Measuring the success of Grosvenor Park’s Open Air theatre , now into its sixth season, is like counting the rings of a tree. Every year the circular wooden amphitheatre gains an additional couple of rows: this year they have also increased the rug allocation surrounding the stage. In fact, it increasingly comes to feel as if you are sitting in a prime picnic location with a little light Shakespeare thrown in. Audiences are encouraged to bring hampers – which is no bad thing – though you do wonder about some people’s sense of timing. A literal transcription of the balcony scene on the evening I saw it went like this: “Romeo, Romeo … [pop, fizz, laughter] wherefore art thou Romeo?”
To their immense credit, the cast never seem to resent that they may be second-billing to whatever is on offer at Waitrose. Indeed, it is a measure of how compelling Alex Clifton’s staging becomes that the rustling of sandwich wrappers is stilled relatively early. But this is also a production perfectly adapted to its environment: the opening skirmish is a hilariously staged food fight in a rustic bakery, in which floury Montagues and Capulets have a go at one another with pizza dough.
The performances are bold, brisk and well-defined: Jessica Clark’s spirited Juliet is very much a belligerent teenager who brooks no nonsense; Adam Harley’s Romeo is equally a giddy adolescent grappling with emotions that seem too large for his slender frame. But it is Graham O’Mara’s swaggering Mercutio who becomes most seductive, like the slightly wayward older kid whom it is dangerous to hang out with.
A shout-out is also due to Grosvenor Park’s exceptional young team of stewards, whose friendliness, forbearance and powder-blue fleeces make a major contribution to the festive atmosphere. Whatever the further expansion of this uniquely relaxed venue, one can confidently predict that it will all end in tiers.
• In rep at Grosvenor Park Open Air theatre until 22 August. Box office: 0845 241 7868.
