Gabby Beans on Why Shakespeare for a New Generation Is Worth Cheering For

Leigh Nordstrom
·4-min read

The last time Gabby Beans was on Broadway, it was the peak of omicron and much of her time was spent worrying about if they’d even be able to perform.

“I remember rehearsing that show and just holding my breath basically, because I was like, ‘I don’t know if we’re going to be able to open this show given the COVID of it all,’” Beans says. “And so to return to Broadway in the time we find ourselves now, and to have everyone be happy and healthy and able to do the show and share it with the audiences that we’ve been able to share it with, it’s just really nice.”

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Beans, a Tony nominee for her role in the 2022 revival of Thornton Wilder’s “The Skin of Our Teeth,” joins Kit Connor and Rachel Zegler onstage in the Sam Gold adaptation of “Romeo + Juliet,” taking on the dual role of Mercutio and The Friar. The production, which features music by Jack Antonoff, has been a hit since opening earlier this fall, especially among young theater-goers who are fans of Connor from “Heartstopper” and Zegler from “West Side Story” and “The Hunger Games.”

Beans had an offer for another show she was considering when her managers called her about “Romeo.” When she heard the audition was for the roles of Mercutio and The Friar, she was sold.

“It’s a kind of funny full-circle moment, because I went to LAMDA in London for drama school, and our last production was ‘Romeo and Juliet,’ and I played Lady Capulet, which was great, but I was like, ‘damn, it would be really great to have a shot at Mercutio,’” Beans says. “It’s been something that I didn’t really even think to hope for, because when does a Black woman get to play Mercutio or The Friar?”

Gabby Beans during ‘Romeo + Juliet’ on Broadway.
Gabby Beans during ‘Romeo + Juliet’ on Broadway.

This production of “Romeo + Juliet” has been a hit with Gen Z audiences since the first preview. Each evening, a crowd forms at the stage door in hopes to catch the attention of Connor, Zegler or the rest, and clandestine clips from the show have spread on TikTok.

“It is so cool,” Beans says. “I mean, we are all in the room thinking, ‘OK, we’re doing something fun and interesting, and we all make each other laugh and enjoy each other’s work.’ But then to come in the first preview, it felt like we were — I mean, the audience was erupting into cheers throughout the show. And that has not stopped. And I’ve not ever been to see a Shakespeare play where the audience is having such a raucous fun time,” she continues. “So it’s really beautiful and we feel very accepted and held and welcomed by our audiences, especially our younger audiences.”

She also hopes that it’s inspiring those younger fans to get into Shakespeare.

“I’ve been going to the theater since I was in high school, and I remember being really moved by the pieces that I saw and those experiences are part of what led me to choose this life as an actor. And so to potentially be part of people’s lives in that way is so cool and so awesome,” she says. “Every night before I go on stage, I’m like, ‘you might be someone’s first time in the theater. You might be part of someone’s first experience of Shakespeare.’ And that is really meaningful.”

Beans, who earned a double major in neuroscience and theater from Columbia before attending drama school at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art, can distinctly recall the feeling of seeing Broadway shows as a kid. Her mom, then a practicing physician, would travel to New York for medical conferences and bring the family with her.

“I remember seeing ‘The Lion King’ and ‘Into the Woods’ and ‘Oklahoma!’ and all of these different Broadway shows and just being like, this is the coolest thing ever,” Beans says. “And so it is incredibly cool to now be doing that.”

Gabby Beans with the ‘Romeo + Juliet’ team.
Gabby Beans with the ‘Romeo + Juliet’ team.

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