No place lends itself better to see Shakespeare’s story of star-crossed lovers Romeo and Juliet than Central Park on a starry night. When Juliet stands on her balcony and the two young lovers profess their love, the moonlit sky behind her creates an idyllic setting for an iconic scene. The last time I saw Romeo and Juliet in the park was in 2007 and it was glorious, hearing the now-famous words exchanged between the two lovers.

This version is different. When the young lovers exchange their vows, they speak in Spanish. Most directors feel compelled to change and ‘revise’ a show, putting their own stamp on it. Saheem Ali, Associate Artistic Director at The Public Theater, is no exception. So when Romeo and Juliet meet, woo and wed, Spanish is their love language.

The beauty of Shakespeare’s play is in his themes and lyrically magnificent language. His dialogue is beautifully poetic and made a lasting impression on the English language. Yet as these lovers speak in Spanish, the audience misses the classic lines. If the audience member knows Spanish, perhaps he understands it. However, those with minimal knowledge of Spanish struggle to translate the conversation and don't hear the poetry.
Undoubtedly, the goal is to be inclusive, but, in part, it does the opposite. Viewers can see and understand what was happening, but not fully admire Shakepeare’s language.

As the story opens, there’s an ongoing dispute between two affluent families, the Montagues and the Capulets. Shakepeare never explains why they hate one another but instead focuses on the impact it has on their children when they fall in love. Ali’s version includes a subtle political commentary about immigration and the Wall noting “El Muro Mata” and includes soldiers in masks. Protesters post anti-wall messages until an opposing group rips them down. There’s no explanation, nor do we learn if there is any impact or relationship to the two families who both reside on the same side of the wall. The message, though important, is too elusive. The wall, literally, stays in the background,

Fortunately, the performances are good. Ra’Mya Latiah Aikens does a fine job as the young impressionable Juliet as a giddy teenage girl. Daniel Bravo Hernández, as Romeo, is boisterous and capricious. Hernandez is like a playful puppy, bounding across the stage, loud and almost drunk in love.

As Mercurcio, talented Caleb Joshua Eberhardt is even able to make the lengthy dream speech about the Queen Mab scene interesting. A physical actor, he holds our attention whenever he’s onstage.

The most enjoyable characters are veterans Deidre O’Connell as the nurse, bawdy and slightly coarse with a Southern accent that goes in and out a bit and Francis Jue as Friar Lawrence who begins the play, singing his lines.

Shakespeare is often a feast for the ear but here it is a visual feast with costumes by Oana Botez. The guests at the Capulet ball wear outfits that are gloriously colorful, sequined and sumptuous with outrageous headdresses, almost other-worldly. The guests are entertained with a song sung by Lady Capulet (LaChanze, making her Delacorte debut.)

The setting (stage design by Maruti Evans ) is a graveyard with headstones setting up a mood from the onset. Several interior scenes incorporate a circular platform which rises from the center of the stage to become Juliet's flower-strewn bed.The brown unremarkable wall, a high wooden barrier, is always present. Behind it are the enormous statues of St. Maria and St. Muerte, which highlights action on stage. The wall only breaks when Juliet’s balcony appears in the middle.

Romeo and Juliet tells a story of love, marred by violence but much of which is scaled back. The fight scene between Mercutio and Tybalt is shortened by abbreviating famous dialogue and using single gunshots.

It was my first visit to the newly-renovated Delacorte Theater, home of Free Shakespeare in the Park, and I was delighted at the much-needed update. Not only is the theater itself brighter and cleaner, the signage throughout the park to get to the theater itself is clear. Romeo and Juliet runs till the end of June. On July 25, the second offering,The Winter's Tale, opens. Nothing says summer like Free Shakespeare in the Park. It is a quintessential New York experience.