As the overture to Charles Gounod’s opera Roméo et Juliette begins, the curtain rises to reveal two large groups of men and women dressed in Mafiosi-like grey coats and fedora hats pointing pistols threateningly at each other against a backdrop of damaged buildings. 

Two small children, one male and one female, enter from either side of the stage and try to interrupt the standoff. Though guns are then pointed at them, the children each assemble a marble statue from fragments lying on the stage, reconstructing the broken emblems of the feuding houses of Montague and Capulet.

This moment adverts both to gang violence and to war and its consequences for future generations, and director Rodula Gaitanou brilliantly thrusts Shakespeare’s story into the contemporary world. The two children represent the next generation of victims of the feud, the origins of which are long forgotten.

State Opera South Australia’s Roméo et Juliette. Photo © Andrew Beveridge

In Act I, the house of Capulet is holding a ball to celebrate Juliette’s coming of age. Shakespeare’s Juliet is barely into her teens, while Gounod’s Juliette, though more mature, is still naïvely idealistic and close to her nurse, and does not yet want to marry. Soprano Siobhan Stagg introduces the character delightfully with her aria Je veux vivre (I want to live). 

When Juliette and Roméo meet, it’s love at first sight, though Juliette is unaware that Roméo is a Montague. Tenor Kyle Stegall’s Roméo is tortured both by his love for Juliette and his desire to escape the simmering conflict that embroils the families. 

Stegall’s aria Ah! Leve toi soleil (Ah! Rise up the sun) is heartfelt, and in the balcony scene, he and Stagg are magnetic in the duet Oh nuit divine (Oh divine night), as the two are overwhelmed by their passion for each other.

Their desire is unabated when they are married the next day by the warmly sympathetic Frére Laurent (Pelham Andrews), who hopes the marriage will end the feud, with devoted nurse Gertrude (Catriona Barr) looking on. 

State Opera South Australia’s Roméo et Juliette. Photo © Andrew Beveridge

One of the best moments in this production is soprano Charlotte Kelso’s captivating performance as the juvenile delinquent Stéphano, who prances around the stage brandishing a knife, knocking down a statue and taunting the stern Capulet (Eugene Raggio) in the aria Que fait tu blanche, tourterelle? (What are you doing, white turtle dove?).

Stephano triggers the fatal fight between the ebullient Mercutio (Morgan Pearse) and volatile Tybalt (Tomas Dalton) in which Roméo tries to intervene and is himself caught up in the fight, ultimately avenging the death of Mercutio by killing Tybalt.

As onlookers mourn over the bodies of Mercutio and Tybalt, the two children reappear bearing candles to remind us of the consequences of conflict. Roméo is to be banished from Verona.

In Act IV, Roméo and Juliette are together at last, but only briefly as the still bloodstained Roméo must flee. Stagg and Stegall are brilliant in this dramatic moment, and their acting is as splendid as their voices. 

Juliette is devastated when Capulet instructs her to marry Pâris and she seeks help from Frére Laurent, who, as an apothecary, provides her with a sleeping potion. The aria Amour ranime mon courage (Love revives my courage) is one of the most demanding in all opera, as Juliette is forced to face the most crucial decision of her short life in carrying out Frére Laurent’s plan. Stagg’s rendition of this aria is magnificent, wonderfully bringing out Juliette’s inner turmoil.

Siobhan Stagg and Kyle Stegall in State Opera South Australia’s Roméo et Juliette. Photo © Andrew Beveridge

Gounod’s opera does not follow Shakespeare’s story precisely, and the scene in the crypt where the lovers die in each other’s arms is the final and most dramatic scene in the opera. Stagg and Stegall reach the pinnacle of their performance together as the dying Roméo laments their families’ hearts of stone and Juliette stabs herself. 

Gaitanou’s inspired direction renews Gounod’s conception of Shakespeare’s play. With takis’s imposing set design, including strips of strategically placed neon lighting that variously suggest lightning and a church interior, and lavish costumes for the Capulet family ball in Act I, this production is visually arresting.

Conductor Dane Lam finely balances the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra with the voices to bring out the magic in Gounod’s score. 

As well as Stagg and Stegall, all the principal players, including Barr, Dalton, Pearse, Kelso, Andrews and Raggio are excellent in their roles.

Most of all, Stagg convincingly brings out the maturing character of Juliette, who speaks for all women who find themselves tragically controlled by an unsympathetic patriarchy.

This outstanding co-production by State Opera South Australia, West Australian Opera and Irish National Opera is a compelling and thought-provoking piece of theatre – a must-see. 

State Opera South Australia’s Roméo et Juliette is performed at Her Majesty’s Theatre, Adelaide until 1 November.