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Friday, April 25, 2025
Tonys: Will Romeo + Juliet be nominated for the first time this year?
GoldDerby: Since premiering in 1597, William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet has endured as one of the greatest and most tragic love stories ever written. It's been performed countless times all over the world. On Broadway alone, there's been a grand total of 37 productions.
I love reading about the history of broadway revivals, and the different ways in which they change from production to production. I followed the news of the Romeo and Juliet revival starring Rachel Zegler and Kit Connor last year, and noticed the uptick in interest from the mostly Gen Z audience. From what I saw of the set and some photos from the production it is definitely one of the more modern versions of the story. While I am not really a fan of Shakspeare’s work in general, I can see how the different interpretations and productions of the story show the passage of time, and how this is a valuable measuring tool. It shows how productions must adapt a centuries old work that has inevitably lost some of its cultural relevance, in order to make it palatable and appropriate for modern audiences. I think this is a phenomenon that isn’t just seen in Shakespeare’s work, and there are probably many more examples that fit.
I find it a little interesting that Romeo and Juliet has never been awarded a Tony Award, since it is regarded as one of the most performed works in the canon of reliquary. I suppose this means that even the classics can't count on anything. Maybe part of it is that revivals are troublesome - audiences come in so invested in the possibilities of what they expect from the experience, and it can be difficult to have something with that kind of recognition and tradition feel new and exciting. There are moments in theatre when I feel like a single actor has made a performance memorable, even when everything surrounding it falls flat. I wonder if Kit Connor will slip into the nominations with all the praise he has received. That said, I don't think a Tony nomination or award makes a production of Shakespeare relevant or irrelevant; these plays have lasted hundreds of years for a reason and will continue to be reimagined regardless of awards.
I think this title was a little clickbait, as it seems that the answer to will romeo and juliet win an oscar is a resounding no. There was a lot of buzz about this show on tik tok, and I do love kit connor, it's impossible not to after watching hearstoper, but I think maybe the reason that romeo and juliet has never won a tony is because its been done far too many times. Everyone knows this story, and unless someone does some exciting subversion of expectations, it might just be a little too predictable to ever be seen as tony worthy. It's a good story, obviously because nearly every love story from the past 500 years has at least pulled a little bit at the whole star crossed lovers idea, but I think that it's just too much of the same thing, and maybe this play is just destined to for a star crossed lovers plot of its own with the tony's.
3 comments:
I love reading about the history of broadway revivals, and the different ways in which they change from production to production. I followed the news of the Romeo and Juliet revival starring Rachel Zegler and Kit Connor last year, and noticed the uptick in interest from the mostly Gen Z audience. From what I saw of the set and some photos from the production it is definitely one of the more modern versions of the story. While I am not really a fan of Shakspeare’s work in general, I can see how the different interpretations and productions of the story show the passage of time, and how this is a valuable measuring tool. It shows how productions must adapt a centuries old work that has inevitably lost some of its cultural relevance, in order to make it palatable and appropriate for modern audiences. I think this is a phenomenon that isn’t just seen in Shakespeare’s work, and there are probably many more examples that fit.
I find it a little interesting that Romeo and Juliet has never been awarded a Tony Award, since it is regarded as one of the most performed works in the canon of reliquary. I suppose this means that even the classics can't count on anything. Maybe part of it is that revivals are troublesome - audiences come in so invested in the possibilities of what they expect from the experience, and it can be difficult to have something with that kind of recognition and tradition feel new and exciting. There are moments in theatre when I feel like a single actor has made a performance memorable, even when everything surrounding it falls flat. I wonder if Kit Connor will slip into the nominations with all the praise he has received. That said, I don't think a Tony nomination or award makes a production of Shakespeare relevant or irrelevant; these plays have lasted hundreds of years for a reason and will continue to be reimagined regardless of awards.
I think this title was a little clickbait, as it seems that the answer to will romeo and juliet win an oscar is a resounding no. There was a lot of buzz about this show on tik tok, and I do love kit connor, it's impossible not to after watching hearstoper, but I think maybe the reason that romeo and juliet has never won a tony is because its been done far too many times. Everyone knows this story, and unless someone does some exciting subversion of expectations, it might just be a little too predictable to ever be seen as tony worthy. It's a good story, obviously because nearly every love story from the past 500 years has at least pulled a little bit at the whole star crossed lovers idea, but I think that it's just too much of the same thing, and maybe this play is just destined to for a star crossed lovers plot of its own with the tony's.
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