Welsh actress Catrin Stewart has enjoyed a diverse career, hitting the small screen as a Silurian reptile in Dr Who, and now treading the boards as Juliet in the latest stage adaption of the Shakespearean classic.
The 23-year-old takes the leading role in Robert Icke’s take on the much-loved tragedy. Set in modern day Italy the play keeps the original dialogue, something Catrin admits takes a bit of getting used to.
“It was quite difficult at first because I have not done Shakespeare before,” she said.
“But the longer you do it you start feel it. The language feels part of me now rather than being a distraction.
"While I do feel nervous about performing it, I am now in love with it. After a while you can make the language sound natural for the audience.”
She said her aim was to make Juliet’s story of obsessive love, to the point of death and beyond, believable.
“We have had a lot of discussions about it, she is difficult to understand,” she said. “There’s a lot about the time, you really need to understand that to believe the story.
“In the play she talks a lot about death - she mentions it about 30 times, it’s something that she thinks about a lot.”
Romeo and Juliet is at the Nuffield Theatre, Southampton, until February 18. For more information or tickets, visit www.nuffieldtheatre.co.uk or call 02380 671771.
