THE current production of Romeo and Juliet at The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey in Madison is the third in the past 14 years — previously in ‘94 and ‘99. It is also by far the most accessible. In fact, one wishes that any high school student struggling with the printed text or those turned off by dialogue from four centuries past could sit at the lovely theater on the campus of Drew University and listen and watch as Jordan Coughtry and Rebecca Brooksher perform the familiar balcony scene.

   Director David Kennedy, with an absolute minimum of fuss, and a decided lean to the modern, has urged the pair (she a newcomer to Madison; he a three-year veteran who has charmed us already this season as Mozart in Amadeus) to find the pangs of young love, explore the terrible indecision of courtship and to not worry about the width of the separation, nor yet the height of the balcony. These are indeed kids and they are blinded to the realities of a difficult relationship.

   Any production of Shakespeare comes with its own dynamics. Here, one can always expect brilliant use of the language, careful attention to costumes (and here it is a mixed period) and superior delineation of character. Every word is spoken (“trippingly on the tongue,” and that means every nuance is available). You will be surprised at the morsels of wit, the gestures that might be considered bawdy were they not so passionately accompanying the dialogue. Director Kennedy realizes, of course, that the plot involves a pair of “star-crossed lovers,” but he also insists that it include the God of War and the Goddess of Love. Mars and Venus clash. The tale is not only about lovers, but of warring families.

   And while Mr. Coughtry and Ms. Brooksher have our hearts, the characters of the sub-plots have our minds. Shawn Fagan is an astonishing Mercutio — bare-chested, his blond hair as if he had just emerged from a shower — he steals whole scenes. Bill Christ, as Capulet, is powerful to the edge of abusiveness. Judith Lightfoot Clarke, as his wife, is a terror in her own right. Bernard Burak Sheredy, as Montague, is perhaps more accommodating, but just as opinionated. Robyn Berg plays his dutiful wife.

   Tristan Colton, as the hot-blooded Tybalt, shows that he knows how to handle a sword (the fights are particularly well staged). Todd Quick as the principal servant of the Capulet household easily draws laughs, precisely where they are intended. David Manis, in the pivotal role of Friar Laurence, is strong and confident. And, in a performance to savor, Jodie Lynne McClintock as Juliet’s nurse-since-birth makes her debut with the company a stirring one.

   The evening is fresh, as if newly minted. More than once you will realize that you are hearing the familiar words for the first time. It is as if the characters had just thought of what to say and how to say it. It is the mark of a fine Shakespearean company. It is the mark of this company.

Romeo and Juliet continues at The F.M. Kirby Shakespeare Theatre on the campus of Drew University, 36 Madison Ave., Madison, through Nov. 16. Performances: Tues.-Wed. 7:30 p.m., Thurs.-Fri. 8 p.m., Sat. 2, 8 p.m., Sun. 2, 7 p.m. Tickets cost $29-$53; (973) 408-5600; www.shakespearenj.org