Dazzling sets, acting add life to 'Romeo and Juliet'

"ROMEO AND JULIET," through Feb. 28, Pioneer Theatre Company, (801-581-6961); running time: 3 hours, 10 minutes (one intermission).

Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet" needs little introduction. If you've never seen it or read it, you're at least familiar with the classic story of forbidden love.

Running through Feb. 28, "Romeo and Juliet" is the latest production to open at Simmons Pioneer Memorial Theatre, and it is beautifully done, set in its classic surroundings and certainly worth checking out.

Before the show begins, Bill Clarke's striking set strikes the mood with a large gold wall, letting Michael Gilliam's lighting bounce and reflect different moods and settings throughout the play.

One of my favorite moments was the scene in Juliet's bedroom after the young lovers are married. The use of beautiful billowy fabrics to drape and dress Juliet's bed was visually stunning.

Director Paul Barnes has assembled a very fine cast of local and New York actors.

Amelia McClain captured the innocence and exuberance of the 13-year-old Juliet. With a beautiful, fresh face, her wide-eyed expressions and interpretation of the Bard's words made her almost seem like a modern-day teen. She made the text easy to understand.

Her dashing Romeo was Matt Jared, who was everything Romeo should be: handsome, youthful, impetuous, desperate and madly in love. The intensity of his love and anguish was very believable. The two had a nice chemistry together.

Mercutio's pomp, swagger and inappropriate playfulness was brought to life by David Graham Jones. His performance garnered plenty of laughter and made him an audience favorite.

Seen in many productions at the Utah Shakespearean Festival, Michael Brusasco played his nemesis, Tybalt. The two traded barbs and locked horns so well that it was doubly sad when they were stabbed.

Speaking of which, the clash and energy of the sword fights, choreographed by Paul Kiernan, were very well done — so much so that I overheard similar remarks from audience members while exiting the theater.

Susan Branch Towne's costumes were mostly gorgeous. The fabrics were lovely. They were rich in color and texture. But that richness left the men's tights looking rather cheap and thin, and some didn't seem to fit well.

One thing to keep in mind is that Shakespeare tends to be long. Though Barnes' pacing and quick scene changes keep the play clipping along, it's still runs more than three hours.

If you see the play on a weekend night, with curtain at 8 p.m., you won't leave the theater until after 11 p.m. Keep that in mind when arranging for baby sitters.

Pioneer Theatre Company's "Romeo and Juliet" is a lovely production, as beautiful to look at as the words themselves.

E-mail: ehansen@desnews.com