& Juliet sets out to answer the question: what if Juliet, upon finding Romeo dead, just decided to keep on living? Upon leaving this production, I had a series of other, much more pressing questions on my mind. Why does a twenty-something-year-old Juliet still have a nurse? How many confetti cannons can you get away with firing in the space of one act? Why are Romeo’s pants so tight? Why is that one backup dancer so insanely ripped? Does being single for a bit, then getting back with your deadbeat boyfriend, constitute empowerment? (It’s actually ok because he’s a lyric tenor and has a quiff.)
& Juliet is a musical retelling of Shakespeare in a pop jukebox style similar to Moulin Rouge. It’s around 30% boy bands, 20% Britney, 25% 2010s Ariana Grande, and ‘100% gay’ (Glee S2E1). Or ‘gay’ as imagined by a middle-aged woman from Surrey whose life was forever changed by America Ferreira’s speech in Barbie. The plot offers the emotional stimulation of a slime video, and the dialogue is like a verbal equivalent of the word ‘bling’. I will say, however, that whoever came up with the track list has seriously conquered the art of a musical mashup.
If you’re as intrigued by all this as I was, go at your own risk: you might find yourself haunted by nightmares of demons dressed in sparkling breeches shouting, “Yas! Yes, get it! You go queen!” or end up trapped in the tenth circle of Dante’s hell, where you’ll be forced to sing ‘Roar’ by Katy Perry on loop for eternity while being suspended on an LED crescent moon in the Edinburgh Playhouse for no seeming narrative purpose. While my questions about this play remain unanswered, I can’t see myself forgetting it anytime soon.
Image ‘Gerardine Sacdalan – credit Matt Crockett’ provided via Edinburgh Playhouse press release