Review of & Juliet at Norwich Theatre Royal: High-octane show featuring hit songs from Britney and N’Sync is rollicking girl power musical

& Juliet - Theatre Royal, Norwich

Well, here's a thing. One of Shakespeare's biggest and best-known tragedies is turned into a rollicking girl power musical - and what fun it is, too.

Just about everything is thrown at this newish (2019) production which takes a look at what happens to Juliet if she opts not to join Romeo in death - it's all about choice, right girls?

This high-octane show doesn't let up for a minute as Will Shakespeare (beautifully played by X Factor's Matt Cardle) is pestered by wife Anne Hathaway (Harriet Caplan-Dean) to make his latest play not quite so glum.

What follows is a couple of hours of craziness with recurrent themes of friendship, freedom, and staying true to yourself, as Juliet runs off to Paris to seek a new life - and lover.

It is all held together by 32 bangers from the Swedish hitmaker Max Martin, including Love Me Like You Do, Oops! I Did It Again, I Kissed a Girl, Roar and I'm Not a Girl, Not Yet a Woman - made famous by as diverse a group of pop stars as you can imagine, from Katy Perry to the Backstreet Boys, NSYNC and Britney Spears.

It's hard to fault Gerardine Sacdalan as a feisty Juliet, her nurse is the powerhouse Sandra Marvin, and what the heck TV doctor Ranj Singh was doing as a sexy French aristocrat Lance, I haven't a clue - but he almost stole the show!

Also look out for Jordan Broatch as Juliet's non-binary bestie, May, who adds a slighty more touching aspect to this full-on production.

If you like Six, you'll love & Juliet, and you always know when you've had a great night out when you leave the theatre singing your heart out!

& Juliet continues until Saturday. Visit www.norwichtheatre.org

Review by Sarah Hardy