Five reasons to see & Juliet
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| By
Stephanie Rosborough
& Juliet is currently the talk of the town. The show features hit songs you might know already, written by legendary songwriter Max Martin. Although this technically classifies & Juliet as a jukebox musical, you should not go in with any preconceived notions, as every song has been rearranged into a grand musical style with surprises around every corner!
The show really has something for everyone. Based on one of Shakespeare’s classic stories Romeo and Juliet, this is a fun and contemporary retelling from Juliet’s perspective. Follow along on the journey as she moves to the city of Paris, leaves the past behind her in Verona and gets a second chance at rewriting her life without Romeo.
The show features a great cast including Jordan Luke Gage who rose to fame as Strat in Bat Out of Hell, (Gage this summer performed opposite Christina Bennington in Heathers the Musical to rave reviews for his performance as JD). Also starring as Shakespeare is Oliver Tompsett, who you may have seen in the early days of his West End career as Fiyero in Wicked. The rest of the ensemble cast will leave you laughing until you get home with an incredible arc between Juliet’s Nurse (played by Melanie La Barrie who is an incredible comedic performer) and the wonderfully French Lance created by David Bedella.
& Juliet has something for everyone!
Five reasons to see & Juliet
1. This fabulous musical features hit songs from Britney Spears, Katy Perry and the Backstreet Boys. Backstreet's definitely back in this smash-hit West End show with the band of Romeo’s "brothers", The Du Bois. You will be singing the songs long after for sure.
2. This show is brimming with female empowerment with Juliet getting to make her own choices and with Anne Hathaway (Shakespeare’s Wife) going along for the ride helping to rewrite her happy ending.
3. Another reason to see this popular musical is that the cast is full of representation. New to the cast for this opening is Alex Thomas-Smith (they/him/hers) playing gender non-conforming May on their journey of self-discovery. It is powerful seeing a character like this played by a performer identifying in the same way and an important landmark for theatre.
4. This show is full of escapism. You will leave London for the evening and be transported from the city of Verona to the streets of a fantasy Paris. You will be blown away, with all the glitz and the glam and invited to a party Ce Soir like no other!
5. Finally, I want to mention the cover Juliet Roshani Abbey who was performing on the 12th October at the particular performance I saw. She was incredible and really made the show electric and it was only the second show Abbey had performed as Juliet. You will be blown away by whoever you are lucky enough to see on the night!
You should definitely go to see this show at the Shaftesbury Theatre in London. It is amazing to have this show back in the West End.