April 13, 2026    

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There’s a built-in challenge to staging Shakespeare in Love: it asks a theatre company to recreate not just Elizabethan London, but the giddy, romanticized idea of it, complete with backstage chaos, lyrical longing, and a playwright discovering his voice in real time. At Vancouver’s Metro Theatre, the production leans enthusiastically into that spirit, even if it doesn’t always have the means to fully sustain the illusion.

 

Shakespeare in Love works best when its competing tones. Farce, romance, and theatrical in-jokes, are held in careful balance. That balance proves elusive here. The production is at its strongest in its comic engine: the backstage scenes bustle with energy, and the ensemble embraces the play’s knowing theatricality. There’s a welcome sense of playfulness in the way scenes tumble into one another, and when the show leans into its own absurdity, it’s genuinely engaging.

 

Where things begin to falter is in the central romance. The relationship between Will and Viola should feel like the molten core of the piece, but Will (Jacob Leonard) and Viola (Cassie Unger) don't quite gel the way I would've liked to see. The chemistry is present, but it rarely catches fire.

 

In terms of performances, no one here drops the ball, but Jacob Leonard as Shakespeare and Simon Webb as Henslowe are the standouts in this production. The script itself, adapted by Lee Hall from the screenplay by Marc Norman and Tom Stoppard, remains both a strength and a stumbling block. Its wit is undeniable, packed with references, wordplay, and affectionate nods to Shakespeare’s canon, but it can also feel overstuffed. 

 

Still, there are things to admire in the production’s craft. The design elements, costumes especially, do a great deal of heavy lifting, helping to conjure a sense of period and place even when the staging feels constrained. 

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- Vancouver Stage 

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Shakespeare In Love is at Metro Theatre from April 3 - 25, 2026

Find tickets and info here

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