and came across a copy of Lewis’s novel, which set into motion all of the events that would lead to the arrival of DiPietro’s adaptation at DC’s Shakespeare Theatre Company. The play was previously produced in 2023 at San Diego’s La Jolla Playhouse (where Ashley is the current artistic director) with the same design team and several of the same cast members (including Broderick). Full discl...