The language is sublime and the story iconic, but aspects of William Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet” are beyond aggravating. Mainly this: The world’s greatest love story ends with a 13-year-old girl first poisoning and then stabbing herself to death over the demise of a boy she’s known for four days, tops. He’s literally dead; she’s been asleep.
And don’t get me started on the kiddie-pool depth of Romeo’s character. Within the span of a day, he goes from whining that his life is ruined because someone named Rosaline doesn’t love him, to love-bombing/marrying Juliet.
“& Juliet,” the buzzy new musical running through Dec. 15 at the Cadillac Palace Theatre, reclaims Juliet’s story. Directed by Luke Sheppard and featuring some 30 pop tunes by hitmaker Max Martin set to stunning choreography by Jennifer Weber, the musical is a joyous, rambunctious, visually stunning firecracker of a show.
A savvy, funny book by David West Read (of “Schitt’s Creek” fame) skewers Shakespearean sacred cows and loads the dialogue with Shakespeare-centric Easter Eggs: Repurposed dialogue from “Romeo and Juliet” (and in one of snort-laugh moment, “Hamlet”) flies fast and furious.
The plot is convoluted, but convoluted plots were definitely a thing with Shakespeare, so stylistically, it tracks. The music — featuring songs made famous by Britney Spears, Pink, Kelly Clarkson, Katy Perry, the Backstreet Boys and REO Speedwagon, among others — is pure ear candy. Weber’s choreography — a wild, wonderful mix of hip-hop, breaking and ballet among other genres — is pure, kinetically stunning eye candy.
The tale kicks off as Elizabethan literary rock star Shakespeare (Corey Mach) has just finished writing “Romeo and Juliet.” His long-neglected wife Anne Hathaway (Teal Wicks) usurps the quill to revise Juliet’s (Rachel Simone Webb) ending. William has a tantrum to the Backstreet Boys “I Want it That Way,” insisting the ending “is writ.” Anne responds with a bit of iambic pentameter that describes the ending as an expletive that rhymes with “writ.” With a troupe of players at their disposal, Anne and William go into literary battle to determine how the play will end.
William Shakespeare (Corey Mach) and his wife Anne (Teal Wicks) are at odds over the ending of one of his most popular plays in “& Juliet.”
Like Juliet, Romeo’s (Michael Canu) story is revised, turning him into a bro-ey boyband leader who ultimately finds some depth. But Juliet and Anne are at the nexus of “& Juliet.” As Juliet, Webb reveals her star wattage early, with a blistering rendition of “Baby One More Time,” a searing lament delivered while over Romeo’s dead body. Toward the finale, she anchors “Roar,” injecting the power-anthem with the energy of a meteor.
Wicks’ Anne shows a woman deeply in love and equally frustrated with her often-absent, often-arrogant/petulant husband. William, she points out, went to London where he got famous writing plays. She stayed behind in Stratford-Upon-Avon to birth, raise — and in one case bury — their children. When Will died, Anne notes with restrained fury, he left her his “second best bed” and nothing else.
Wicks alternates deadpan humor with big emoting to excellent effect, her seismic belt soaring to Celine Dion’s “That’s The Way it Is” and the Backstreet Boys’ “Show Me the Meaning of Being Lonely.” William Shakespeare as self-involved, widely adored rockstar isn’t a new concept (“Something Rotten” debuted the idea on Broadway in 2015) but in Mach’s comically grandiose performance, it sure is entertaining.
Juliet (Rachel Simone Webb) and Romeo (Michael Canu) are starcrossed lovers in “& Juliet.”
Also key to the proceedings: Kathryn Allison as Juliet’s nurse Angelique and Nick Drake as May, Juliet’s best friend. Allison’s take-no-prisoners rendition of Pink’s “F@#kin’ Perfect” is a powerhouse hymn that takes the whole theater. May is non-binary, which gives a whole new level of emotion to Drake’s incredible vocals on Spears’ “I’m Not A Girl, Not Yet a Woman.” Dueting with love-interest/Parisian noble Francois (Mateus Leite Cardoso), Drake embodies sheer exuberance and wonder in Katy Perry’s “I Kissed a Girl.”
Soutra Gilmour’s sparkly set morphs from Verona grave to Parisian rave in a frenzy of saturated color and cinematic luminosity, thanks to video and projection designer Andrzej Goulding and lighting designer Howard Hudson. The production values look like money.
Paloma Young’s costumes merge 21st century runway with 16th century fashion tropes to terrific effect, from the fleur-de-lis codpiece sported by Angelique’s Parisian lover Lance (Paul-Jordan Jansen) to the jackets and trousers stitched with red and white Tudor roses.
The production arrives with white-hot vibe reminiscent of “Six” circa 2019, or, if you’re of a certain age, “Rent,” circa 1996. For pop music aficionados, it’s unmissable. Ditto those who always found Juliet’s story more troubling than romantic.