Rachel Zegler and Kit Connor will make their Broadway debut in one of Shakespeare’s most enduring tragedies.
The West Side Story actress, 22, and the Heartstopper star, 20, will team up to star in the lead roles in Romeo + Juliet, a new adaptation of director Sam Gold’s immortal work, it was announced Tuesday.
Connor and Zegler sparked speculation that they would star in the production when they posted the respective letters R and J on their Instagram pages, leading fans to assume that they would be leading a production of Romeo and Juliet, which was confirmed with the announcement.
In addition to marking the Broadway debuts of Zegler and Connor, the new production will also be the Broadway debut of musician and producer Jack Antonoff, 40, best known for being one of Taylor Swift’s favorite producers, as the production will include new music. of the.
“With the presidential election coming up in November, I felt like making a show this fall that celebrates youth and hope, and unleashes the anger young people feel about the world they’re inheriting,” director Sam Gold said in a statement.
Rachel Zegler, 22, and Kit Connor, 20, will make their Broadway debuts in the lead roles of Romeo + Juliet, a new adaptation of director Sam Gold’s immortal play, it was announced Tuesday.
Jack Antonoff, 40, Bleachers frontman and one of Taylor Swift’s favorite producers, will also make his Broadway debut providing new music for the production; seen on March 19 in London
The show’s official synopsis indicates that it will take a more daring approach to Romeo and Juliet than more traditional productions.
‘Young people are screwed. Abandoned to their fate in their parents’ world of violent ends, an impulsive pair of star-crossed lovers set off toward their inescapable destiny,’ she reads. “The heady passion quickly descends into brutal chaos that can only end one way.”
Gold will take on Shakespeare’s play, which was first published in 1597, having recently directed an acclaimed production of Ibsen’s An Enemy Of The People in an adaptation by Tony Award nominee Amy Herzog.
The play has received particularly strong criticism for its cast, led by Succession’s Jeremy Strong and The Sopranos and The White Lotus star Michael Imperioli.
Zegler hinted at the announcement Monday night when she interrupted her posts at the Dior fashion show with an image of her with her face partially cropped out while flashing a peace sign.
‘Okay, that’s all. See you tomorrow (which might mean nothing),’ he joked in the text.
After the announcement, he added on X (formerly Twitter): “never get over the Broadway debut accusations.”
Sonya Tayeh is also involved in the production to lead the movement.
Connor and Zegler sparked speculation that they would star in the production when they posted the respective letters R and J on their Instagram pages, leading fans to assume that they would lead a production of Romeo and Juliet, which was confirmed with the announcement on Tuesday .
Zegler hinted at Monday’s announcement with an image of her flashing a peace sign. ‘Okay, that’s all. See you tomorrow (which can’t mean anything),’ she joked in the text.
Connor, a London native, posted the letter R (for Romeo) on Monday night, while Zegler, a New Jersey native, posted the letter J (for Juliet), with interlocking halves of a plus sign in his posts.
The pair tagged the posts with Verona, the location of the story, and added emoji captions of a heart and a dagger, leading fans to speculate that they were working on the Shakespeare classic.
One fan, referencing Zegler’s previous Golden Globe-winning performance as Maria in Steven Spielberg’s 2021 film West Side Story, wrote: “Rachel playing Juliet and Maria is so ridiculously iconic.”
That musical, which was conceived by Jerome Robbins with music by Leonard Bernstein, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and a book by Arthur Laurents, adapted Romeo and Juliet for 1950s New York City.
The MTV account said on Zegler’s page, ‘WHAT’S GOING ON RACHEL,’ while on Connor’s page it said, ‘OK, NOW I’M REALLY LOSING IT’; Said one fan, ‘Kit Conner and Rachel Zegler as Romeo and Juliet are serious, OMG.’
Another fan said: ‘OMG!! Are you doing Romeo and Juliet on Broadway or a movie? Whatever this turns out to be, I’m so ready for it!’
One user said on Connor’s page about the setup: “It should be an R for Romeo and half a plus sign. I bet the female lead will upload the other half of the plus sign and the letter J.”
Another headline-making version of Romeo and Juliet is set to play in London’s West End at the Duke of York’s Theatre, starring Marvel actor Tom Holland and Francesca Amewudah-Rivers in the lead roles.
In recent years, Zegler has appeared in films such as 2023’s The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, in which she played Lucy Gray Baird; Shazam of 2023! Fury of the Gods as Anthea; and this year’s throwback comedy Y2K as Laura.
Fans flocked to Zegler’s page with reactions to the post.
Several fans posted on Connor’s page in response to his post on Monday.
In recent years, Zegler has appeared in films such as The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes; Pictured at a screening of the film in New York on November 15, 2023.
Connor’s career has been on the rise in recent years, as he plays the role of Nick Nelson in the Netflix romantic drama Heartstopper, opposite Joe Locke.
She has several high-profile projects on the horizon, as she is set to play Snow White in a 2025 live-action adaptation of Snow White, starring Gal Gadot as the Evil Queen.
Connor’s career has been on the rise in recent years, as he plays the role of Nick Nelson in the Netflix romantic drama Heartstopper, opposite Joe Locke.
Connor has also appeared in films such as 2019’s Rocketman and Spielberg’s 2018 film Ready Player One.
He is set to contribute his vocal talents to the upcoming DreamWorks Animation film, The Wild Robot, co-starring Lupita Nyong’o, Pedro Pascal and Stephanie Hsu.