Review of & Juliet musical at New Theatre Oxford

I went to see & Juliet musical at the New Theatre Oxford on the first show of its run. I didn’t know much about the show in advance, or the music, so was pleased to find how much I enjoyed it. It’s a jukebox musical based on songs written or cowritten by Max Martin.

The show & Juliet

The setting is a production of Romeo & Juliet, until Shakespeare’s wife turns up and requests a different ending. One where Juliet lives. Not only do we see their ‘new’ play, but also the meaning behind what each of them want from outside and inside the play.

It’s cleverly done, with lots of funny and poignant moments where the main characters grow and learnt about themselves and what they want from life.

The set moves from Verona to Paris scenes with ease, and there’s lots of neon lights plus some sparkle. I loved how the more costumes had hints of modern and Shakespeare’s time.

For more modern times there’s LGBTQ parts, and these are well done, referencing Shakespearean times when acting (and the characters) included cross dressing.

While I thought Juliet was excellent, my favourite was Anne Hathaway, Shakespeare’s wife. Lara Denning has a cracking voice and the character is the voice of feminism in those times.

Shakespeare was well performed too. It turned out he was played by Matt Cardle, X Factor 2010 winner. I was oblivious to that until I finally read my programme. He was really excellent, and the relationship between Shakespeare and Anne was realistic.

Dr Ranj (Ranj Singh) was in his first musical. While he wasn’t the strongest singer or dancer by a long way, he worked for the part. The nurse reminded me of Alison Hammond, but obviously wasn’t her. Sandra Marvin is a great performer with a brilliant voice.

In terms of the music, the musical uses songs from Katy Perry, Backstreet Boys, Bon Jovi, Celine Dion and Britney Spears amongst others. Definitely good for those of us with a love of 90s music. I wanted to hum along all evening.

There is a little minor swearing in the show (as well as in one song), and the recommendation is 8+ for audience age. There were lots of children in the audience, tween and up. Although I did see one small girl who was probably only 6. I’m not sure I’d have taken a 6 year old to an evening performance of any show (there were 2 matinees in this run as well), but apart from the songs, I’m not sure a child that young would grasp many of the themes running through. 

The New Theatre Oxford

Audience behaviour was good. Although there was a big queue for the women’s toilets at the side of the circle during the interval, and people were still coming back to their seats after the 2nd half had started.

I do wish the theatre would let people in earlier to the auditorium. There were obviously a lot of issues with getting the stage set up because they didn’t let everyone in til around 7.15pm. In a super hot foyer, which becomes more and more crowded with people, they need to either get people spread out and into the theatre earlier to avoid the overcrowding, or have a more staggered entrance and not let as many people inside.  Thankfully the theatre itself is a little cooler than in the foyer.

I’d booked using my ATG+ card, and for the first time there were more benefits over just getting first night discounts.  This time there was complementary programme and free house drink, plus a Q&A afterwards. This was free but you did have to book. Unfortunately I wasn’t feeling well so didn’t stay afterwards, but there were a lot of people who’d taken up the offer from what I could see from people getting their free programme beforehand.

If you get the chance to see & Juliet, do go and see it. With modern recognisable songs, quirky characters, and strong women, it’s a good one for everyone to see.

Read my other theatre reviews.