Review: Romeo and Juliet, WIlton’s Music Hall

This is a pared back and dramatic rendering of the well known tragedy. The cast of the Flabbergast acting troupe crawl, limp and span their way onto the stage – all dressed in white lycra shorts and corsets, faces streaked with white greasepaint – as the audience take their seats. The staging is stark and effective, suiting the distressed charm of the Wilton’s Music Hall. Three levels of unadorned scaffolding fill most of the back of the stage, with various props and items of costume hanging from it.

It’s a very physical performance. It takes a little time to tune in to what they are doing, which at first seems overblown. But as I get used to the performance style I find the expressive physicality of the acting helped decode some of the denser Shakespearean language. At times it is beautiful to watch the interplay between the actors, such as Romeo and Juliet flirting both within the rhythms of speech and twisting around each other without touching. Where it works best is when movement and dance work with the words. At moments when the actors lean too heavily on physical expression, straying away from the text to portray pure emotion – Juliet’s fear at drinking poison, Romeo learning of Juliet’s supposed death – it feels uncomfortable and a little indulgent.

In a slightly condensed version with a small cast some roles take on more prominence than they might in the original. The nurse, played by Vyte Garriga, is one of those roles. She is made up like a pantomime dame, complete with hoop skirts and red rosebud lips. While she is a very good physical actor her performance seems to overshadow those of other cast members, drawing the eye away from Romeo or Juliet. There are times when the combination of Shakespearean verse and her eastern European accent make it somewhat unclear as to what is being said. Lennie Longworth as Juliet is captivating, portraying a great mix of vulnerability and passion, whilst Daniel Christomou makes an excellent Friar Lawrence.

For me the  highlight is the scene between Romeo (Kyll Thomas-Cole), Tybalt (Nadav Burstein) and Mercutio (Simon Gleave) which marks the end of the first act. It has great moments of tension and drama with some exciting swordplay and movement. Sadly the play never reaches those heights again. The techniques on which the company relied aren’t well suited to tragedy, with the more serious elements becoming slightly lost. 

While the ending lacks the emotional heft of the text it is still a really enjoyable performance. The acting is of a high standard. The design, music, performed very adeptly by the cast, and lighting work well in creating the right atmospheric. This isn’t a breeches and girdle Shakespeare performance, rather a fresh inventive new interpretation and definitely worth watching by anyone interested in seeing Romeo and Juliet through fresh eyes.

Directed by: Henry Maynard
Music by: Nick Hart
Produced by: Flabbergast Theatre Company

Romeo and Juliet plays at Wilton’s Music Hall until Saturday 21 June.