Romeo And Juliet

"Two households, both alike in dignity, in fair Verona where we lay our scene..." Most of us know this prologue off by heart, as well as the tragic tale of "a pair of star-crossed lovers" that follows. Baz Luhrmann's 1996 film adaptation of Romeo + Juliet invigorated the classic tale (that fish tank scene!). So what fresh blood can Bell Shakespeare infuse into their production? 

Shortly after aforementioned prologue, there's an unfortunate false start and Peter Evans (Bell Shakespeare's Artistic Director and this show's director) strides down the stairs of this theatre's centre aisle instructing the actors to stop right there. He explains that none of the lighting cues have worked up to this point and then basically remains on stage to kill time, pointing out it would have been dangerous to continue due to Movement & Fight Director Nigel Poulton's carefully choreographed swordplay that follows (thankfully not a spoiler in this case). Evans then turns and greets one of the actors, "Hi, Michael!", thus forcing Gupta (as Paris) to break character. Stage lights snap on. Applause. And then Evans directs Hazem Shammas (Samson) to backtrack and re-set the scene.

Throughout, actors use their natural accents, and gestures bring clarity to some previously unclear phrases — for this the entire cast deserve our applause. Anna Cordingley's costume design is meticulously colour-coordinated and 17th century-inspired, but we're not quite sure why all of the men wear identical black boots. While we don't even notice that some actors play multiple characters, others (particularly Damien Strouthos as Mercutio/Prince) cause confusion (but Mercutio died, right?). Tonight's audience is delighted by Michelle's Doake's turn as Nurse.       

In this Fairfax Studio space, the blocking of Bell Shakespeare's Romeo And Juliet is enthralling, with actors wandering down aisles carrying lamps or pausing on the stairs (at one point Shammas even clambers over audience members to fill an empty seat). While the set is impressively navigated during the masked ball scene, the movement of the players is somewhat stilted and the action here could flow more. This production offers a fairly traditional take on The Bard's popular tragedy, with wordplay effortlessly accentuated. But unfortunately a general lack of chemistry between Romeo (Alex Williams) and Juliet (Kelly Paterniti) blocks our emotional investment.