I saw Romeo & Juliet and all I could look at were Kit Connor's Salomons
Also see: Gen Z is horny and these are the teenagers vaping in the stalls at school. A deep dive into the costumes of the latest iteration.
Disclaimer: spoilers ahead. I saw Romeo & Juliet last week and discuss the show below. The focus is mainly on costumes, but you’ve been warned. Also, this is a long one. Please read in the app or browser window for the full story!
A bit after intermission, Gían Pérez (who plays not one, not two, but three characters - Samson & Paris & Peter) stops the show, turns to the DJ (yes, there is a DJ) and says, “Play We Are Young!”. After her (the DJ’s) refusal, he (Gían) takes it upon himself to engage the audience, raising his arms to clap and belting out the opening line. The DJ gestures to the stage saying, “We don’t have time,” and the audience is quickly reminded of the tragedy unfolding in front of them. Romeo and Juliet are in the throes of teenage angst and anguish and Paris’s request is denied. He storms off, giving two middle fingers to the DJ in protest as he dramatically huffs away, exclaiming, “I just wanted to lighten the mood!” Oh, also, he is wearing a pink crop top with the words ‘GIFT FROM GOD’ printed across his chest. But what about his shoes, you ask? I have deemed them snoots - sneaker-boots. Of the cowboy variety. They are as wild as you might expect from this brief description. And I believe are the exact pair as seen on the designer below, but have yet to find a source confirming these suspicions. You’ll just have to believe me.
He exits the stage in early 2000s nightclub fashion - through a cloud of smoke. The smoke, however, is not from smoke machines of basements past, but a vape he puffs on, punctuating and defining every grand entrance and departure. He is Gen Z and I could not love it more. The kids have made it to Broadway, and they’re sassy with it. They’re here, they’re queer. Get used to it. (Except Romeo and Juliet. They’re still straight.)
The costume designer, Enver Chakartash, took Sam Gould’s reimagined rendition and made it Gen Z’s. The script, while true to the original prose, was delivered with wit and comedy and yes, agony, in a way that made me see how absolutely preventable and ill-fated and funny the story truly is. It emphasizes that these two young lovers were merely collateral damage caught up in the prejudices of generations past. Timely, yes? Yet the costumes are what really modernize this 428 year old classic. The characters could go tit for tat, matching the absurd energy of any viral TikTok, one upping the absolutely absurd nightmarish dreamscapes that only the kids of today could deliver with an excess of hip thrusts and vaguely insulting quips, forcing you to wonder if they are mean or you are stupid, or potentially both. They deliver the opening “No, sir, I do not bite my thumb at you sir; but I bite my thumb, sir,” exchange as a petulant child might, staring you in the face as they drop their food on the floor and daring you to make your next move. They would probably bully you at the mall, yelling “What are thoooooose!?” at your outdated skinny jean/white Air Force 1 combination (while wearing Jnco jeans they bough off Depop). They might yell “Showtime!” on the subway and then start vaping in your face.
Chakartash knew what the people needed, and they delivered tenfold. Bringing in designers like Vaquera, Salomon, Cold Culture and Ludovic de Saint Sernin, Chakartash made it clear that these are in fact just children caught up in a world so much bigger than themselves. Intentional or not, the costumes emphasize the individuality complex of today - we use clothing to make sense of ourselves in a world that does not make sense. Except, at the end of the day, this desire to be special results in everyone looking the same. So while the small cast was distinctly Gen-Z in it’s garb, Chakartash made sure to spotlight small designers. The youths (said in Schmidt fashion) are leaning into small designers as a way to stand out, meshing high and low, casual and dressy. Say what you will about the costumes, but they are grounded in real life. Outfits no longer make sense. Things are getting more absurd by the day as the younger generations are raised on likes and algorithms. Erkki Kurenniemi wrote, “We should no longer think in terms of technology shaping self-perception, but instead, of technology simulating the self, and then replacing the self with its simulation.” I have been watching
’s Instagram stories as I write this piece, and her thoughts give voice to the concept of individualism in today’s world. On threads she referenced Shumon Basar, saying “As we become less powerful do we become more extreme.” Romeo and Juliet have little control in their own lives, but their costumes more than make up for it. I’ve veered a bit off course from my original point, which was that the costumes fit within the parameters that define them, but hey, I’m not one to get off the train before it arrives at the station.Juliet, who we often forget is a thirteen year old girl, begins the show in baggy jeans and a Brandy Melville cami. Throughout the production she is the only one not wearing sneakers, opting instead for an Olivia Rodrigo-esque pair of Dr. Martins with pink hearts on the side. The pinnacle of teenage angst - the combination of frill and grunge. Very tumblr of her.
Chakartash reminds us that Juliet is only thirteen, grounding her outfits in a way that feels middle-school pretending to be adult. Her pajamas remind me of any young teenage girl. A cropped tank and boxer-like shorts. But, there is of course more subtle imagery. Mary and Jesus are front and center. Mary, the virginal martyr. Juliet, the virginal martyr. Maybe not as subliminal in the messaging as I implied. The bow and pearl trim whisper “girlhood”, another nod that Juliet is just a girl. TikTok would love her. She wears a floral embellished dressing-robe type jacket for the wedding scene, marrying a youthful textile with a vintage silhouette. An easily thrift-able piece. As the kids gain spending power, they are buying thrifted pieces. So, it comes full circle.
Juliette’s final dress is the most grownup silhouette we see her in. A satin corseted knee-length dress, it feels like a teenager tried to recreate a Wiederhoeft runway look on an Urban Outfitters budget. And the white, forever stained with blood, reminds us of the young bride’s innocence. It also more literally reminds us of the pains of being a woman. Again, timely.
Romeo and Juliet meet during a party scene, with Romeo dressed in head-to-toe silver sequins and Juliet in a gold Ludovic de Saint Sernin mini dress. (Very me at my cousin’s bar mitzvah in skin-tight American Apparel thinking I was hot shit.) He is the moon and she is the sun. Destined for their paths to never cross, forever just out of reach. As Romeo pleads of Juliet, “It is the East, and Juliet is the sun. Arise, fair sun, and kill the envious moon,” and as Juliet begs of Romeo, “O, swear not by the moon, th’ inconstant moon,” ever the two shall compare each other to the most vital parts of our universe.
On a lighter note, I am a bit obsessed with the full sequin top and bottom combo. If you haven’t seen my past outfit roundups you may have missed me professing my love for Handover. (I am wearing my sequin pants as I type this. I am trying to pick out an outfit for the company holiday party.) Well, they do sequin “boxers” and matching button downs. Also, they’re really comfy.
Kit’s Romeo wears his heart on his sleeve. Or, in this case, his flower on his torso. Inspired by Robert Mapplethorpe’s Tulip, 1985, we see three iterations of this top throughout the show, starting with a sheer mesh top and ending with a harness-like stem wrapping around his shoulders.
The mesh top shows the silhouette of the motif, with the thorns threatening to mar the clean, unblemished beauty of the flower. One swift slice away from severing the bud. Our roots can be the cause of our pain. We can be our own worst enemy. Or, perhaps a hint at the fatal end to an innocent love. As the love affair blossoms, so do Kit’s shirts. (As does the stage, opening up to reveal a garden.) The second iteration (sorry, I tried to find a photo) shows the flower in bloom, a temporary relief from the tragic end. Young flowers are vibrant, but they all eventually wither and die. Life is but a fleeting and fragile thing. The final version shows the stem fully wound around Kit, trapping him within their prickly embrace. Romeo is fully within love’s clutches, the harness trapping him. As he reaches his end, this emphasizes the tragedy of love - he is trapped, with either choice his hands are tied. In the end, only death can free him.
As for his feet? The titular shoe. Somehow the combination of sheer mesh shirt and Salomon sneaker (you can see the full photo above) made me realize how young this character is. His desperate all-consuming love somehow made more sense to me paired with these sneakers. He is just a kid, experimenting and finally beginning to realize and explore who he is and what he believes in, struck with the passions of love and lust and yearning. And he’s doing it all in sneakers.
The Capulets and Montagues all rep very Euro-inspired leisurewear. Think tracksuit meets drag brunch. At one point, someone was wearing either the Khaite Benny belt or the Madewell dupe. Very luxury meets street. But there is little to remind us of the setting of this play, and in response, Chakartash uses clothing to nudge us in the direction of Verona.
What is more Euro than football (I’m American, this was hard for me.)? And soccer equals athleisure, and aithlesiure begets athleisure which begets tracksuits which begets Adidas. Y3 showed up throughout, my favorite being the skirt Tommy Dorfman’s Nurse wears.
Tommy plays the Nurse and Tybalt, using a micro mini pleated skirt and very obvious bra to differentiate between the two. I am a little bit obsessed with the jacket the Nurse wears. Chakarta told Fashionista, “Because the nurse breastfed Juliet in the original text, we decided to really push the breast imagery with her outfits.” Juliet wears the jacket in the second half as a tribute to the now-deceased Tybalt, wearing her mourning on her sleeve. The costuming choices are literal if you let them be. This TikTok is the best footage I was able to find of said jacket. I am still trying to figure out the designer, but the cut and slight patina is something I will now exhaust myself trying to emulate.
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And, before we conclude, I’d like to take.a moment to applaud the fit of all of Kit’s jackets. As a 5’ almost 1” petite lass jackets simply do not hit at my waist. He begins the show in a perfectly fitted leather biker jacket. Towards the end of the show, Kit came on stage in the below Supreme hoodie, and I’ll simply let you read the text I sent my sister so you can fully grasp the gravity and weight of this situation. Finding a jacket that fits is a religious experience for me. I don’t know if I heard a word during this scene, I was too busy trying to read the embossing on the back of the hoodie so I could hunt it down at a later date (the later date being now).
A slightly better look at the snoots and Salomons in action:
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The costumes of this show emphasize the world they help to build. It’s a story about kids finding themselves, and what better medium than clothes? I’ve spent a lot of time discussing the technical side of the wardrobing here and pointing out the subliminal messaging. In an increasingly divided, increasingly conservative world, the most powerful thing a person can do is simply be themselves. This version of the show encourages such expression, creating a safe place for the up-and-coming generation of theater kids. To help a generation feel seen gives voice to their perspective, so like it or hate it, shrug it off because it’s a Gen Z-ified reimagining, diminish the impact because it is ‘for the kids,’ say what you will, I will stand behind the fact that this is an important production. Art imitates life, and life is a struggle. So have fun with it while you can. Plus, it’s fostering an interest in reading and literature in a Chat GPT dependent world. In an age where innocence is a commodity and kids are exploiting themselves for likes on the internet, this take on the classic tale feels like a well executed commentary on the state of the world. Kids pretending to be adults, adults just begging to be kids again.
Elle also published a great piece on how the history of different interpretations helped to define the current Juliet.
Another Y2K/Euro inspired fit. It’s this Dries van Noten vest.
If you made it to the end I encourage you to go see Romeo & Juliet! Somehow this version made me understand the story in an entirely new light. Kit’s red-rimmed eyes and all-or-nothing portrayal of Romeo finally gave me pause. Kids don’t have the life experience to understand that this too shall pass. Juliet’s deadpan “Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?” dripped with mockery from her lips to Romeo’s puppy-dog ears, garnering a collective chuckle from the audience, the desperation of past productions missing from Rachel’s version. The Friar’s sarcastic commentary and occasional narration explored a more self aware and self deprecating perspective than previous renditions have seen fit to portray. No more stuffy English class rumination on the text, but instead a story about two kids with bad luck and worse decision making skills, and the friends they bring down with them. A tale as old as time.
What does it say about me (a 34 year old woman) that I want Juliet's costumes? The dress with the blood; stunning.
Ok truly no lie but I was at happy hour w coworkers tonight and they started talking abt theater and I, someone who cannot usually contribute to this topic at all, got to interject abt the costumes this show thanks to you!!! So thank you for helping me feel included 😂 such a great piece, really broke down stg I have limited knowledge of (…theater) in light of something I enjoy (costuming & clothing choices!!), ty tyyy