William Shakespeare’s rarely performed “Love’s Labour’s Lost” is Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey’s (STNJ) offering on the Outdoor Stage at the Greek Theater at the College of St. Elizabeth and it is an absolute delight. Rarely performed due to its multiple leads, it presents a casting dilemma to companies with fewer resources than STNJ’s. Brian Crowe directs this delightful production with spare stage and scenery placing the onus of our pleasure directly on the amazing cast. This ensemble includes company favorites like Jeffrey Bender as Don Armado (yes, like the Spanish Armada!); Clark Scott Carmichael as Boyet who is the attaché to Jesmille Darbouze’s Princess of France, marking her debut with the company; Bruce Cromer as the learned Holofernes, though this one doesn’t lose his head; and Connor Carew as Costard, the comic foil. Other favorites include Susan Maris as Rosaline, who crosses swords with Ben Jacoby’s Berowne, in his debut with the company, and their verbal twangs foretell Jane Austen by some hundreds of years yet to be. In fact, this impression is enhanced by the Empire styling of the costumes and the staging and acting is so brilliant that even those who have never enjoyed Shakespeare now see what all the buzz is about.
Those who think phrases like “fast and loose” have only come about in the last 100 years or so are in for a huge surprise, with the realization that it is only the times that change, not the people. When Jonathan Raviv’s King of Navarre declares a moratorium on women, so that his pals Berowne, Longaville (Aaron McDaniel), and Dumaine (Austin Ku) will concentrate on their studies, they all soon foreswear their vows almost at the same moment, when the forgotten envoy of the Princess and her attendants Rosaline, Katherine (Kristen Kittel), and Maria (Carrie Walsh) come on the scene. Luckily the young men’s fascinations all attach to different ones among the ladies in waiting, after all this is a comedy.
Felix Mayes as Moth shows diverse talents in sword and song, as he attends Don Armado, and Bender is a virtuoso, as is Cromer in the tongue-twisting silliness most resonant with lovers of witty wordings. James Costello also shows great versatility as his character Dull is not so, showing crack comic timing in an antic with Bender that still has me chuckling to myself.
Bring your beach chair and lounge under the stars with a snack and a drink when you join STNJ at the Outdoor Stage. Tickets sell fast and these balmy evenings don’t last forever. Get your tickets now at www.shakespearenj.org.