Though originally a film, Shakespeare in Love makes most sense as a play. The story follows a young Shakespeare as he falls in love with his unobtainable muse Viola while writing Romeo and Juliet. As he becomes entangled in his own story, and drawing inspiration from his predicament, a humorous, heartfelt romp ensues complete with sword fights, mistaken identity and, of course, cross-dressing.

The wonderfully tight story effortlessly weaves together comedy, tragedy and drama. No scene is amiss or redundant and, though in the hands of a lesser director the moods might have clashed, Philip Breen manages to make it all work seamlessly. The comic tone was particularly well placed; mixing high and low humour meant I was guffawing at the physical comedy and chuckling knowingly at the Shakespeare references. On that point, I’m no Shakespeare buff by any means, but I think it did help to have a vague knowledge of the Bard and his famous works.

Perhaps the most enjoyable comic scenes arose from character interactions, and what wonderful characters we were treated to. I rooted for Shakespeare (Pierro Niel-Mee), was in awe of Queen Elizabeth (Geraldine Alexander) and developed a bit of a crush on Kit Marlowe (Edmund Kingsley). I was particularly impressed with Viola de Lesseps, played with joy by Imogen Daines. She was very much a girl in love, but was not just a girl in love. Small things like her horsey laugh and the tone of her banter elevated what could have been a flat character into a real person. Finally, on the subject of acting, the consistently top notch supporting cast made it a really full performance and ensured that every scene sparkled.

I really enjoyed this play because it was a good story, well-directed and well acted. There was no need to use clever dramatic devices, ever-so-innovative sets or new-and-daring conceits. It was just a straight up great play, which I found somehow very refreshing. The staging was good; the use of the turning stage simple and effective; the incorporation of music and dance tasteful and not over-the-top. Everything about this performance was high quality. I urge you to see it if you can - you will not be disappointed.