‘But soft, what light through yonder window breaks?’ Tis a play, that’s been overdone…or so you may think!
It is strange to think that a play marketed to us a tale of ‘young love’, romanticises what is essentially lust at first sight. Romeo and Juliet meet one day, get married the next, then die due to poor miscommunication…the mind boggles to see the romantic side here. My only conjecture is that a story fraught with symbolism and political commentary, makes for a perfect ticket seller to school groups.
However, Bell Shakespeare’s 2025 touring production of Romeo and Juliet directed by Artistic Director Peter Evans, defies the modern lens of questioning on this classic tale, infusing the splendour of Shakespeare’s original text with modern phrases slipped in between. Impressively, it gives the audience a deeper insight into the context and meaning behind the discourse and actions of the characters we meet, which cannot be said for previous adaptations of this play.
Featuring Ryan Hodson (Romeo) and Madeline Li (Juliet) as the star-crossed lovers, the actors carry a youthful exuberance that reflects the heightened emotion required of the text. Hodson commands the stage as a boyish, love-struck Romeo, with standout comedic moments including his use of stage platforms to hide from Mercutio and Benvolio following the Capulet ball, at one point pretending to be a marble statue so as not to be seen. Hodson is to be commended for his breadth of emotion in portraying the softness of Romeo, whilst moving swiftly to fury as he slays Tybalt following the murder of Mercutio.
Li gives a delightful performance as Juliet, full of mirth and woe as she portrays the intoxicating emotions of first love. Giving big teen energy, she sneaks behind her parents back to beckon Romeo once more to her balcony ‘Psst! Romeo, psst!’. It made for a fun moment which filled the audience with giddy laughter. There are many beautiful lines in this play, but none so romantic as when Juliet forgets why she called Romeo back, to be met with Romeo’s charismatic response; ‘Let me stand here til thou remember it.’ Swoon!
But perhaps two of the most unexpected stand-out performances were those of Merridy Eastman as the excitable Nurse and Michael Wahr as the effervescent (Lord) Capulet, proving there really is no such thing as a small part. Eastman plays Nurse with a brilliant fusion of wit, cheek, and charm. As she makes Juliet wait impatiently for news of Romeo, Juliet begins to massage one of her shoulders, to which Eastman exclaims, ‘Other side!’, leaving the audience in stitches. Wahr plays Capulet with delicious energy and feeling, giving the audience an opportunity to better understand and sympathise with his character. A man fraught with the societal pressures of seeing his daughter wed amidst the intense political climate of the Capulet – Montague feud. His performance leaves room for light-hearted Dad-energy, bringing out comedic moments in what is generally considered to be a serious role.
Whilst this production has its strengths, it is not without its weaknesses. The base costuming consisted of theatre blacks, where actors layered skirts, ruffs and masks throughout. This felt like a strange artistic choice not to give individually designed costumes to each actor, when all the roles were filled (all excepting Mercutio who doubles as the prince). The story of Romeo and Juliet is rich in symbolism, and it feels like a missed opportunity not to utilise costume design as a vessel for communicating the divide between the Capulet’s and Montague’s. It felt closer to a drama school rehearsal room than a professionally staged production.
The set was also an interesting design, with two platforms in a square and rectangular shape, including a black reflective wall piece – which didn’t seem to serve much purpose other than for actors to hide behind throughout the performance. At the very start of the show, the house lights stayed on as the Montague’s and Capulet’s came bounding up either side of the seating bank in hot pursuit of a fight, helping to establish the long-held feud between the families. This is the only time the seating bank is used in the play, and it would have been nice to see this utilised more. Particularly in the second act when Juliet has a premonition of Romeo’s demise, where she pictures him ‘dead in the bottom of a tomb.’ If Juliet was stood atop the seating bank looking down upon her Romeo, it would better establish the emotional distance between the characters, rather than being stood near each other on stage.
Whilst Romeo and Juliet has certainly not taken its final breath and will be with us for many years to come, this production stays true to the original text and takes care to sit in moments where text may be better understood by its audience, no matter their familiarity with the story.
