Romeo and Juliet

Last week the Under was temporarily transformed into the streets of a neo-Victorian Verona as the senior school production of Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare opened on Thursday night to huge praise for the young cast and crew. Paul McCarthy and Suhana Khan played the passionate star crossed lovers with mesmerising support from Josh Murphy and Max Lawlor as the swaggering Mercutio and Benvolio, Elise Hooper as a delightfully comic but touching Nurse and Alex Dench as a Friar Lawrence more interested in potions than praying! Special mention must also go to Charlotte Donegan, whose fiery Tybalt was a late but unforgettable addition to the cast after another student had to withdraw, and Grayce Davis as a sinuous Lady Capulet who keeps her Lord (Eddie Castle) on a tight leash.

They were joined by a hugely committed and talented company drawn from the Fifth and Sixth Form who were led from the tech balcony by DSM Michael Clarke.

The Company were lucky enough to be joined by a magnificent creative team including professional lighting and set designers and our own Mr Stewart who designed an extraordinary and epic sound design to invoke the steampunk universe of Mrs Carr-Bates’s concept. An elegant ball scene was choreographed by Miss Redford and some brutal fights and blood bags created by Mrs Payne! Overall it was a great team effort.

The show played to three packed houses and received a great reaction from the audience including two standing ovations. Romeo and Juliet was a labour of love but one that seems to have paid off for the whole team rather than drinking poison in the Capulet crypt!