Midway through & Juliet, meta narrator William Shakespeare (Jay McGuinness) complains to an also-on-stage Anne Hathaway (Lara Denning) that their revisionist semi-sequel is feeling a bit ‘slim’.

Low on conflict. In need of some added bite.

As an audience member, it’s difficult to disagree.

Luke Sheppard’s vibrant, hyperactive romp through the hits of Max Martin (and ‘friends) is a pop-infused ‘what if’ – using hits from the likes of Britney Spears, Backstreet Boys and Bon Jovi to explore what could have transpired if the ‘Juliet’ (Gerardine Sacdalan) of Shakespeare’s iconic tragedy never actually ended it all.

It plays out much akin to throwing Mamma Mia and a hefty dose of panto into a blender, sprinkled with a liberal helping of Six’s revisionist wit. Shakespeare and Hathaway act as both narrators of the piece (with their own marital woes underpinning much of the show’s raison d’être), but also revel in taking parts in the revamped, ongoing adventures of the Capulet heroine.

“The first act in particular blitzes through big, loud and dazzling numbers at an almost breathless pace…”

Where Lucy Moss and Toby Marlow were able to frame their revised take on the wives of Henry VIII in the vein of a pop concert, with a slew of carefully crafted and characterful original numbers doing the storytelling, we’re firmly in jukebox territory here. The first act in particular blitzes through big, loud and dazzling numbers at an almost breathless pace, leaving the sense that the show is itching to get all this pesky storytelling out of the way in order to get to the next Katy Perry or Britney set piece.

There are certainly crowdpleasers to spare, and if nothing else, & Juliet is a toe-tapping, fist-pumping celebration of Martin’s impressive pop discography. It just feels like the first half in particular could occasionally do with slowing down, catching its breath and investing in a touch more structure and purpose.

A major about-turn at the halfway point does inject some much-needed conflict and bite into proceedings. And it certainly has plenty of fun with its fourth-wall breaking, too. McGuiness as the Bard gets a running gag acknowledging how many famous phrases were of his penning, whilst Denning has some deadpan fun with that famous name.

But the core narrative through-line – Juliet flees from fair Verona with her nurse (Sandra Marvin) and two besties (Jordan Broatch and Denning again) only to become embroiled in all-new romantic shenanigans – is wafer thin at best. There’s real muddling back-and-forth with the central character, too. Whilst Sacdalan is an absolute powerhouse in the role, exuding plenty of crowd-pleasing female empowerment and independence, this Juliet seems to reclaim her agency fairly early on, meaning a lot of the subsequent conflict and actualisation feels a little… repetitive?

“…Sacdalan is an absolute powerhouse in the role, exuding plenty of crowd-pleasing female empowerment and independence…”

So it’s mostly nonsense and fluff, and if David West Read aimed for the likes of Six with his book (it’s impossible to shake the influence), he seems to land somewhere closer to big budget karaoke party. Occasionally, it strikes gold – using Britney Spears‘ ‘I’m Not A Girl, Not Yet A Woman’ to underpin May’s gender identity journey is truly inspired, and Broatch does a beautiful job with it. Similarly, a late-game cycle through Backstreet Boys hits manages to wheel between being hilarious, ridiculous, pathetic and touching in rapid succession.

Elevating things, the company deserve their flowers. Sacdalan, as mentioned, is a real force to be reckoned with. She’s given a heavy stack of big sings and demanding dance numbers and crackles with the poppy star power the role demands. The ever-dependable Sandra Marvin is great fun as Juliet’s loyal nurse, and if her subplot of reigniting passions with an old flame (in the form of Ranj Singh’s hilarious French aristocrat) has been seen and done a million times before, Marvin and Singh still mine plenty of laughs and joy from it all. Marvin, as is to be expected, rips, riffs and belts her way through her numbers, too, a late-game assurance proving particularly stirring.

Broadway’s OG ‘Romeo’, Ben Jackson Walker, is a real hoot as a douchey revisit to the Montague heir, and The Wanted and Strictly’s Jay McGuiness has a lot of fun as William Shakespeare.

But it’s Denning as Hathaway who really threatens to steal the whole thing. Denning proves a formidable comedienne throughout, passing biting commentary and relishing the show’s revisionist bent. But she’s musical theatre through and through, and her blistering rendition of ‘That’s The Way It Is’ utterly glorious.

Go in to & Juliet anticipating the next iteration of witty, revisionist empowerment and you will likely come out a touch disappointed. Whilst it’s impossible to shake the Moss and Marlow inspirations, screaming as they are, it’s an altogether sillier, looser affair. It’s crowd-pleasing, bubblegum fun, landing on the shoulders of a strong cast who give it their all. Soutra Gilmour’s neon set, Howard Hudson’s no holds barred lighting and Andrzej Goulding’s enormous video backdrops ensure it has all the spectacle and sparkle of a VMA opener or Coachella set piece, which is completely fitting.

As an inconsequential, poptastic spot of what-if-ery and a colourful ride through some of the nineties and noughties biggest hits, & Juliet may not reinvent the wheel, and may even at times feel like it is speaking ‘an infinite wheel of nothing’, but you’ll doubtless be on your feet, fist pumping the air and singing along by the time the curtain call rolls around.

After all, if music be the food of love…