& Juliet is a high-energy jukebox musical that reimagines the ending of Romeo & Juliet. Rather than following Shakespeare’s original tragedy, the show asks: What if Juliet chose to live? With a fresh, empowering perspective, & Juliet follows Juliet as she embarks on a journey of self-discovery, love, and independence beyond Romeo.
As Juliet, accompanied by her friends, travels to Paris, she challenges the conventions of love, identity, and fate. Meanwhile, Shakespeare and his wife, Anne Hathaway, engage in playful debates over how the story should unfold, adding a witty and meta-theatrical twist.
I made the trip down the Princes Freeway to Warrnambool to see a fun energetic production put on by Holiday Actors in the beautiful Lighthouse Theatre. First of all, I loved the mix of old and new in the architecture of the theatre with the new foyer but the old classic look inside the auditorium. All the songs in the musical are written by pop song writer royalty Max Martin who has penned hit songs for superstars such Britney Spears, Katy Perry, Pink and the Backstreet Boys and having seen the professional production in Melbourne a few years ago I knew I was in for a treat!
The first thing I notice when I walked in was the elaborate set, that was shiny and lavish with the show logo being in full display at front of the stage which set the scene brilliant as it immediately caught the audience’ attention. Big shoutout to the set design by Lyle Russell, Barton Lowe, Mark Pech.
To the cast, in the title role of Juliet, Arwen Bounds is a force who commands the stage from the very beginning. She oozes the confidence that Juliet requires and her voice is strong and handles the big belty pop songs like she owns them. She also brings the laughs and the tears with equal amounts of prowess and professionalism.
Anne Hathaway and April are played by Madidi McKenzie who handles most of the comedy in the show and does so with absolute gusto as she takes on the role of the empowering wife of William Shakespeare. A particular highlight is her performance of Celine Dion’s classic “That’s the Way It Is” which is a big vocal and she powers her way through it.
Shakespeare is played by Calder Nicolson. His comic timing throughout the show is flawless and he delivers the one-liners with the sarcasm and sharpness they require to draw a laugh and sometimes a comedic cringe from the audience. A great moment is towards the end of the when he and his wife reconnect and his vulnerability really shines.
Francois and May and played by Scarlett Mills and Mia Copland. Together they are sweet and shy as their characters struggle to find their identities but as the show draws on and they both discover who they are, they become confident in themselves and both their emotions shine through in their performances.
A comedy tour de force of the show was Millicent Lee in the role of Angelique. The role requires a lot of physical comedy and over the top acting which she more than pulls off, the role of Lance, Zane Matheson is also over the top and hilarious and matches perfectly with Lee as onstage lover, Angelique.
The featured dancers, Bryanna Willie, Matea McKenzie, Zoee Boyden, Iesha Kenna and Alla Kamath are amazing and bring the simple yet effective choreography to life.
I must say, the real highlight for me is the ensemble, which in a show like this are integral. The vocals were beautifully tight and energetic bringing the party atmosphere to the musical, the moment the show begins the big sound from the ensemble kicks it off with a bang. The choreography started off a tad nervous and lacked energy but as the show went on it became infectious and fun and you couldn’t help but laugh and smile.
Congratulations to the production team: Director Ashley Rogers- Brigden, Vocal Director Maria Carris-Kerr, Technically Director Barton Lowe, Musical Director Beau Nieuwveld whose band are smoking hot! Choreography Eloise Simpson and Assistant Choreographer Arwen Bounds.
