Chicago Repertory Ballet Excels at Ruth Page

Wade Schaaf’s new full length world premiere story ballet The Capulets is a singular achievement: it tells the story from Juliet’s mom’s perspective, and mom was too busy pursuing her own romantic interests to pay attention to what was going on with her daughter. In Schaaf’s envisioning Papa Capulet wants to marry Juliet to Paris because he wants Paris, his lover, close by. Mama Capulet has a revenge affair with Tybalt after discovering this.  It’s not just a tragedy, it’s a soap opera! And the story ends ten years later when Mama and Papa are raising the affair baby, another girl. 

Chicago Repertory Ballet is more than up to the challenge of this plot: the dancing is dynamic, the acting is moving. I saw Miriam Rose LeDuc as Lady Capulet and her dramatic range easily goes from devastatingly betrayed to passionately in love.  Her duets with Tybalt ( the striking Jackson Ferreira) are breathtaking and her pas de trois with Lord Capulet (Rosario Guillen) and Paris (Skyler Newcom) is as entangled and intriguing as their relationships. Tessa Castellano was the first weekend’s Juliet partnered by the boyish P.J Spagnoletti as Romeo.  Nathaniel Urie’s Mercutio stole the show with his insouciance and nimble swordsmanship while dancing. The entire audience verbally bemoaned his demise. 

Matty Mattson’s ambitious score is full of references from Bolero to the Prokofiev R and J score. It drives the plot forward. John Pobojewski and Zach Minich’s projections gave us an uber modern Verona as setting. I could not see one side so I missed some of the type quotes, and sometimes the images in the projections were so compelling they distracted from the dancing: these projections could be a stand alone exhibit. 

Nathan R. Rohrer's costumes are stupendous: futuristic while referencing Italian fashion and indicating Renaissance details. Couture in the service of plot.  

There is only one more weekend to see this show: The Capulets is playing Friday through Sunday November 7th through 16th at the Ruth Page Center for the Arts, 1016 N Dearborn, in Chicago. For tickets and information go to https://www.chicagorepertoryballet.com/thecapulets

 No part of this article was created using AI

 For more reviews go to https://www.theatreinchicago.com