Curve Theatre Leicester – until 8th July 2023
Reviewed by Amarjeet Singh
5****
Bourne’s breathtaking interpretation of the Bards bad romance is enthralling. Refreshing, it reframes and reimagines the timeless tale of star-crossed lovers, set not in the Italian city of Verona but in a stark white, sterile Institute for Boys and Girls. It’s not clear of its purpose except segregation and compliance, what is clear is that the youth are forced into submission as they swallow medication and stiffly march in formation on command. The Verona Institute is perhaps part reform school, part hospital and is most definitely open to corruption. In this version, there is no direct feud between families, but rather a struggle between youth and authority, freedom and incarceration, love and brutality.
Drawing you in like the proverbial bull, a red curtain falls revealing tragedy before launching into the Dance of the Knights, powerful and urgent, you feel the angst pour from the pores of the performers. Bourne flips the script as expected so you don’t quite know what to expect. Tybalt is now an unorthodox and threatening guard, with inappropriate designs on Juliet. Nurse/Friar Lawrence is now a kindly Chaplain, Mercutio is a fiery, flirty and feisty, fellow inmate pushing boundaries. Early on there is a suggestion of something quite sinister happening to Juliet at the hands of Tybalt, which makes the final twist and deviation from the original plot, plausible. (No spoilers here)
We are introduced to the youth with some truly spectacular dance sequences, staccato stomps, and sullen swings with the youth literally climbing the walls in their caged confinement. Romeo, accompanied by paparazzi conscious parents, arrives at the institute and is deftly stripped and admitted, blending in, to become another brick in the wall.
Romeo and Juliet’s love is evident and celebrated in this production as is youth. Through the most exquisite dance their love blossoms. In ‘A Verona Institute’ dance for boys and girls. It flips from formal disco overseen by guards and chaplain, to full-on raunchfest when the authorities are out of sight, reminiscent of ‘Dirty Dancing’, the scene in the basement, with the watermelons. There are elements of ‘Grease’ and ‘Summer Nights’ when Romeo and Juliet’s friends huddle excitedly to debrief the morning after. Whilst their peers writhe, gyrate and undulate with sexual fury during the disco, they alone stand pure, centre of the stage, oscillating on a different frequency. The kiss sequence is spectacular, lips locked whilst they dance with abandonment, breathless, effortless and youre left questioning afterwards, how did they do that? Cordelia Braithwaite is a multifaceted Juliet, not simply passive and innocent, she portrays this Juliet with the depth she deserves. Paris Fitzpatrick is a gentle Romeo who develops in strength as the performance goes on and he endures the various trials forced upon him. Richard Winsor is sensational as a chilling and tyrannical Tybalt. More in need of incarceration than the inmates, Winsor completely encompasses the tortured rage and violence that consumes him. A fleeting moment of perceived softness is quickly shunned for the familiarity of brutalisation. The cast, as a whole, were energetic, enthusiastic and had you entertained at every moment. The tireless movements were innovative and polished but at the same time free and fluidlike. They had you on the edge of your seat trying to take it all in, all at once.
Terry Davies’s shaping of Prokofiev’s score is a stripped-back version of the score, which suits this adaptation, still dramatic and poignant, it delivers strong in the dramatic stakes. Lez Brotherston’s white-tiled set was cold and clinical. Monochrome, with splashes of colour for effect. Wired gates, walls you could climb with a walkway which so cleverly doubled as Juliet’s balcony. A huge light fitting coming down from the ceiling which was a sort of surgical UFO and a glitter ball. Combined with Paule Constable’s lighting it set the scene for a dystopian future for our youth, so bright, yet so bleak, full of shadows and things that haunt us. A medicated future to suppress impulses.
Matthew Bourne’s Romeo and Juliet is beautiful. Full of spectacular performances and pathos, combined with Prokofiev’s haunting score and set through the lens of youth, this truly is a fresh and surprising adaptation that absorbs and awakens the senses.