Bursting with Shakespeare quotes, & Juliet is a high energy, contemporary, musical reimagining of the bard’s classic romance, Romeo & Juliet, but offers an alternative ending to the play.

“What if...” says Shakespeare’s wife, Anne Hathaway, “Juliet didn’t die. That should really be the start of the play!”

The part of Shakespeare is played by multi-platinum recording artist and award-winning actor Matt Cardle. Not only is he an absolute delight in the role, his vocals are just as awesome as they were back in 2010, when he found stardom by winning the seventh series of The X Factor. In the role of the bard, he has an adversarial relationship with his on-stage wife (Lara Denning). The pair are very funny together, ricocheting off one another whilst also showcasing their impressive vocals.

This critically successful West End and Broadway musical, which premiered in 2019 and is currently touring  the UK and Ireland, presents a female-empowering modern-day love story, told through the hits of acclaimed songwriter Max Martin, with Britney Spears’ Oops!...I Did It Again and Katy Perry’s Roar both featuring.

Geraldine Sacdalan is absolutely captivating as Juliet. Her singing voice is stunning, and she didn’t put a foot out of place during some very complicated dance routines.

Other standout performers include Jordan Broatch, who plays Juliet’s non-binary best friend, May, and Sandra Marvin, who, in the role of Juliet’s nurse, Angelique, displays some truly impressive comic timing. Her interactions with Lance (Ranj Singh) were hilarious, with both actors giving strong and convincing performances.

The show is well written and full of wit and humour. It’s also very topical, engaging with issues including race, nationality, gender and sexual orientation. Its modern representation of society is in sharp contrast to the 14th-century Verona in which the original play is set.

With an incredibly strong and talented cast, and great choreography, sets and costumes to further recommend it, & Juliet is a highly enjoyable, incredibly uplifting and thoroughly entertaining work of theatre.

The show is loud and vibrant, but if you have a good sense of humour, enjoy pop music from the 90s and noughties, and believe that everyone should be free to love whoever they want, then this is a musical extravaganza well worth catching during its time in the Midlands.

Five stars

& Juliet was reviewed by Sue Hull on Monday 7 October at Wolverhampton Grand Theatre, where it plays until this Saturday (the 12th). The production returns to the Midlands next year, showing at Birmingham Hippodrome from Tuesday 22 April to Saturday 3 May and at the Regent Theatre, Stoke-on-Trent, from Monday 12 May to Saturday 17 May.