Actors Jessie Buckley and Josh O’Connor discuss filming their National Theatre production of “Romeo & Juliet” for PBS’s “Great Performances” in an empty theater during the pandemic.
LOS ANGELES, April 23 (UPI) — When the National Theatre had to cancel its production of Romeo & Juliet due to the COVID-19 pandemic, stars Jessie Buckley and Josh O’Connor were still eager to play the roles. Even though they could not gather live audiences in 2020, the National Theatre produced a filmed performance to air on PBS’s Great Performances. “It wasn’t a theatre piece and it wasn’t a film piece,” Buckley said in a Television Critics Association Zoom. Buckley and O’Connor filmed their performance in the National’s Lyttelton Theatre, with its 890 empty. Simon Godwin directed the show for the cameras. “From the beginning of rehearsals, the cinematographer is in a complete collaboration with you, as well,” Buckley said. Romeo & Juliet tells the story of teenage lovers, the son and daughter of feuding families. Their romance is forbidden and ultimately tragic. O’Connor said he and Buckley rehearsed the show as if they were still going to perform it for live audiences. Most film or television productions would forego rehearsals and devote every day to filming.
