Matthew Bourne's "Romeo and Juliet"
September 4th, 2019
Last night I saw Matthew Bourne's 'Romeo & Juliet', interestingly set in a mental institution, & more purely in the contemporary dance mode than in some of his works that give a place to ballet. He's replaced the theme of feuding families with a 'them & us' situation where society shuts up some of its members in an institution. I was rather tickled that Friar Laurence turns up as Rev. Bernadette Laurence! In each of the venues, 6 dancers are drawn from the surrounding region in order to foster a supply of new young talent. It was dynamically danced, but there was a shift in focus: there was not much stuffing to the relationship between R & J - it was more a portrait of an oppressive institution, with possibly Tybalt (the guard) as its star. The audience response was enthusiastic.
Anne Sanderson
Many thanks to Anne Sanderson and her kindness in keeping us informed!
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