Romeo and Juliet

This is the best of the Romeo and Juliets that I have heard- it's well played, absorbing and well paced; in that I felt it was particually faithful to the Elizabethan stage- there was no obtrusive attempt to set scenes within a sound-scape ( not that there is anything wrong with this- the BBC ones tend to do it superbly, but if you have a few seconds of backround noise before a scene begins it does hold up the action) and the scenes are often divided just by the sound of a rapier swipe- just as one would imagine the scenes following hot on the heels of each other in the original staging- and of course the play itself is about rush and the lack of time.

Fiona Shaw is good as the nurse (though to be honest the BBC nurse is slightly better) and Anton Lesser made a more than usually sympathetic Mecutio. He did the 'queen Mab' speech very well, but rather underplayed his death scene.

Frances Barber made a convincingly harsh Lady Capulet- but the acoustics made me wonder if she was actually occupying the same space as the other actors- incidentally her Cleopatra (BBC radio) is even better..

This was the first time I listened to an audiobook version of the play.

To say I was impressed and moved by the cast's rendition is an understatement!
The characters, particulary Romeo and Juliet, are acted beautifully and the character of the Nurse is especially enjoyable!

I was immediately transported into the realm of Shakespeare and was lost there until the audiobook had reached its ending. To cut it short: Buy this audiobook, it's worth every penny and is beautiful to listen to!

This is my first audio version of the play. I expected quality considering the cast, but it has far surpassed my expectations with a brilliant rendering of the play. In particular the title characters, Romeo and Juliet, Mercutio and lady Capulet impress me.

The dialogue is beautifully spoken. It's quite simply a joy to listen to.