Romeo and Juliet - As you've never seen it before
Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare at the Belgrade Theatre until 8 March 2025. Directed by Corey Campbell, Lyrics by That's A Rap, Music by A Class.
Review by Alison Manning.
This ingenious production of Romeo and Juliet, directed by Corey Campbell, creative director of The Belgrade, is mainly faithful to Shakespeare's original script but intertwines it with music and rap to add whole new layers and pack a powerful punch.
The addition of music adds extra power and speaks to different audiences, backing up the words of Shakespeare with words of rap, R&B and soul, expressing the same sentiments in different ways. Each is probably more relatable to a different audience. This reinforces the storyline and adds strength and energy. The opening scene is particularly powerful, featuring a soaring lone violin and strong music underlining the powerful story summary of the prologue.
The meshing of the Shakespearean dialogue with the extra musical parts new for this production is so seamless that at times you are left questioning which are the new words and which are Shakespeare's. Iambic pentameter seems to lend itself to rap. When Juliet (Mia Khan) sings "Wherefore art though Romeo?” it is with a heartfelt soulfulness full of emotion and newfound love and despair that would be impossible to evoke from simply saying the line.
Three of the cast also feature, at times, as musicians: Pete Ashmore playing the Prince and the violin, Natasha Lewis playing the Nurse and the trombone and Samuel Gosrani playing Tybalt and the guitar. These three are joined by five further musicians housed throughout on an upper platform balcony, elevated above the action. This level also provides space for the nine members of the Community choir. Their evocative voices enrich the musical sections of this play, both echoing the exhortations of other characters, such as the hauntingly repeated “Think on it,” as well as adding an extra perspective, as they represent the people of Mantua.
The set is an interesting design of a series of panels that line up in a semicircle around the back of the stage, but pivot to become doors, creating entrances and exits and letting in light through their grid patterns, thus signifying the time of day and the passage of time. They also move to let in additional pieces of set such as Juliet's bed, and a galleried staircase which doubles as a party/ball singing stage and Juliet's infamous balcony. They also rotate completely to denote different locations, such as one turning into a wall with a cross for Friar Lawrence’s cell, and several representing run-down graffitied walls for Mantua.
Projections add to the performance well, particularly in the early scene where the rivalry between the two houses is set up as a conflict between political opponents, Lord Capulet and Lady Montague. They stand, one each side of the stage, behind screens that initially show speeches from the Houses of Parliament that then fade to the characters themselves, with their speeches echoing those of the real politicians featured in the videos. Another time projections are used to good effect is during Benvolio's emotional account of the fatal fight where creative images of the characters and their actions are projected on to the two moveable screens to reinforce his report, enabling greater understanding of his words. When not needed, the projection screens slide seamlessly to the sides of the stage and integrate with the rest of the set.
Monochrome costumes feature throughout, with most characters, particularly the main ones, dressed in black or white or a combination of both. This reflects the black and white mentality of the play and the seemingly clearcut divide between the feuding families of the Capulets and the Montagues. This also mirrors the light and dark themes of the play, such as Romeo referring to Juliet as the sun and the times they wait for the darkness of night or the light of dawn.
This production is designed to draw in audiences who don’t usually watch Shakespeare or perhaps even go to the theatre. It has been envisaged as an immersive experience, with voting booths outside the auditorium where you are invited to vote electronically for Montagues or Capulets, a projected QR code within the auditorium when you first enter does the same thing, and interval announcements further urge you to use your right to vote. Stickers on the toilet hand dryers represent a graffitied version of the line from the later scene where Romeo attempts to buy poison from the poor apothecary: “My poverty, but not my will, consents.” This line underlines the political parallels and the people in power’s responsibility for poverty.
There is a freshness and grittiness about this production and some of the characters, particularly Kyle Ndukuba who shines in his professional stage debut as Romeo. The music modernises it as well as adding to the grittiness. The audience’s reactions are possibly a response to this rawness, or to their potential unfamiliarity with theatre and Shakespeare. They are unafraid to cheer, or sometimes comment, and even manage to find moments of comedy where they can laugh, despite the darkness and tragedy of much of the subject matter. Similar responses would perhaps have been experienced by Shakespeare’s original rowdy audiences.
The Belgrade has an ethos of co-creation and many different groups have come together to make this production. As well as the actors and the stage technicians, it involves the musicians, the community choir and community Belgrade ensemble. Also the group, That’s a Rap, have collaborated with Coventry Academy to both develop the music within the show and produce the initial entrance music. This proves the positive power of coming together which can conquer divisions and differences.
Romeo and Juliet is on at The Belgrade Theatre, Coventry until 8 March. You can find further information and how to book here: https://www.belgrade.co.uk/events/romeo-and-juliet/
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