Seeing Romeo and Juliet at Shakespeare’s Globe was probably one of the things I was most excited about coming into this trip. I would not classify myself as a Shakespeare enthusiast or nerd, but I definitely enjoy Shakespeare, especially after taking an acting Shakespeare class this past semester.
Getting to be in the replica of The Globe was such a surreal experience. In all honesty, it was a lot smaller than I expected. I chose to sit for the show instead of stand on the ground, like a lot of my classmates did. Honestly, I kind of wish I had stood. But my feet were tired and I do think standing for the three hours that the show was would have taken me out completely. Even though I chose to sit for the show, I still got to explore The Globe in all of her glory before and after the performance. It was very cool to imagine people during Shakespeare’s time seeing his shows for the first time in this theatre. It all felt so grand and yet so intimate.
I thought the show itself was great! My favorite performances came from Romeo, Juliet, and The Nurse. The chemistry between Romeo and Juliet was amazing, and rightfully so. One of my favorite moments in the show was the famous balcony scene. I was a little nervous that they were going to stage the scene in this window that sat above the stage, which also happened to be the window that I could not see at all from my seat. So I was elated when suddenly Juliet is being rolled out on this gorgeous wooden balcony. Such a clever solution to the blocking of an iconic scene.
I also thought that the concept that they used for the show worked really well for them. They set R+J in the “American West”. Now, I put quotation marks around that because it was incredibly amusing to watch a British Interpretation of the American West. There were moments that definitely felt truly “western” and times that it felt more “southern”. I was talking to Claire after the show and agreed with her when she discovered that their version of “the west”, was more akin to the “Oklahoman West”. So that kind of gives you the idea of the kind of world that the play was set in. I thought that the conflict between the Capulets and the Montagues worked really well within the world of the west. The Nurse also delivered a stellar performance that really kept me on the edge of my seat, and in my opinion, stole almost every scene she was in.
All in all, getting to step into the world of Shakespeare’s Globe was an experience that I truly don’t think I will ever forget.
-R
Theatre in London U of A 