The concept is simple, modest, even banal. The outcome is prodigious and surprising.

One of Shakespeare’s most celebrated classics, known by every generation, almost anywhere in the world, has now gained a new, totally unexpected life, by (literally) the hands of Terry O’Connor.

The Montague and Capulet families are represented by red and green (respectively) everyday ordinary objects, like shot glasses, alcopops or dish detergente bottles. The big epic story of Romeo and Juliet’s fight for love is shrunk into a scale where it can happen in a table top and in less than sixty magical minutes.

One of the most remarkable points of this production is the language. It is simple, clear and a great way to hear a Shakespeare’s story if you have forgotten, or never even knew. This is specially important if you are a foreigner (like me) and always afraid to deal with endless, speeches of ancient english words, that mean nothing, or very little to you.

The plot is reduced to what is fundamental so that the audience can easily understand the story. But by no means is it less poetic than the original text. The essence is all here, we gain a tremendous respect for these characters and their stories, that many think can only come from an intensive dig deep down into the words written by Shakespeare.

Forced Entertainment present, afterall, a storytelling exercise, so the language is what makes the stories happen, and even though you have specific images to look at, it is impossible not to create your own vision of what’s been said. The imagination is stimulated in a way where it begins to see further beyond the plastic, or glass, instead feeling the urge to humanise the objects, to picture them in real situations, you care about them and they breathe life.

Of course, only the mastery of O’ Connor allows you to feel this way. The actress is totally focused on that little world that she creates with the help of the audience, rather than on herself as a performer. Her sensitivity and kindness are monstrous and moving. Her sweet, calm voice captivates from the first second, and despite several humorous moments which are brilliantly interpreted, there is always a sense of latent tragedy, as we would expect in any proper Shakespeare play.

The moments of pause and silence, which normally happen before the appearance of new characters on the table top, are breathtaking. The audience can’t wait to find out what happens next, even though the plot is well known, it is exciting to wonder how glasses can dance in a masked ball, or how a light torch can kill a bottle and kiss a jam jar…

The cozy environment of the Pit Theatre accentuates even more the close relation you develop with this little enchanted game (that actually could be happening in your kitchen) until the end comes and you can’t help feeling a little sorry, once again, for such an ironic, sad story.

 

Complete Works: Table Top Shakespeare is playing at the Barbican Centre Pit Theatre until 6 March. For more information and tickets, seewww.barbican.org.uk