Scene1+

18 July 2024

It’s summertime, the rugs and champagne flutes have been dusted off, the camping chairs loaded and the quick dash back to the house for the mozzie spray and hats accomplished.
Now in their sixth decade, Maskers Theatre Company certainly know a thing or two about open-air theatre and the ever-popular Romeo and Juliet playing at The Gregg School, Townhill Park until 27 July is perfect for the group’s many talents. This is the Maskers’ fifth year at Townhill Park, having previously spent many happy summers at Mottisfont Abbey and Hamptworth Park.

Normally utilising the larger, western side of the beautiful Georgian Townhill Park House (ironically remodelled in Italian style in the early part of the 20th century), this latest show has moved location to the other side of the house where a more intimate setting with its slightly raised terrace lends itself to be the Verona home of the Capulets, aided by a couple of set constructions to represent Juliet’s sleeping quarters (and that famous balcony) and her family’s drawing room. Entrances and exits are accomplished by at least four different routes, including the main house entrance itself, and the distances involved are controllable to ensure no delays in arriving on stage.

For Shakespeare aficionados, the play needs no introduction. Indeed, even those with scanty or no knowledge of the bard’s works will know the rudiments of the story: two well-to-do families in Verona, the Capulets and the Montagues, have a long-standing feud which immediately presents the gloomy backdrop and problems for the fated relationship between the Capulets’ daughter, Juliet, and the Montagues’ son, Romeo. They are forced to court in secret and in lightning-quick time they are married in secret, thanks to the services of Juliet’s loyal nurse (who, having lost her own daughter of a similar age is more of a mother to Juliet than her real one) and the good natured and well-meaning Friar Laurence.

A duel between Juliet’s trouble making cousin, Tybalt (played with suitable Italian excess by Adam Taussik), and Romeo’s friend and ally, Mercutio (Sam Hussey), ends with Mercutio dead and Romeo no longer able to resist having some satisfaction by duelling with Tybalt himself and killing him in a fair fight not of his making.

This presents a dilemma for all concerned (including Juliet) and, as the body count begins to stack up, things become impossible for the loving pair. It is impossible to even spend any time together let alone declare their marriage openly. Thoughts turn to suicide and, for the sake of avoiding spoilers, I won’t reveal too much more except to say that it doesn’t end well. In fact, it has a tragically sad ending which the cast treat with reverence and sympathetic clarity rather than playing it for effect. Good direction.
Heading up the cast of main protagonists is Neil Forster, a relative newcomer to the Maskers lineup, with a commendable portrayal of the happy and balanced Romeo, who becomes someone quite different when things go pear-shaped. Juliet is beautifully played by Katherine Evans and her ability to show range of emotions is put to the test on many occasions during the play – as well as her ability to play a ‘corpse’ for a good half hour in full sight of the audience.

Lord and Lady Capulet are played by Jezz Minns (actually a bit of a nice guy underneath it all) and Kate Grundy-Garcia (with effectively venomous disdain), and Lord and Lady Montague by veteran Maskers performers Philip de Grouchy and Jenni Watson.
Standout performance for me must be Abi Linnartz in the tricky but rewarding role of Nurse. Tricky because she must talk non-stop, come across as fiercely loyal but a little dim, laugh her socks off one minute and cry in despair the next. Rewarding because she has some of the best lines, affords some light relief in an otherwise dour plot and because her performance stands out as an exemplary example of fine entertaining.
A solid supporting cast, including Rob Iliffe as Benvolio and Duncan Randall as the good friar, provides the glue that binds the show together and the pace is good, the lines delivered well – no mics that I was aware of – and the art of playing crowd scenes in the open air is well executed thanks to some deft direction by Brian Stansbridge. There are some convincing sword/fight scenes – remember that duelling was commonplace in 16th century Verona, even if it was illegal, and the staging ensures that every inch of the space available is used. The occasional scene when someone is lying on the ground will sadly be missed by all except the first two rows as there is no obvious raised stage or raked seating.

The costumes appear to be set in Georgian/Jane Austen times which works well and suits the story, even if it’s meant to be much earlier (of course the play is based on even earlier versions of the star-crossed lovers of Verona).

Diction is good and every word, whether Shakespeare’s vocabulary and style is fully understood or not, and is delivered with confidence and sufficient volume to be heard, even in the quieter scenes. With open air acting, it is imperative to keep the volume up (without being shouty) and projected straight out to the audience; one or two of the cast occasionally dip their heads or turn to talk to the recipient at which point the speech can become difficult to hear clearly. But overall the delivery is superb and the director should be very proud of his team.

I was a little disappointed with the lighting when it was required after the interval. It is a little too white (some colour might have helped to pick out warmer and cooler areas in various scenes) and there are a few dark, unlit patches, the main one unfortunately dead centre mid-stage where it falls between the two main light sources. I’m sure that could be adjusted. A little lighting from the side might also alleviate some harsh shadows. For instance, Lady Capulet’s face is entirely eclipsed when sitting on the bed with Juliet in one scene.

But these are finer points and the whole production amounts to a thoroughly enjoyable evening’s entertainment – bravo, Maskers.

- David Cradduck

"Anything Goes:The Honest Reviewer"

23 July 2024

In fair Southampton, where we lay our scene, in the beautiful grounds of Town Hill Park House, Maskers Theatre Company perform Romeo & Juliet. They have undertaken the not-so-small task of performing Shakespeare’s most famous tragedy, and perhaps more challengingly, outdoors. Most know the story; two feuding houses whose youngest members meet and fall in love in a whirlwind romance, only for their fragile happiness to be thwarted by murder, scheming, and eventually death for them both.  This version of the tragedy is ably directed by Brian Stansbridge, who has been with Maskers for fifty years now and directed many a show in that time.

Upon arrival you are shown to a cordoned off area where you can park within the grounds and are then directed to find the stage by the friendly people manning the box office tent. The path to the audience area is easy to follow and well-lit and you can sit yourself anywhere in the cordoned off area. You need to bring your own seating and a blanket too, as it can get rather chilly when the sun has gone in. They also welcome picnics and a nice bottle of wine if you so fancy.

The set is built and incorporated into the back of Town Hill Park House and cleverly adapted into the already standing structure.  There are set walls extending from the stone staircase and a Capulet banner strung across the entrance of the house as well. The set is simple but effective and they often utilise not only the large stage but the surrounding area where the audience are seated, regularly walking around the audience who are separated into two sections by a cordoned off path. I originally wondered if the cast would use this middle path but alas, they did not. Although likely put there for safety reasons or to ensure that the light set up at the back was not blocked, it did feel like the audience was separated to represent the feuding houses in the story – and on purpose or not, it was a nice touch. The only downside to this set up was Juliet’s balcony; a staple in any performance and perhaps the main thing that people envision when they think of Romeo & Juliet. As explained in the programme, they were unable to do this properly due to technical issues with the existing building and their solution was a raised block and staircase on the higher level. This was a neat work around that, although noticeable, did not detract too much from what you were watching.

The lighting was simple and well done, and it was only utilised in Act Two which began just as the sun had gone down. The lighting team clearly knew their cues and timings by heart. Maskers do utilise speakers for sound effects and music, including the use of ‘The Dance of Knights’ by Sergei Prokofiev to open and close the play. I mention this because whilst this song originated in the 1935 Romeo & Juliet ballet as part of a longer orchestral suite named ‘Montagues and Capulets’, many people in the audience, hilariously, only recognised it as the theme tune to BBC’s The Apprentice, which caused a ripple of confusion on the night.

Maskers main challenge is performing the show in the open. Performing outside brings its own sets of issues, many of which were outside of Maskers control but do affect the overall experience. Whilst the weather held out for my performance, I can only imagine the difficulties faced if it hadn’t. The venue itself does not have step or raised seating, therefore unless you are early enough to nab the front row, or exceedingly tall, it is easy to miss some of the action on the ground levels of the stage. This was most noticeable in the second act finale during the infamous death scene of the title characters.  This was set on the middle level of the stage but naturally the actors are sat or lying down which meant a lot of this went unseen by many audience members who were further back.  The cast valiantly vocally projected to the best of their ability but some of the dialogue was lost to the noises of nature, such as chirping birds and the wind blowing through the trees. And sometimes by not so natural noises like revving car engines or, when every 25 minutes or so, a Boeing flew overhead from the nearby airport. I will say that the cast handled this very well and some well-timed dramatic pauses in their monologues meant that more was saved than lost. Short of shutting down an entire airport somehow, what could they really do aside from having microphones?  Although useful in helping with projection, this idea may deviate too far from the traditional.  

Brian Stansbridge, in my opinion, made the wise decision to age up the lead couple from 13 to 19. This works for two obvious reasons. Firstly, in today’s climate, it’s rather odd for children to be waxing poetic about their true loves and marriage (not to mention some throw away lines about the 13-year-old Juliet’s wedding night, future pregnancy and her new husband’s sexual appetite). And secondly, the actors portraying Romeo & Juliet are clearly in their mid to late twenties and upwards.  Speaking of Romeo and Juliet, Katherine Evans who has performed with Maskers Theatre on several occasions, brings Juliet to life wonderfully, bringing a naïve charm to the character but also a strength and determination that’s shines through in every scene. The famous balcony scene (though as mentioned before not so much a balcony) was performed impressively well and you root for her each moment she is on the stage. Neil Forster, in his fourth Maskers performance, plays Romeo. Whilst not the strongest actor of the bunch, and at times a little awkward, he really comes into his own in the second act. Neil brought the vengeful Romeo out to play and then slid delightfully well into despair and grief when he believes his love to be dead. Together, Katherine and Neil, while sometimes a little lacking in the chemistry department, do a very commendable job of bringing the star-crossed lovers to the stage and are believable in their love for one and other.  As much as two children can love each other after one meeting anyway.

A surprising stand out for me was Robert Osbourne in the role of Count Paris, who made the character so creepy and villainous that I genuinely felt uncomfortable watching him. Paris is not often the most memorable character, but Robert genuinely gave me chills. Well done!  Adam Taussik brings the character of Tybalt to the stage in a wonderfully funny way. More of a caricature than a character, his Tybalt made me smile every time I saw him, even if he was just loitering in the background of someone else’s scene. I could watch Adam strut around like a peacock for much longer than we were given with him. Sam Hussey’s Mercutio was another comedy stand out and he had a fantastic way of making the blandest lines amusing. He utilised a strong control over his voice, was very likeable, and made you feel truly sad when killed. I must also commend the wonderful drunk acting and the commitment to singing at the top of his lungs as he left the stage and stumbled past the audience. Rounding out the cast, Anna Hussey made a very handsome Sansom in a reversal of the Shakespearean tradition of having males play females. She brought the lesser-known character to life well and often stood out in the group scenes.  In truth, the whole cast should be commended.  Shakespeare is not an easy feat, and they all did very well, with even the smallest of roles being well researched and well-acted. 

However, it would be remise of me not to mention what I believe to be the standout of this show. Abi Linnartz as the Nurse. The Nurse is another character who is often overlooked when discussing the story of Romeo & Juliet but is also one of the hardest to portray. In Act One, she is a joyful, if put upon lady, who has a hilarious monologue that just keeps going and going to the annoyance of Lady Capulet but to the joy of the audience. Abi has perfect comedic timing here and a laugh that is very infectious.  Act Two brings this character full circle, as she comforts Juliet who is being forced into an unwanted marriage.  She later finds Juliet’s ‘dead’ body and Abi portrays this moment amazingly. The only thing as contagious as her laughter was her gut-wrenching grief and this was a truly stand out performance.

Overall, whilst this production of Romeo & Juliet wasn’t groundbreaking or anything particularly new to the genre, it was a fun, enjoyable, and perfectly serviceable slice of Shakespearean tragedy. A tale as old as time, with some incredible stand out performances, propped up by a strong cast who knew their stuff and were clearly having a grand old time.

- The Honest Reviewer

Audience Comments

"This outdoor theatre production is exquisite. The script is carefully abridged to give the tale a good pace, every character is clearly spoken and convincingly portrayed and the clever staging makes you feel as if you are peering through Juliet’s bedroom window one minute and on the edge of a field watching a duel the next. Pack a picnic and go!” - J.B.

"Delightful! The Sundial Lawn is a perfect little theatre" - Anon

"Thoroughly enjoyed the play. Brilliant performances as usual" - L.C.

"Thank you for last night's production, which was polished and gripping. The tragedy, played in the open air, seemed more tangible and raw than when held on an indoor stage. The weather was in keeping with the mood of the audience in the final act, as we watched in breathless silence as the drama drew to its inevitable chilling end. Romeo and Juliet gave strong convincing performances and the nurse was brilliant, squeezing so much humour from her part as welcome light relief. " - J.H.

"Despite the showers we thoroughly enjoyed the play. Maskers shows are always of such a high standard.." - J.J.

"Really enjoyed the performance. The costumes look great" - J.M.

"You were all fantastic tonight. Fantastic group of actors. Didn’t like you being killed or shouting……that’s how good you were. Bravo" - S.H.

"We were there for your wonderful opening night. What a great performance by all the cast, with some very impressive fight scenes! Thank you all!" - S.V.

"I loved the costumes it was refreshing to see the Regency styles and they worked so well for this play" - A.A.

"Romeo and Juliet was brilliant, the dramatic and emotional scenes were totally captivating and then the humour made the production great fun." - L.M.

"Congratulations to all cast and crew on their opening night of R&J. You absolutely smashed it!! Best of luck for the rest of the run." - C.F.

"We had a lovely time and it was a great performance. A thoroughly enjoyable evening." - H.J.

"We came on the opening night – it was perfect, really terrific performance in a great setting." - V.B.

"Wow those fights were so realistic." - Anon

"Fantastic show, well done everyone." - J.D.