My two cents on Romeo and Juliet at the Garrick ★★★☆☆
First of all I’d like to make something clear. Romeo and Juliet is not the greatest love story of all, it is a tragic series of events and bad judgement of two lovers who are essentially still teenagers and are therefore prone to make mistakes. Usually those don’t result in death though.
That being said I think it’s probably not one of the Bard’s best plays with for example Hamlet or Much Ado About Nothing outshining it by miles. Nevertheless it is still our dear William and it has its moments.
“Scenic beautiful setting and show stealing performances by Jacobi and Syal yet not all cast fully convincing”
The Garrick’s scenic version sets a wonderful Italian nearly painting-like atmosphere with two feuding respectful families shouting at each other over bistro cafe tables and walking between massive towering marble pillars. It gives you an instant Godfather feeling and the fashion as well as the odd Italian phrase here and there (let it be song, swear words or lamentations and prayers) completes the image. Yes, we are definitely in Verona.
But not the whole cast lives up to that massive and majestic set. Derek Jacobi’s Mercutio easily steals every scene he is in with his comedic timing, dance moves and seemingly natural command of Shakespearean verse. Sadly that does overshadow our dear Romeo a little bit. Richard Madden (on the whole a solid Romeo as far as I’m concerned) did seem a bit uncomfortable in his speeches in the first few scenes but found his pace as the play progressed. Lily James brilliantly captivates the audience in her monologues and with her childlike mimic and overall demeanor conveys the certain naivety that Juliet requires. Meera Syal is a deeply funny but also feeling Nurse and just as Jacobi wins most scenes she is in let it be her dragging Romeo across the stage by the ear or discovering the dead and cold Juliet in her chamber. Michael Rouse’s Lord Capulet was a bit too choleric for my taste and his change in temper just a little bit too rash and unpredictable. Jack Colgrave Hirst was very convincing as Benvolio though and Marisa Berenson gave Lady Capulet a nice gentle but in the end helpless touch as the rather distanced mother of Juliet.
All in all I enjoyed this Romeo and Juliet not only for its grandiosity in the setting of the scene or the beyond brilliant comedic timing of both Jacobi and Syal who are probably the stars of this production. No, it also added humour to scenes that are in the reading dead serious but show the ridiculousness of the whole love story very clearly when acted out. One of the best examples maybe being first Romeo (who just to mention it, was in deep melancholy over his unrequited love to Rosalind less than 10 hours ago) threatening to kill himself over Juliet and merely two scenes later Juliet doing the same while the poor friar has to intervene both times and come up with a plan to get them their happy ending (or at least trying his best).
Did I feel like this was a picture of pure undying love? No. But I don’t think that’s a bad thing.
Did I believe that 14 year old Juliet was totally and utterly besotted with this handsome fellow she met at a party and turned out to be her family’s mortal enemy? Yes. Yes, this was a young girl falling head over heels and deciding to get married the next day. To a teenage boy who himself seemed to like playing the love sick puppy and knows little to nothing of the world.
Maybe it is because Ahsford and Branagh turned this big tragedy about two star-crossed lovers into a semi-comedy that the deaths of our young couple didn’t touch me that much. Of course we all knew what was coming but then again I knew that for Ophelia, too, and I still cried during her last words before she leaves to commit suicide.
But I would lie if I said that the grieving families sobbing beside their dead children who were nearly artistically draped over each other didn’t move me at all. That last setting so beautifully choreographed that it looked like an oil painting definitely was a deserving end to the play. Three stars from me for this solid yet not quite perfect production
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