The last full day of my England summer trip began at Lyme Regis with fossil hunting and almost being swept out to sea by the tide. Once we avoided that near disaster, we bought a few items at the museum gift shop, had some breakfast, and headed back to our adorable flat. We stayed at Moggy’s Place on AirBnB and really wished we had more time. Kensington did not want to leave, but we had to go. We grabbed our bags and headed out to catch a bus that would take us back to the train station in Axminster, which would get us back to London.
Unfortunately, the bus was almost 30 minutes late, so when we got to the train station our train was pulling out right as we walked up to it. Again, it was one of those close calls, so we missed our train and had to sit and wait an hour for the next one to arrive. It arrived and we got on the train, but the train was packed so Kensington and I didn’t get to sit with Lacy, and we didn’t get a table. I was so tired that I fell asleep! I was glad Lacy stayed awake! Kensington had her plesiosaurus stuffie to keep her awake.
Once we got to London’s Waterloo train station we had to find our way to our final lodgings. We managed to get on a bus that dropped us off a block away from the building. I’m not exactly sure what to call this place. Dorm is probably the right word. We stayed at LSE Bankside House, which bills itself as a B&B because you have a bed and you can get breakfast there. We stayed in a room with three twin beds and an ensuite bathroom. We didn’t get to try the food because of our early flight in the morning, for which we decided to leave our lodgings at 4:45 a.m.!
The reason we chose the place had to do with proximity to Shakespeare’s Globe theater. I have been to the Globe a few times now, but I had to see their new production of Romeo and Juliet. Yeah, I’ve also seen R&J staged too, but never have I ever watched it as a western. Yup! Yeehaw, guns blazing and all. And I was excited to take Kensington to her first play.
Imagine being 10 and going to see your first play, and it’s in England, and it’s Shakespeare, and it’s Romeo and Juliet. But as a western.
OMG, this production was so much fun. From the set to the costumes, props, and music, I was really impressed with the adaptation. I absolutely loved that the play became a western.
If you know the plot of R&J you know that the play is about feuding families. That’s a great fit for a western. The Capulets and the Montagues can’t get along. R&J is also about falling in love with the wrong person. In westerns, sometimes there is an interracial, intercultural romance between a cowboy and an indigenous woman (previously, the term “Indian” or “Native American” would have been used). Sometimes, but not as often, there is a woman in a western who falls for an indigenous man. In Shakespeare’s play we don’t get an interracial, intercultural relationship, but in a way, the Capulets and Montagues act if as they are of different races.
The play is about a father thinking his children belong to him and that he gets to decide their fates. This works for our heroine Juliet to basically have no say in whom she marries. She’s treated more like chattel than kin. Very on brand for thinking of children and women as cattle. Lord Capulet’s wife has no power either.
The play is about hanging out in public places and being raucous, taunting people, and fighting. That makes the old saloon concept fit well. The masquerade in Shakespeare’s play is transformed into a family hoedown, too–with music and dancing.
The costumes gave off antebellum through turn of the 20th-century vibes. Hats, boots, buttoned up dresses with big skirts, vests, and more convinced me that I was watching a story made for the old west. I was convinced, and I’m not an easy one to convince. I didn’t mind the English accents either. I was soooooo glad they didn’t try to sound American. Unless everyone does it well, it’s such a bad choice. If you would like to see photos that show off the set and costumes, you can do that here.
R&J is a play about vengeance. Anyone who’s a big fan of westerns knows that revenge plays into many plots where someone retaliates in honor of the family name or to avenge a fallen friend. Tybalt in the play is such a jerk that he kills a guy just cuz he’s Romeo’s friend (okay, it is more complex than that), and then Romeo kills a guy cuz he killed his friend, and then….this is how revenge goes on and on. Want to know more? Read my doctoral dissertation.
Overall, the play was sweet, fun, energetic, and captivating. The acting was superb. I actually felt like I was watching a teenager playing Juliet. The performer, Lola Shalom, is a little older than a teen, but the way she performed the role was on point with teenage angst. I believed it 100%. The video below gives you a taste of Shalom’s acting:
The actors on the whole were outstanding, but beyond Juliet there’s one more role that is a standout in this play: Mercutio. I have always loved this character. One of the best ever, IMO. Michael Elcock‘s performance made me laugh and cry–and that’s what I want to feel when I watch Mercutio in all his glory. Every performer made a me a believer, but I particularly enjoyed Elcock’s acting style:
Remember my saying that I’ve been to the Globe before? I did something different this time. I got us seats in the middle gallery, which gave us a panoramic view of the stage. I got us cushions, which made our buns comfy. It was wonderful. Check out the view:
I’ve stood in the yard as a groundling twice, and one time it rained on us because the Globe is an open air theater and it rains in England. Newsflash! I’ve switched sections with someone midway through a play and sat in the lower gallery after getting rained on while I watched the first half of the play as a groundling. Ha! This time we had seats with a good view. We had cushions. I even got us seats where we had a back to the bench.
I went all out, and it was worth it! Don’t try to save a few pounds when the extra stuff (cushions, program, etc.) are available.
Other than an operatic version of R&J that I love, this is now my favorite production. I hope the Globe puts out a video for that play cuz it’s dynamite! (See what I did there? Where do you find dynamite? In a western. Get it?) I got my program, but I’d love to teach this precise adaptation in a class. Shout out to my colleague, Michael Johnson, who flew from Maine to England just to see the play (and then blogged about it as I am blogging now)! I went to England this summer for Austen, but I was lucky enough to pick up a Shakespeare play while I was abroad.
Our lodging was so close that we walked to the theater and back in five minutes. Perfect when you get out of a play at 10:30 p.m. and have to get up at 4 a.m. I’d stay there again for a few days for sure, especially if I go to the Globe. Maybe I’ll go next summer? 🙂
Misty Krueger 
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