Written by Nate Paige
Rachel Simone Webb and the company of the North American Tour of & JULIET – Photo Credit Matthew Murphy
There’s music! And dancing! And hilariously bad puns! And glitter! And confetti!
SO much confetti!
Currently on stage at Playhouse Square’s Connor Palace Theatre is & Juliet, a take on the classic Shakespeare tragedy Romeo & Juliet with a girl power twist and is the latest offering in a string of popular jukebox musicals.
Hours before the premiere of Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet in the 1590s, the wife of William Shakespeare (Corey Mach), Anne (Teal Wicks), offers notes on the ending of the story of the star-crossed lovers:
What if Juliet didn’t die?
The idea sends Shakespeare into a tizzy, but in attempts to be a loving, supporting husband, he entertains her co-writing suggestions. Juliet (Rachel Simone Webb) treks from Verona to Paris, with best friend, May (Nick Drake), nurse Angelique (Kathryn Allison) and Anne (who has written herself into the play) in tow. Juliet is in search of a better life, and to avoid her parents’ plans to send her to a nunnery.
There she meets the young prince Francois Dubois (Mateus Leite Cardoso), a SEGA Game-Boy obsessed young man who is proficient in virginals (piano) and is also a virgin. Francois father, Lance (Paul-Jordan Jansen), is eager for his son to marry, so he throws a Royal Ball in hopes that Francois will find a future bride amongst the townspeople.
Rachel Simone Webb and Mateus Leite Cardoso in the North American Tour of & JULIET – Photo Credit Matthew Murphy
How will the dueling quills of Shakespeare and Anne affect Juliet’s journey?
& Juliet hits on all cylinders. Stellar performances by the principal cast provide energy, humor, and vocal prowess throughout, and all have their moment. Webb shines as Juliet; Mach and Wick are outstanding as the creative warring Shakespeares; Cardoso is hilarious as the affable, slightly dim Francois. Jansen’s performance as Lance is perfect casting; Allison’s sexy, sassy portrayal of Angelique, and Drake’s emotional search for love as May stick with the viewer. As does a surprise appearance of Romeo (Michael Canu).
Five members of the cast – Camille Brooks (Lady Capulet/Nell), Mateus Leile Cardoso (Francois), Nick Drake (May), Shelby Griswold (Lucy/Helena) and Corey Mach (Shakespeare) are alums of the Baldwin-Wallace Conservatory.
Kathryn Allison in the North American Tour of & JULIET – Photo Credit Matthew Murphy
Reminisce on the musical days of yore – namely the ‘90s and early 2000s – with hits from Britney Spears, Lady Gaga, Justin Timberlake, Kelly Clarkson, The Backstreet Boys, NSYNC and many more. The songbook is the creation of songwriter/producer Max Martin, whose talents have spawned more than 25 No. 1 Billboard-charting songs (to date) over the years.
The brilliantly crafted script, which gives new meaning to many of the song lyrics used in the production, was written by Emmy Award-winning Schitt’s Creek writer David West Read. And Paloma Young’s costuming: let’s call it vintage Renaissance, with a touch of Forever 21, while Soutra Gilmour’s Moulin Rouge-esque set design completes the package.
& Juliet runs through Sunday, March23.
The company of the North American Tour of & JULIET – Photo Credit Matthew Murphy