Romeo and Juliet

FLUELLEN THEATRE COMPANY

presents

Romeo and Juliet

"My bounty is as boundless as the sea,

My love as deep; the more I give to thee,

The more I have, for both are infinite"

Shakespeare`s great lyrical tragedy in which, despite their conflicting backgrounds, a boy and girl fall deeply - and fatally - in love.

JAMES SCANNELL and MIRANDA ROSZKOWSKI

as the star-crossed lovers

with

GEORGE ANDREWS, DAVID DOOLEY, STEVE GREY, ROBERT HOPKINS, DANIEL JONES, HANNAH MASON, CLAIRE NOVELLI, RICHARD PRITCHARD, HUW RICHARDS, CHARLOTTE ROGERS

and children from

Class Act Theatre School

ROBERT HOPKINS (Mercutio), JAMES SCANNELL (Romeo) and DANIEL JONES (Benvolio)

REVIEW

South Wales Evening Post

Shakespeare`s timeless tale of two star-crossed lovers has been interpreted for the stage in a multitude of ways, from mods and rockers right through to New York street gangs and aliens from outer space. I have seen a version set on a council estate in which Juliet`s nurse was reinvented as a social worker, and the apothecary as a drug dealer.

How refreshing, then, to see that Swansea-based Fluellen Theatre has opted for an approach devoid of gimmicks and visual distractions, stripping the play of unnecessary clutter and taking it back to basics. This is a production which concentrates on the dialogue and interplay between the characters.

James Scannell and Miranda Roszkowski fare splendidly in their roles as Romeo and Juliet, playing their parts with absolute conviction - it is easy to sympathise with them, and the dilemma in which they find themselves. Claire Novelli is suitably larger-than-life as the Nurse while Charlotte Rogers makes a splendidly inmperious Lady Capulet. Fine performances, too, from Huw Richards (Tybalt), Robert Hopkins (Mercutio), George Andrews (Friar Laurence), David Dooley (Capulet), Daniel Jones (Benvolio) and Steve Grey in a multiplicity of roles. Mackenzie Crook lookalike Iain Goosey also does well as Paris.

Director Peter Richards has called upon Jill Williams`s Class Act Theatre School for this production, which explains the presence of Cats regular Hannah Mason and younger students in walk-on roles to enhance the atmosphere in some scenes.

This rates as one of the most focussed adaptations of Romeo And Juliet I have ever seen. Clever editing of the text has resulted in a faster pace and a more readily accessible narrative.

GRAHAM WILLIAMS

"Come, gentle night; come, loving, black-brow`d night,

Give me my Romeo: and when he shall die,

Take him and cut him out in little stars,

And he will make the face of heaven so fine

That all the world will be in love with night,

And pay no worship to the garish sun."

sponsored by

DIAMOND ACCOUNTING GROUP

GRAND THEATRE ARTS WING

SWANSEA

Tuesday 10th - Friday 13th November 7.15pm

Wednesday and Thursday matinees 2.00pm

BOX OFFICE 01792 475715

DE VALENCE

TENBY

Thursday 19th November

BOX OFFICE 01834 843568