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Front Row: Steve McQueen, Erica Whyman on Romeo and Juliet, Gender-swapped theatre

05/11/2018

Steve McQueen, Erica Whyman on Romeo and Juliet, Gender-swapped theatre

BBC Radio 4 - Front Row, Steve McQueen, Erica Whyman on Romeo and Juliet, Gender-swapped theatre

Steve McQueen on heist thriller Widows, and why are so many theatre productions switching the gender of roles?

Steve McQueen discusses his return to the big screen with Widows, an adaptation of the Lynda La Plante thriller. Set this time in Chicago,  the widows must learn to survive after their husbands die in a botched heist leaving debts that need to be repaid in a city rife with professional crime and political corruption.

Romeo and Juliet is more relevant to our young people than ever according to the RSC deputy director Erica Whyman. She's directed a new production which involves local young people throughout the tour and swaps the gender of some key roles including Mercutio and Prince Escalus. She explains her approach to the text.

Many theatre productions in recent months have featured roles reimagined for a different gender, including Marianne Elliott's revival of Stephen Sondheim's musical Company at the Donmar Warehouse, Troilus and Cressida at the RSC and Theatr Clwyd's Lord of the Flies. Theatre critics Dominic Cavendish and Lyn Gardner discuss the merits and pitfalls of gender-swapping on stage.

Presenter: John Wilson
Producer: Hannah Robins

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