& Juliet is a fantastic jukebox musical filled with talented performers, vibrant colours, and lots of laughs. It is an entertaining twist on a classic love story that will get the audience up on their feet and dance!
& Juliet begins with a discourse between William Shakespeare and his wife Anne. Anne is unhappy with her husband, mainly with his absences to London. She uses his latest play Romeo & Juliet to express her frustration with him. She doesn’t believe a love story like this should end up as a tragedy. She wants love, or in this case for Juliet to flourish beyond the confines of family and social obligations. Shakespeare reluctantly hands her his plume so she can write a stronger bolder story for Juliet. Of course, he doesn’t see right away that Anne is trying to live through Juliet, imagining a different life for herself. While the show’s theme of feminine empowerment may seem anachronistic, given the time period, the moral of love as a guiding light is never old-fashioned.
When Juliet wakes up to find that Romeo had died, she escapes her family with her nurse, some friends, and Anne, who has written herself in the story. The gang run off to Paris, the City of Love. There they meet a young man unable to please his imposing father. Juliet can certainly relate. While this sounds like the original play, William decides to write in a few twists and turns. Conflict is important to a story! Anne is not pleased. She is determined to give Juliet (and herself) more agency, and to declare what she truly desires. The results are sweet, moving, and satisfying.
The cast is wonderful, especially Fabiola Caraballo Quijada as Juliet. She is a fabulous singer! The characters are of different genders, ages, and identities. It makes for an inclusive experience. The songs are like a Millennial’s playlist, but they are just right for the story. The costumes are an inventive mix of medieval Renaissance and colourful modern youth attire. Corsets are still around today!
Love is not just for the young and privileged. And love can come when it is least expected. Don’t let fear get in your way. Just get up, sing, and dance!
Photo credit: Evan Zimmerman for MurphyMade
& Juliet presented by evenko and Broadway Across Canada. Show runs until March 22, at Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier, Place des Arts, 175 Ste.-Catherine Street West, Montreal. For tickets call the box office at 514-842-2112 (or 1-866-842-2112) or go to www.placedesarts.com
