Penrith Musical Comedy Company is bringing the high-energy smash-hit jukebox musical ‘& Juliet’ to The Joan next month.
The performance is a play-within-a-play, exploring the events that would transpire if Juliet didn’t die at the end of Shakespeare’s tragedy, ‘Romeo and Juliet’.
“The thing that makes ‘& Juliet’ special is the character growth,” explained Musical Director Marcel Viera.
“There are quite a few storylines happening, and all of them are about becoming a better version of yourself. I think that resonates with a lot of people.”
This theme is reflected in the music – a compilation of pop songs including hits like ‘Since U Been Gone’, ‘Baby One More Time’, and ‘Roar’.
“‘Show Me Love’ is one of the songs that touches on that theme, and ‘It’s My Life’ by Bon Jovi is another example of making a conscious choice to live life your way,” Viera pointed out.
The soundtrack is one of the reasons director John Forbes joined the show.
“It’s all Max Martin’s classics, and I grew up with four older sisters, so there was a lot of Celine Dion, Britney Spears and Backstreet Boys in our house,” Forbes reminisced.
The director was also intrigued by the reimagined story, which is orchestrated on stage by William Shakespeare’s wife Anne Hathaway when she disagrees with Juliet’s fate.
“When I listen to a musical, I try to imagine what’s happening on stage and how it all comes together,” Forbes explained to the Weekender.
“‘& Juliet’ was one of those shows where it was so vivid in my mind just from listening to the soundtrack and being intrigued by the concept of changing the Shakespearean tale to one of empowerment for Juliet.
“My love for the soundtrack motivated me to see the professional production in Melbourne, and by interval, after seeing it on stage, it was on my bucket list – I had to direct it!”
And there was no one else he would rather partner with than choreographer Amy Stoakes.
“John is very focused on drawing so much more out of the script,” Stoakes explained.
“I try to assist his vision by giving the characters a movement vocabulary that reflects their journeys and the story that we’re trying to tell. It adds more layers of depth in comparison to productions that people may have seen before.”
One of the choreographer’s favourite dance numbers is set to the song, ‘Blow’.
“I’ve popped some humour in there along with some commercial jazz dance; it’s probably the biggest dance number in the show,” Stoakes shared.
“There are also moments in the show where I’ve been able to put in lyrical and contemporary dance. There is a lot of variety, and we’ve changed it up a little bit in comparison to the professional production.”
See ‘& Juliet’ at The Joan in Penrith from May 22 to May 30. Tickets are available online at www.thejoan.com.au or from The Joan box office.
