New Wolsey Theatre
New Wolsey Theatre
New Wolsey Theatre
Romeo & Juliet
adapted from Shakespeare
Your family teaches you to hate
You fall for a forbidden foe
You act without thinking and risk everything to be together
A hostile and dangerous city. Two families wage a bitter war. Death threats are shouted brazenly in the streets. Will a young innocent couple become a sacrifice of this hateful feud?
This pacy and inventive 100-minute adaptation of Shakespeare’s romantic tragedy is specially created for students and teachers of English and Drama - and anyone new to the play.
Following on from last year’s successful and critically acclaimed production of DNA, The New Wolsey Theatre proudly brings together the very best of East Anglia’s emerging talent to devise a contemporary and playful ‘Romeo & Juliet’ for audiences of today.
“If you haven’t seen this classic play, then it’s a good opportunity to experience a pretty slick version and to see some of the best emerging talent in the region at the same time.” British Theatre Guide review for DNA, 2023
Presented by The New Wolsey Theatre
Directed by Douglas Rintoul
Production images: credit Will Green Photography.
Tom is a recent graduate of the BA (Hons) in Acting from The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama. Credits while training include: Celebration, By the Way Meet Vera Stark, Absolute Hell, Richard III, The Oresteia.
Credits with the New Wolsey Young Company include: The Turn of the Screw, Sweeney Todd, DNA, How to Disappear Completely and Never be Found, The Pillowman, Woyzeck, The 39 Steps, and The Laramie Project.
‘As a former member of the New Wolsey Young Company, I’m delighted to return to the place where my passion for acting was kickstarted. Under the caring guidance of the Young Company, I’ve shared some great memories in this theatre where I gained vital skills that moulded me as an artist today.’
Ophelia Charlesworth is an actor, writer and singer. She graduated from Mountview in 2021 and made her professional debut playing as Ododo in The Pocket (Theatre Peckham). Credits include: Nonkrosi in Elegies and Angels, Punks & Raging Queens (Kings Head Theatre), Leah in Season Of Sorrow (Shoreditch Town Hall).
Additionally Ophelia wrote and starred in her impactful one-woman show, “You Are African First Before Anything”, which has toured at venues including The Omnibus Theatre, Mountview and Lakeside Theatre.
Ciaran is also a drama facilitator, providing devising and storytelling workshops for young people through various theatre companies and performing arts academies.
Theatre Credits: Romeo in Romeo & Juliet (ProToCol theatre at the Headgate Theatre), Jack in Jack and the Beanstalk (Touring, Hurricane Productions), Ste in Beautiful Things (Colchester Pride Players at the Headgate Theatre), 10:31, MCR (Edinburgh Fringe Festival 2019), Conor in Parallax (Almeida Theatre), Marcus in CommonWealth (Almeida Theatre).
Film Credits: Mason in Choices (Little Two Theatre Company in conjunction with Essex PFC).
Actor/deviser Mae Munuo is a graduate of The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama. She is a Complicité Associate Artist and recently became an Associate Artist of the New Wolsey Theatre.
Credits include: Maria in The Box Of Delights at RSC. Leah in DNA (Douglas Rintoul) at The New Wolsey Theatre. Claire in The Nutcracker at Bristol Old Vic (Lee Lyford). The Canterville Ghost (Justin Audibert), Gulliver’s Travels (Jaz Woodcock Stewart) and The Bolds (Lee Lyford) all with the Unicorn Theatre; Anansi the Spider (Justin Audibert) at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre, in collaboration with The Unicorn Theatre. September Skies (Yasmeen Arden) and Centre Ground (Sarah Davey-Hull) with Small Truth Theatre. I’ll Take You To Mrs Cole, Complicité (Catherine Alexander) at Theatre Peckham and Edinburgh Fringe Pleasance.
Last year Mae wrote and performed, HOW TO BECOME A REVOULTIONARY (dir Abi Falase) with Small Truth Theatre, which came back this year to Portobello Road.
Mae has recently written a new show for Small Truth Theatre, A Pickle makes a Magic Den.
Bethany O’Halloran is a British/Irish actress who is a recent graduate of The Oxford School of Drama. In 2022, she was awarded as finalist in the BBC Carlton Hobbs Award and in 2023, performed at the Cambridge Junction Theatre and Mercury Theatre in a production affiliated with the Royal Shakespeare Company called, North Star. Prior to drama school, she was cast in BBC Films feature, Zero, and she is shortly due to begin filming in an upcoming short film called, The Sacrifice. Bethany has moreover, performed at The Abbey Theatre in Dublin to The Playground Theatre in London as well as has worked on a commercial for a Sky and Virgin Media.
Benjamin graduated from Drama Studio London in 2021, having previously attained a First Class Honours in Drama at the University of East Anglia. He most recently appeared in Colloquium (****, Everything Theatre), which was longlisted at The Off West End Awards following its Camden Fringe run. Other credits include Young Beauchamp in Tom Stoppard’s Artist Descending a Staircase (Kings’ Head Theatre), and Demetrius in A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Persever Productions). This is his first time working with The New Wolsey Theatre.
James won 'Best Sound Design' at the Panto Awards in 2019 and was also nominated for the 2022 Awards. He has extensive experience with actor-musician based musicals and enjoys overcoming the challenges that arise with the complex format. James has also worked on plays with immersive soundscapes and a dash of modest composition, in many regional theatres including the New Wolsey Theatre, Yvonne Arnaud and Queen’s Theatre, Hornchurch to name a few. He has also designed for many commercial national touring shows.
Along with the aural aspects of Sound Design, James enjoys creating the design of the system and technical aspects that combine to create the experience for the audience. Find out more at www.james-cook.me.
Pete has worked full time at the New Wolsey Theatre since 2010. During that time he has designed and created video content for Once: the Musical (New Wolsey Theatre and UK Tour 2020), Trevor Nuns production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, the New Wolsey Theatre’s Grandma Saves the Day, The Who’s: Tommy (A Ramps on the Moon Production and UK tour), Our Blue Heaven and Never Lost at Home. Pete has also worked as Sound #1 on the New Wolsey Theatre’s The Last 5 Years, as well as on many of the New Wolsey’s Rock ‘n’ Roll pantomimes and in-house productions.
Find out more about Pete’s video production work at www.warehousedigital.co.uk.
Actor/deviser Mae Munuo is a graduate of The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama. She is a Complicité Associate Artist and recently became an Associate Artist of the New Wolsey Theatre.
Credits include: Maria in The Box Of Delights at RSC. Leah in DNA (Douglas Rintoul) at The New Wolsey Theatre. Claire in The Nutcracker at Bristol Old Vic (Lee Lyford). The Canterville Ghost (Justin Audibert), Gulliver’s Travels (Jaz Woodcock Stewart) and The Bolds (Lee Lyford) all with the Unicorn Theatre; Anansi the Spider (Justin Audibert) at Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre, in collaboration with The Unicorn Theatre. September Skies (Yasmeen Arden) and Centre Ground (Sarah Davey-Hull) with Small Truth Theatre. I’ll Take You To Mrs Cole, Complicité (Catherine Alexander) at Theatre Peckham and Edinburgh Fringe Pleasance.
Last year Mae wrote and performed, HOW TO BECOME A REVOULTIONARY (dir Abi Falase) with Small Truth Theatre, which came back this year to Portobello Road.
Mae has recently written a new show for Small Truth Theatre, A Pickle makes a Magic Den.
Brilliant. Loved the stripped down and pacy storytelling. Great acting, emotional and very accessible.
Jane
Thoroughly enjoyed this vibrant and energetic version of Romeo and Juliet. All of the actors' performances were outstanding and their ability to switch between characters was impressive. My 9 year old daughter absolutely loved it too so I think it appealed to all ages.
Becky