I love going to see the live broadcasts. Before the show, you get a bit of insight into what the director's aims were along with exclusive interviews with the cast. In her pre-show interview, Director Erica Whyman discussed how relevant she feels the themes in Romeo & Juliet are today, especially regarding young people and knife crime. She spoke of the importance of love conquering hate, and I agree that this is an important message to send to young people.
Traditionally, Romeo & Juliet is set in Verona, although Whyman chose an alternative set. The exact location was kept vague, and a large metal box was moved forward and back and rotated around to be either solid or hollow, depending on the scene's requirements. Right from the offset, actors were climbing on top of the box as if it were a platform or sit on the edge like you would a wall. It was particularly effective in the traditional "balcony" scene, with Romeo comically leaning against the box while Juliet looked beyond him, unaware that he was there. The set felt very modern and some might say stylised, but the simple set kept the focus on the actors and meant they were able to utilise the entire stage.
Bally Gill and Karen Fishwick played the infatuated Romeo and Juliet, bringing a youthful energy to the roles. Gill was convincingly love-struck and tender, yet somehow managed to maintain his laddish charm and confidence. while Fishwick was so animated she was almost cartoon-like (in a good, Disney Princess kind of way).
A particularly interesting element of Whyman's production was the female Mercutio. Charlotte Josephine was fantastic in her role, although I do not feel changing the gender of the character added anything to the play. Mercutio is a loud character who teases Romeo and gets the boys riled up whenever there is a chance to have a party or a fight. Having a female in this role actually ended up quite annoying, despite Josephine's excellent acting. However, she might as well have dressed as a boy and acted the part as male, as her femininity did not come across.
Josh Finan has given me a new found love for Benvolio. He was clearly in love with Romeo (an interesting interpretation, I must admit, but it worked), and I truly believed that they were best friends. His energy on stage was positive and vibrant and he had great chemistry with other characters.
Michael Hodgson was terrifying as Juliet's father as he overpowered a fearful Lady Capulet (Mariam Haque). I know the scene in which he threatens to kick Juliet out well - I remember studying it at school, and it is a prominent moment in other productions I have seen - yet Hodgson still managed to send a shiver down my spine when he told Juliet to "die in the streets".
Ishia Bennison was hilarious as Juliet's nurse; she was tender and loving toward Juliet and their relationship was heart-warming to watch. By contrast, I felt Raphael Sowole was a fairly forgettable Tybalt. Although there was nothing wrong with his performance, he felt two-dimensional in comparison with other characters, and I found myself waiting for his death. Beth Cordingly played a female Escalus, and gave a strong performance as an authoritative figure, carrying the part well. Unfortunately, like Sowole's Tybalt and Josephine's Mercutio, I did not feel that she brought anything extra to the traditionally male character.
Overall, I was hugely impressed by the production and feel that Whyman was successful in making the play modern and relevant. It was refreshing to see that such a popular play could be reimagined and - to an extent - recreated.
