The deadly animosity between the Montagues and Capulets may have begun as a dispute over land grabs as the heads of the two families competed to stake out more and more property. Seems plausible, but Shakespeare didn’t elect to include any backstory. He was more interested in young lovers being sundered by an implacable feud, and he saw the deaths of Romeo and Juliet as the shocker that would end the long festering conflict. It’s a guaranteed tear-jerking way to tell a love story, and only the most misanthropic among us wouldn’t respond to it with some kind of water works. Deise Mendonça was spectacularly convincing and beautiful as 13-year-old Juliet in State Street Ballet Artistic Director Rodney Gustafson’s ballet based on the play. Her dancing, along with the rest of the company’s was precise, exciting and emotionally charged, with acting to match. The sword play and numerous humorous interludes were particularly effective, and guest artist Aaron Smyth’s Romeo was appropriately dashing and handsome (on top of being a great dancer), but it was Deise’s shy and then love-smacked Juliet that really sold the show. When she was forced to dance with cousin Paris, her parent’s choice for a spouse, her anguish was palpable, as was her sheer joy dancing with Romeo. A lovely and moving performance.
