★★★★ REVIEW: & Juliet (Broadway) | the jukebox musical at the Stephen Sondheim Theatre, 2023

[@willr6618]

&Juliet is also doing amazing in Australia after doing Sold out seasons in Melbourne and doing very well in Singapore, it's returning to Australia later this year for seasons in both Perth and Sydney.

[@PS-DLMA]

Fingers cross for adelaide

[@ethanfrancis1157]

​@@PS-DLMAwon't happen as our theatres can't handle it sadly

[@PS-DLMA]

@@ethanfrancis1157 did you hear the news re Mary Poppins season in Adelaide....

[@ethanfrancis1157]

@@PS-DLMA what do you mean?

[@PS-DLMA]

@@ethanfrancis1157 Mary Poppins is a show that during its original run in Aus avoided adelaide as "venue deemed unfit", now today it has been reported it was the highest grossing musical this year. Adelaide has 2 venues to take on shows, and neither venue is sitting dark for long

[@ChienaAvtzon]

My sister got me a Rush ticket via TodayTix, and it really surprised me. The book was so witty and fun. It was ridiculous in the best way possible. Loved Lorna Courtney, Betsy Wolfe, Ben Jackson Walker, and Paulo Szot. Seriously, whoever got the idea to cast an opera singer in a campy jukebox musical deserves a raise. While, the set and costume design was so whimsical. PS: Would love for Betsy Wolfe to eventually portray Mrs. Lovett. Now that it was confirmed, the revival will be doing replacement castings.

[@amycarcaterra8177]

i'll say the same thing Betsy being cast as Annaleigh replacement. But don't seeing her leaving this musical.

[@MarcusMartn]

I would love to see AnnaLeigh Ashford as Anne Hathaway

[@amycarcaterra8177]

@@MarcusMartn won't be surprised if they decide to bring sweeney todd west end and both of them go there.

[@Locke350]

I remember when Betsy Wolfe was cast as Anne and I was looking forward to her version of Domino.

[@JoshD9-4]

I absolutely love this show have seen it 5 times !! and i was there at the performance you are reviewing ! it was so great seeing you and meeting you that day!! so happy to hear you liked the show

[@ThexImperfectionist]

This is the pinnacle of the jukebox musical for me. I saw the OBC kind of accidentally a few months ago (had been planning to wait for the tour) and when I tell you I was blown away... The book was brilliant, and so many of the songs felt like they actually made more sense in this story than they did before (particularly I Want It That Way or anytime they made a song into a duet). The whole cast was amazing, but Lorna Courtney and Betsy Wolfe were superstars. Just as you said, Lorna somehow perfectly balances childlike and powerful and absolutely sold me on the character. Betsy Wolfe was heartfelt, graceful, and in-charge on that stage (so bummed you didn't get to see her). I also saw Stark Sands as Shakespeare and he seemed made for it, but Austin Scott was the first Hamilton I ever saw in that first US national tour and I still remember his natural charisma. I knew he was going to kill it in this role too. I saw an understudy as the nurse and let's just say that Melanie's absence was felt. Anyway long ramble to say that the OBC absolutely sold me on a show I had mild interest in when I walked in. Edit: I meant to add that I actually appreciated that they didn't get specific about May's pronouns because while gender nonconforming people absolutely existed during Shakespeare's time, forcing our modern pronoun language onto it would have felt out of place to me, even though this is not intended to be a period piece by any means. Though you're absolutely correct that the use of pronouns in May's songs muddy things.

[@jokerface20]

I saw this show in Melbourne Australia 3 times and our version was the Broadway version and absolutely loved it! Easily my second favourite after moulin rouge. I've booked to see &Juliet in Sydney and moulin rouge in Melbourne for the 4th and 6th time respectively. Just all-around FUN shows

[@lauramaywylie]

I’ve just watched & Juliet for the first time and Anne is also my favourite character. She is incredible omg.

[@SpaceyKasey17]

Just saw this in Chicago and we had the best time! While I found some of the songs a bit abrupt, we had the best time! The stage design was so fun and the actors were so talented!

[@sergiogalvez504]

What an accurate and fair review! I got the chance to saw Stark Sands playing Shakespeare and he was superb!

[@dsyauch]

Philippe was in a production of Little Shop here in Pittsburgh where he went to school and played Seymour, after seeing that twice I knew he’d be a star and BOOM, Broadway! ❤

[@jj-reads]

Somehow the performance I went to ironically had covers on for both Juliet and Francois. But the cover I saw for Francois wore glasses too and something about the characterization really worked for me. I have been a fan of the show for a while based mostly on the West End cast album bc I’m American but after seeing it on Broadway I had a new love for Francois.

[@derekyamada9935]

I’ve seen it three times in 2022-2023, I ❤️ it

[@N_Muller]

I saw the australian cast a few times and totally agree with the Francois bit, every time I saw the show I saw the Yashith Fernando as Francois and I really enjoyed his his take on the character. He portrayed Francois with a certain nervousness but he never felt scared, it always felt like a suppressed confidence if that makes sense. The way he played it felt like he was sure if his preferences, but just unsure of whether he should tell his father and unsure of how his father would react. So he would always try to deflect rather than shut down any time his father tried to set him up or talk about him getting married. And as for the proposal part, sounds like he mostly did the same way as Philippe. He would confusedly get in one knee and would be clearly regretful of it when Juliet gets shocked, but after he still seems very unclear, as the way he delivers the line “So you do want to marry me?” Is delivered with a perfect blend of confusion and hopefulness. I did want to see if I could catch an understudy but I thoroughly enjoyed Yashith’s performance every time.

[@seanmcgcostumes]

Oh, the opening of this video has me SO intrigued! And I had missed that Shucked is closing, so this just broke the news to me. And now I am sad. 😔

[@linkzelda8610]

Actually, shucked whilest shucked will close in the Nederlander, its not sure yet, if it will never return to broadway. In the nyt article, they mentioned they were in search for a new theatre. So lets hope for the best

[@coconoir6187]

You didn't miss anything

[@carmenvalencia9059]

I went this past July because one of the kids I was babysitting for the summer had gone and couldn't stop talking about it. Every time we got in the car, she yelled "play &Juliet please!" and she got her sister and cousins to ask too. All. The. Time. So naturally, when I went to NYC at the end of July I was like, wth why not. I had so much fun!

[@daviddelara7158]

I am obsessed with both soundtracks yet to see the show but I’m Planning to see the uk tour next year so excited

[@bookishandjames]

I got rush tickets for last weeks midweek matinee and absolutely loved it! I lucked out and got all of the main cast except for Paulo. It is just such a feel good musical and so witty and fun. I wish I lived closer to New York because I would love to see it again.

[@DJGNYC]

I liked this show so much more than I thought I was going to…been twice & will likely go again. This was a great recap MJ!

[@janabromell3696]

Such a great show! ❤

[@hannahgreen8999]

I've wanted to go to Broadway for as long as I can remember and you've inspired me to finally look into it seriously. Better start saving!

[@mshalo1822]

Just an FYI, but the TodayTix digital rush is pretty easy to get now.

[@TheLauren1113]

Daniel Maldonado is great. I saw him in a regional production of Newsies as Jack Kelly and he was fantastic. I’ve been following him since

[@HaussOfSharon]

Was lucky to see the OBC in January, and I LOVED it.... And this is coming from someone who shipped the original West End cast with a passion.

[@MoreEmmyAnne]

I saw &Juliet Last weekend!! It was amazing! My mom and I got last minute tickets (like 15 minutes before curtain) and the seats were great! I saw Rachel Webb as Juliet and I loved her! She had a sweet, but powerful voice and was a beautiful actress. I didn’t think this show would work with the song choices, but after seeing it, I love it!!! The songs are woven in so well, and really enhance the plot. I really hope I can go see it again soon because it is now one of my favorites!

[@ads086]

I hope you can get to Australia some time to catch shows here including this one. From what I heard the run ended up extending beyond initial expectations in Melbourne and much of the cast had holidays booked. They still took their breaks so understudies got a lot of lead time toward the end of that run. They then headed to Singapore, and are now headed back to Sydney. It’s going to be interesting how they adapt the staging for that theatre - Wicked is playing there at the moment and have gone without the upstage centre lift, presumably for under stage reasons. So how the balcony piece will happen should be interesting.

[@stephaniehudson7370]

I saw it when it first opened on Broadway and I’m so sad that you didn’t get to see the brilliant Betsy Wolfe. She was amazing

[@aplushometutoring5569]

I have seen the show 7 times now! It is a fun show and I love how the perfect songs are weaved into the story seamlessly. Lorna Courtney is the best, she does it all (I would say #1 cast member) and her vocals are amazing!!

[@peterdavino4408]

Mickey Joe , your obsession with all things theater is making all of us who watch your content obsessed with you! I just wanted to say that in my ever so humble opinion, I feel ( based on some of your technically based comments) that you might care to explore directing. You have the ear & the eye & the instincts to succeed as a creative in this particular context.

[@AnskarNEX]

Max Martin is such an impressive song writer.

[@amycarcaterra8177]

saw it on Brroadway this past 2 weeks. Lorna was so delightful and magical singing/acting. Betsy was so sweet & funny. Her and Lorna had so much chemistry together. Joe Moeller as Shakesphere was a blast and fell in love with him right away.

[@matthewwilliams9229]

I saw & Juliet on Broadway earlier this year. Mostly the same cast but Stark Sands was Shakespeare who played it so so well

[@maluuuuuuuuuuuuiza]

As a brazilian i am shock this is how i found out paulo was back on broadway!!

[@SyrusBenjaminPleasants]

My school drama teacher did a Shakespeare play (not at school), he got dramatic historian in who said that around Shakespeare’s time the London accent would sound more like a modern day Manhattan accent, so understandably the accents of the US cast would sound more like the people in London of that time

[@amyvanarsdell7508]

Can you detail the changes they made from the West End to Broadway? I know some lines were added/changed…

[@alicebarlow4761]

Still haven’t managed to see this show, yet

[@rmcmariusable]

I saw it on Broadway with all of the OBC except Lorna. I really want to go back and see it with Austin and hopefully see Lorna this time.. Austin was fantastic in Girl from North Country so I know he is probably wonderful in this role

[@if3359]

I saw it in the West End about a year ago. I did believe Francios was proposing, so was a little confused later when he interacted with May in a way that seemed to ignore the proposal..?

[@jordanlevinson3270]

I owe the NY iteration a revisit one of these days. I went to an early preview hoping I would run into Max and congratulate him on an excellent career so far - and he wasn’t there that night - but I was pleasantly surprised to find out this musical is the closest it’s ever been to salvageable with this particular cast. I just don’t know what’s missing… a Romeo/Juliet couple who are actually dating IRL? Timberlake Shakespeare? Clarkson Anne? Maybe all of the above?

[@amycarcaterra8177]

i can see this musical recouping in the next 2 or 3 months.

[@claire2088]

to be fair the version of english shakespeare spoke is supposed to sound more like a mash up of american and west country accents than what we'd usually hear at a shakespeare play. The RSC did some shows in their closest guess of what the accent would have been and they said it was really interesting- apparently the run times were faster (5-10 mins faster) and there were more puns/plays on words that get lost when you change the accent and loose some rhymes, I think the play on a whole was a bit bawdier, seems a bit mad if people decide that you should be using one particular wrong accent rather than another one 😂

[@italkyouwalk]

I recently saw the Australian production in Singapore and at first I was skeptical about the changes from the West End (production is same as bway from your description) but now it’s really grown on me! The Australian cast is phenomenal

[@heatherdukeswicked6thfinge318]

I liked it better in London personally

[@thegaythespian]

The portrayal of someone non-binary is ambiguous. 😮 that's perfect. As someone non-binary, the songs and pronoun confusion you mentioned were my favorite part listening to the album. Specifically "... Not Yet a Woman", I can hear the gender yearning in their performance and that idea of being in transition and not necessarily at your end goal or not knowing what that ending is is so totally non-binary

[@Shae29]

I saw the OBC in February and loved it!! Betsy Wolfe was my gay awakening and I feel so grateful to have finally seen her live on stage. I loved her performance, she was sooo funny, her vocals were gorgeous and she was so beautiful🥰 Lorna’s vocal were out of the this world and Ben was amazing!! (his entrance in its my life had me screaming!!). I wanted May and Frankie to have more time together, their storyline in act 2 seemed a bit rushed for me. But I loved Philippe as Frankie, his performance was so real and emotional. As for Justin, I’m nonbinary/agender, and this was the first time that my gender was represented on stage. I felt so seen, and it was so beautiful🥹 Stark had really good vocals and was really funny too :) Mel and Paulo didn’t have a big impression on me, they were good for what they were doing. I did like Mel’s monologue in the beginning of act 2, her delivery was really funny :) Overall, I had a great time, it was one of my favorite shows to see live. I def recommend it for someone who likes pop music, Shakespeare, is queer, or if you wanna have a great time as the theater! It’s really great❤

[@kyleadams4096]

I saw this back at the beginning of September and had a great time! I agree with all your points except that I hated the character of Anne Hathaway (also was understudy that night). I found her character annoying and the self-insert into the play cringeworthy. Loved Philippe Arroyo and Lorna Courtney as well, and I agree Romeo is so unfairly maligned. He did also kill himself for Juliet which is a point they ignore and just act like he’s some bad guy

[@arualstarr]

Betsy Wolfe is in her 40s! Lorna is 25, Justin is 23.

[@MickeyJoTheatre]

Yes, and Tiernan is 27.

[@pulchritudinousqueenmelody3182]

To be seeing what about their ages????

[@michaeldenney6622]

the touring company is coming to my citythe broadway tour is coming to my city tanks for helping❤❤ me whether or not see thisshow

[@gingerwithglasses]

Every time I hear someone say something good about & Juliet, I'm like "wow, am i wrong for saying this is one of my least favourite musicals I've ever seen" . Seriously wondering if I need to rewatch it sometime.

[@KinlochTheMusical]

Love your reviews. I saw the Australian production in Melbourne and loved the staging and the songs and the production values. It's all so fun. But the story disappointed me so much. It just doesn't deliver on the what it promises at the start, and then ends in almost the same place it began...I wanted a more clearly defined arc with William and Anne's relationship. Like...maybe they break up or maybe they renew their vows. And thank you for mentioning the odd choice of Mae's songs. When they sing "I'm not a girl, not YET a woman"...I was just so confused. It's a good time if you don't overthink it, but I thought a few small tweaks could achieve a lot.

[@KinlochTheMusical]

My personal fantasy rewrite/fix is that when Anne inserts herself in the narrative she should play the nurse - and explore romantic prospects other than Willy Shakes. Then, when she has a hot and heavy connection with Lance it would set up a love triangle and for William to fight hard to win her back. This would have the additional benefit of cutting down on cast (because there are too many characters imho) and would be in-keeping with that Shakespearean comedy trope of characters living out two identities.

[@RaymondNYC1]

I saw & Juliet on B'way about a month ago & also really enjoyed it. And except for also feeling confused about the songs May was given, I think as far as jukebox musicals go, this is a very good one. The cast is full of amazing vocalists, not the least of whom are Lorna Courtney & Paulo Szot (it's not often you get to hear someone who's sung at The Metropolitan Opera & La Scala singing pop songs). And who wouldn't fall in love w. Austin Scott, the best-looking guy on Broadway?! (I saw lots of girls swooning over him as he posed for photos w. them in the alley after the performance.) On a comparative note, Once Upon a One More Time was almost as good, but had two things going against it: it opened AFTER & Juliet; & it played at The Marquis, which was much too big a theater for a show of that type. It simply got swallowed up in such a large space. (The Marquis should be reserved for extravaganzas like The Lion King or Wicked.) If it didn't open in the same season as & Juliet, and had been In a smaller theater, or Off-B'way, OUaOMT would have been a success too.

[@pulchritudinousqueenmelody3182]

Lorna Courtney is my favorite throughout the show. That young lady has some vocals

[@linkzelda8610]

Im going to broadway in march, and im still unsure about seeing this one. I like the production pics and im sure, the choreography is great - but every time i listen to the recording (no matter which one) it always feels … bland. while moulin rouge takes these popular songs, mashes them up, creates something … and Juliet just feels like a bland album of boyband covers to me (rly generalised oc). Only few tracks give me really re-listening value. Should i give it a try? Are the songs more energetic and entertaining live? Elsewise: im from germany and and Juliet will get a german production in autumn next year, i will probably see this one for sure, but i kinda fear the translations….

[@ThexImperfectionist]

I highly recommend it! Their treatment of the songs makes a lot more sense in the context of the story, whch is actually what I think sets this above every other jukebox musical I've seen. The songs are there to serve the story, not the other way around, and they do so with wonderful and remarkable specificity. To me, other jukebox musicals end up feeling like a story that has to stop every five minutes to put on a concert. &Juliet had plenty of spectacle, but it's the best marriage of songs and story I've seen yet.

[@bogdangherasim5363]

Ben Jackson Walker was the best Romeo ever!!!❤

[@kakarikiyazoo]

Too bad you didn't get to see Betsy Wolf. She was phenomenal when I saw it and the only thing I loved about the show. I thought the show was good but had some issues with the story and not a fan of jukebox musicals nor that era of pop music. And the vocal quality of the performer as May just is not Broadway level. Sorry.

[@linkzelda8610]

Thats the reason i hesitate to see it. The production pics look fun, but that boyband era of songs might be catchy, but not rly my era of pop music. Listening to the album, nothing rly caught me, it all felt a little bland. Oc that might change with choreography, but it should not need to rely on this.

[@raymondlizarondo7552]

You have to see Amy Lehpamer portray as Anne in the Australian Production (super brilliant!). I have seen both production and the Australian production is miles better.

[@NSnicket]

I honestly didn’t care for the Broadway version nearly as much other than Justin David Sullivan as May (they killed that role, absolutely amazing). In the London cast, Will and Anne were snippy but still had chemistry. In the Broadway one, Stark Sands played him as a far less likable man, at least in my opinion. I wasn’t really feeling their chemistry. Everyone was very talented but it just didn’t vibe as well as the London cast.

[@mithramusic5909]

Pssst...an American accent is closer to Shakespeare's historical accent than a British one. That could be why things felt oddly better with an American accent

[@reader2012]

I am sorry, but when I saw this in London I really disliked it. The book felt incredibly contrived to me in how it integrated the songs. I would watch Moulin Rouge over &Juliet any day. The songs just pulled me out in this show compared to MR, I think mostly because in using the full songs, they felt forced into the story, and often too on the nose. The cast was phenomenal, but the show was otherwise disappointing.

[@riccamacho6292]

Surprised that you would say that about American accents and Shakespeare despite your having enjoyed the production. Shakespeare wasn't performed originally in modern British Received Pronunciation in any event which reflects changes in British speech after Elizabethan times. This is a linguistic conceit that folks have gotten (:-)) use to over time and doesn't reflect original pronunciation. It is an anachronism. We should be open to listening to Shakespeare in a variety of modern dialects or opt for what some scholars and actors are pushing as OP or original pronunciation.

[@terriconnelly5163]

I’ve not seen the show. But I prefer the Broadway soundtrack over the West End soundtrack.

[@lonellfletcher]

Lorna better than Miriam?

[@aplushometutoring5569]

Yes!

[@niva269]

Most grotesque show I’ve ever got to see, by mistake, we could not last longer so I left half way. People could be brainwashed to last or even like a parody about human beings. No need comments not likes, end of story.