Aside from seeing great talent & a well-done piece of theatre, as a reviewer & theatre lover there’s nothing that makes me happier than seeing people improve. GJ productions Romeo & Juliet is no exception. Held in the relaxed & beautiful surrounds of Fairfield park at the Fairfield Amphitheatre, there’s something for everyone in this fresh & modern take on what one would say to be one of Shakespeare’s most well-known love stories. 

There was a prompt, smooth start & an added in few extras to further help set the mood & keep the audience interested. Everyone took great care to project the authenticity. The production as a whole is really well rehearsed & the actors all engage with the audience, truly not afraid to immerse themselves in their character, being sure to use bold & vibrant facial expressions & body language. I was however particularly impressed with the well-choreographed fight scenes (led by Geoffrey Weber) & effective sound effects etc where appropriate throughout the show. 

The lighting, backdrop & props were kept simple allowing for the eye-catching costume designs by Etherael Andy to shine through helping make you feel like you were truly in that time & era. 

Holding the play at an Amphitheatre does make it more difficult to check tickets before you enter to ensure no unpaid patrons enter. Secondly i noticed that there were some delays in turning on of the actors mics before they started speaking. I found that at some points the actors would start speaking before the mics kicked in & thus I felt I missed the first bit of what the actors said. 

Overall Gjs Romeo & Juliet is a great summers night out for any Shakespeare/theatre lover & is sure to please all ages. But hurry as its only playing until January 26th 

Tickets can be purchased at trybooking.com (search GJ Productions) 

x Steph

Photos by Matthew Howat