Surrey

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1500" height="1092" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2024/06/Romeo-and-Juliet-photography-credit-Mark-Deans-2-LS.jpg" alt="Guildford Shakespeare Company's Romeo and Juliet, 2024" class="wp-image-54596" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2024/06/Romeo-and-Juliet-photography-credit-Mark-Deans-2-LS.jpg 1500w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2024/06/Romeo-and-Juliet-photography-credit-Mark-Deans-2-LS-800x582.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2024/06/Romeo-and-Juliet-photography-credit-Mark-Deans-2-LS-1000x728.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2024/06/Romeo-and-Juliet-photography-credit-Mark-Deans-2-LS-400x291.jpg 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2024/06/Romeo-and-Juliet-photography-credit-Mark-Deans-2-LS-768x559.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1500px) 100vw, 1500px" /></figure>



In a word? Yes! The GSC&#8217;s new production of Romeo and Juliet is a gloriously modern retelling of one of the greatest love stories &#8211; and tragedies &#8211; of all time. 



This is the third time the GSC has done Romeo and Juliet. And with this coming-of-age story, the theatre company celebrates its own coming-of-age. I&#8217;m certain that&#8217;s no coincidence. 



Like its star-crossed lovers, this is a bold and energetic production &#8211; taking to the streets of Guildford in no less that six different locations. It&#8217;s also a nostalgic nod to the first GSC productions, which were also open-air. 



The best of Guildford&#8217;s town-centre landscape features &#8211; the Holy Trinity Church for the opening scenes, the courtyard of the Grade I-listed Jacobean Abbot&#8217;s Hospital, and of course the steps under the Tunsgate Arch.



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1500" height="1000" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2024/06/Romeo-and-Juliet-photography-credit-Mark-Deans-4.jpg" alt="Guildford Shakespeare Company's Romeo and Juliet, 2024" class="wp-image-54593" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2024/06/Romeo-and-Juliet-photography-credit-Mark-Deans-4.jpg 1500w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2024/06/Romeo-and-Juliet-photography-credit-Mark-Deans-4-800x533.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2024/06/Romeo-and-Juliet-photography-credit-Mark-Deans-4-1000x667.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2024/06/Romeo-and-Juliet-photography-credit-Mark-Deans-4-400x267.jpg 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2024/06/Romeo-and-Juliet-photography-credit-Mark-Deans-4-768x512.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1500px) 100vw, 1500px" /></figure>



Tunsgate Quarter&#8217;s central courtyard atrium offers an excellent location for the Capulet ball, and the Guildhall balcony, is the obvious spot for Juliet&#8217;s famous &#8216;Romeo, Romeo! Wherefore art thou Romeo?&#8217; scene. 



The second half moves to the Guildford Castle gardens (where there&#8217;s also seating). Acoustics are surprisingly good throughout the roving show, especially those under the Tunsgate Arch. 



Adapted by GSC co-founders Sarah Gobran and Matt Pinches, and directed by Pinches, this Romeo and Juliet is reeling with passion, desperation and reckless abandon. It&#8217;s a real story about real people &#8211; a melding of the 400-year-old story with today&#8217;s modern times. 



A joyful outing, it zips along with speed &#8211; the audience ushered from scene to scene with the urgency of Romeo and Juliet&#8217;s brief but intense love-match. At 2 hours 30 mins, with a brief 15-minute interval, be prepared with sensible footwear. Guildford&#8217;s cobbled streets were not made for stilettos you know!



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-romeo-and-juliet">Romeo and Juliet</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1500" height="1000" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2024/06/Romeo-and-Juliet-photography-credit-Mark-Deans-5.jpg" alt="Guildford Shakespeare Company's Romeo and Juliet, 2024" class="wp-image-54594" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2024/06/Romeo-and-Juliet-photography-credit-Mark-Deans-5.jpg 1500w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2024/06/Romeo-and-Juliet-photography-credit-Mark-Deans-5-800x533.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2024/06/Romeo-and-Juliet-photography-credit-Mark-Deans-5-1000x667.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2024/06/Romeo-and-Juliet-photography-credit-Mark-Deans-5-400x267.jpg 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2024/06/Romeo-and-Juliet-photography-credit-Mark-Deans-5-768x512.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1500px) 100vw, 1500px" /></figure>



The cast of eight is exceptionally strong. And they work hard &#8211; almost all doubling up cleverly to play multiple characters. 



The doomed teenagers, played by Christian James and April Hughes have an undeniable chemistry. Lingering kisses, sensual touches and deep gazes are compelling and almost too personal. Hughes in particular is animated and passionate, capturing beautifully the exhilaration, recklessness and impatience of first love. 



Daniel Burke&#8217;s Mercutio was a stand out for me, oozing charm, charisma and confidence (he&#8217;s pretty good as Lord Montague too). And Luke Latchman plays a cheeky Benvolio. It took me a couple of scenes to realise Latchman was also County Paris &#8211; he switched between the two seamlessly.



Laura Matthews brings a sweet vulnerability to Lady Capulet but as Tybalt, she&#8217;s feisty, bold and full of spirit. Chris Porter nails Lord Capulet with a dominating swagger and charm. You can&#8217;t help but like him. There&#8217;s no fool to David Carr&#8217;s Friar Laurence who&#8217;s earnest and well-meaning, and Emma Manton, who plays Juliet&#8217;s nurse, is loyal, if a little misguided. She doubles up as Prince Escalus, who in this adaptation is a tough-talking head of police.



In a celebration of the local community &#8211; and the GSC&#8217;s longstanding connection to the community &#8211; the ensemble characters are made up of amateur actors from within the community. Students from local schools &#8211; Kings College, Christs College, Guildford County School and Guildford College &#8211; along with actors from the GSC Saturday Club make up the street gangs. Those on the side of the Capulets are dressed in green, the Montagues in street-smart denim. 



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-knife-crime">Knife crime</h2>



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" width="1500" height="1000" src="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2024/06/Romeo-and-Juliet-photography-credit-Mark-Deans-6.jpg" alt="Guildford Shakespeare Company's Romeo and Juliet, 2024" class="wp-image-54595" srcset="https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2024/06/Romeo-and-Juliet-photography-credit-Mark-Deans-6.jpg 1500w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2024/06/Romeo-and-Juliet-photography-credit-Mark-Deans-6-800x533.jpg 800w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2024/06/Romeo-and-Juliet-photography-credit-Mark-Deans-6-1000x667.jpg 1000w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2024/06/Romeo-and-Juliet-photography-credit-Mark-Deans-6-400x267.jpg 400w, https://dev.muddystilettos.co.uk/surrey/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2024/06/Romeo-and-Juliet-photography-credit-Mark-Deans-6-768x512.jpg 768w" sizes="(max-width: 1500px) 100vw, 1500px" /></figure>



One of the objectives of GSC is to make Shakespeare accessible &#8211; breaking down barriers in theatre and bringing it to a wider audience in a way that&#8217;s relatable. This contemporary Romeo and Juliet does just that. The scene when it all kicks off between Tybalt, Mercutio and Romeo is believable in a modern-day setting. Knife crime happens. And because of this, the GSC has created a knife crime awareness programme working alongside several other organisation. 



While Romeo and Juliet, at it&#8217;s heart, is a tragic romance, there are also smatterings of humour. And they&#8217;re perfectly executed here with a subtle awareness understated cheek. 



Bringing the streets of Verona to the streets of Guildford is no mean feat. It&#8217;s a bold and daring, but it works. And it&#8217;s a fitting production for this extraordinary theatre company&#8217;s 18th birthday celebration. 



The Guildford Shakespeare Company&#8217;s &#8216;<a href="https://www.guildford-shakespeare-company.co.uk/romeo-and-juliet-2024/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Romeo and Juliet</a>&#8216; is on until 13 July in Guilford Town Centre and Castle Gardens. 



<a href="https://www.guildford-shakespeare-company.co.uk/put-up-your-swords/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Put Up Your Swords</a>, a knife crime awareness event is on Wednesday 3 July at 7.30pm at Guildford Cathedral. The event is free, with voluntary donations going to <a href="https://www.charliespromise.org/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Charlie&#8217;s Promise</a>, a charity launched by the Milford family of 17-year-old Charlie Cosser who died in 2023 after he was stabbed four times.

Review: Romeo & Juliet by the Guildford Shakespeare Company

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