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2nd November 2026
“‘Engaging, imaginative, and full of fine acting talent’”
by Tom Dewey Bristol 24/7
Photos (c) Craig Fuller
There can’t be many plays as familiar as Romeo and Juliet. Even those of us who haven’t opened a Shakespeare textbook since school know the balcony scene, the feuding families, the doomed young lovers and the ending that rather gives the game away. The challenge for any director is to make this familiar story feel fresh and urgent, rather than a dutiful exercise in Shakey appreciation. At Tobacco Factory Theatres, Sir Greg Doran and a talented young cast make a pretty good fist of it
There’s something rather pleasing about Doran’s return to Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, where he trained, to direct its third-year acting students. As former artistic director of the Royal Shakespeare Company and one of Britain’s most respected Shakespeare directors, he’s a Very Big Name to have in the rehearsal room. It’s an opportunity for the students to learn from someone who knows this material inside out, and the results are certainly worth seeing.
The production takes an interesting approach to the staging, setting the action in a contemporary rehearsal room where the actors gradually create the world of Verona around them – a clever conceit which brings a sense of immediacy and playfulness to the proceedings. Minimal but never dull, it is crafted with plenty of movement and energy. The music is similarly understated, adding atmosphere and momentum without getting in the way of the words.
