Since U Been Gone (Broadway Across America)

Apr 25

3 min read

& Juliet

Music and Lyrics by Max Martin Book by David West Read Directed by Luke Sheppard

A Review by Regina Harris

Fresh off Broadway, & Juliet is a fun, nostalgic, energetic and inclusive coming of age juke box musical. This head-spinning throwback to the culture and music of London grunge and American pop will be a delight to any Millennial, and it's a great way to introduce a young audience, as evidenced by the plethora of parents with their teens and preteens (TW: there are themes of sex and mention of suicide as well as some adult language). Examining relevant themes of youth and female empowerment, masculine fragility and non-binary love with comedy and poignancy, Tuesday night's performance at Kentucky Performing Arts had the audience applauding, verbally responding to the actors and singing along to this 90's-2000's pop soundtrack. It's a perfectly reimagined story of what Juliet's life might have been had she decided to live after Romeo's death. .

The premise of the play is that Shakespeare's real-life wife, Anne Hathaway, is unhappy in her marriage to him. She demands to co-write Romeo and Juliet with him, flipping the script on Juliet's life choices as a means of both equalizing their relationship and reconciling with her own past choices. The couple, hilariously played by Teal Wicks (Anne Hathaway) and Corey March (William Shakespeare) throw Shakespearean barbs back and forth (like any married couple) but with the extra sting of her dissatisfaction and his cluelessness. Their comedic timing and witty dialog were impeccable.

Typical of any musical, characters spontaneously break into song anytime they have a big feeling to describe. The music of & Juliet is almost every pop song from the late '90's to early 2000's, many written by Max Martin for boy bands and female pop stars, including hits such as Nsync's "It's Gonna Be Me," Britney Spears' "...Baby One More Time” and Katy Perry's "Teenage Dream" among many others. Notably absent were any of Martin's more recent hits with Taylor Swift.

At the time of the premier of & Juliet, Swift's music was in legal dispute with a producer as she was trying to regain control of her music. There is a vague but clever modern reference to this during a conversation with Juliet about female agency. Listen carefully to all the dialog as you will hear a lot from the original R&J, complete with sprinkles of iambic pentameter which harmonized effectively with modern jargon.

Being a Broadway Series production, all performances were impeccable. Rachel Simone Webb as Juliet was pitch perfect. Part of the original Broadway cast (as understudy, stepping into the part over 150 times) her vocals are powerful and dynamic, and her character performance both delightful and grounded. May (Nick Dent) was comedy gold as Juliet's non-binary sassy best friend; their performance on-point with their honesty and longing in "I'm Not a Girl." Both Michael Canu (Romeo) and Mateus Leite Cardoso (François) elicited many groans and rolling eyes with their clueless male obliviousness, offset by their naive vulnerability.

Ultimately, & Juliet is a story about a young woman defining herself outside of her relationships with men. Wisely, Juliet takes the advice of older women who have been there and done that; Anne, and most notably, Angélique (Nurse in Shakespeare's R&J) performed by Kathryn Allison. In Anne's version, Angélique is more than just a background character; she has her own brilliant character arc. Allison exudes warmth and no-nonsense wisdom. She also rocks the house "Teenage Dream/Break Free" and another Katy Perry song about being perfect the way you are.

All other creative and technical elements nailed it. At once gritty and sparkly, the set is a visual feast of '90's London street culture. Graffiti, neon colors and stadium concert lighting harmonized with Elizabethan architectural staples such as balconies and gardens for an entertaining visual rumble. Think "Shakespeare meets MTV." The late '90's was a time when music was being brought to the people on a street level, much as Shakespeare wrote accessibly for common folk. As for the costumes, traditional Elizabethan corsets, breeches and ruffled collars blended seamlessly with vibrant Hammer Pants, Hawaiian shirts, torn tees and lots of big hair - more than a little evocative of Shakespeare's own gender bending comedies. The overall feel was joyful and exuberant. Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet is perceived as the greatest romance ever written. & Juliet is a romance as well, but in Anne's version, Juliet experiences the greatest love of all. Herself. Get thee to the theatre as soon as possible.