Romeo and Juliet

I wonder what the little girls in the audience make of the cart of plague victims hauled on stage in the first act, or of Juliet's dream of being ravished by the devil in the second? Despite its romantic reputation, Rudolph Nureyev's Romeo and Juliet has a heart of darkness. It's also a ballet for the boys: there's so much sword-thrusting and male bonding that the ladies (with the notable exception of Juliet) hardly get a look-in.

At least the little girls can look at the costumes. Designed by Ezio Frigerio in 1977 for the English National Ballet (then known as London Festival Ballet), to mark the Queen's silver jubilee, this 25-year-old staging is an epic melodrama dressed to kill.

A lot has been invested in the wardrobe - 3,500 metres of braid, 200 pearls for Lady Capulet's dress. The outfits are so spectacular that the dancers sometimes find it hard to shine. Some might say that more material swishes around at the Capulet ball than is possible to move in. Along with the parade of "amusements" sprinkled throughout, the costumes have a tendency to distract from the action. By the time Juliet dies at her own hand, we are sated.

The company, under new artistic direction from Matz Skoog and with an additional 21 actors hired for this production, works comfortably together, if appearing rather unwieldy in the larger scenes. When swords or flags are flying, the spectacle is clearly more important than the impact of the movement. Lead roles need to claim centre stage decisively. With his flashing eyes and charm, Yat Sen Chang as Mercutio has little difficulty doing so.

Of the doomed lovers, Daria Klimentova as Juliet is the most expressive, stretching delicately into Nureyev's gushing choreography. Jan-Erik Wikstrom as Romeo produces the technical goods with confidence, but he makes an understated lover. In the passionately choreographed pas de deux, his ardour seems lukewarm. But no matter. This ballet will find favour with its audiences simply for being big.

· At the Opera House, Manchester (0161-242 2509), from tonight until Saturday. Then tours to Southampton and Bristol.