The world’s best-known love story with a new ending: & Julia, the hit musical, will premiere in Finland in autumn 2026
What happens if Juliet doesn’t follow Romeo but chooses life? The musical & Juliet, which charmed audiences in London and Broadway, updates Shakespeare’s classic to the present day by challenging the idea that a woman’s story is dependent on a man. The end result is a sprawling, attitude-filled pop delight with hit songs by Britney Spears, Bon Jovi and Katy Perry, among others, which will be directed to HKT’s big stage by the musical wizard Samuel Harjanne. On the 20th anniversary of the E-nsi.eOct 2026. What if Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet didn’t end in death, but Juliet survived the tragedy? This is the question posed in The Musical & Julia, in which William Shakespeare and his wife Anne Hathaway rewrite the ending of the classic – Juliet gets to choose differently and start over. There are many levels that run side by side in the musical. Shakespeare and Hathaway brainstorm, write and comment on Juliet’s new story, which Shakespeare’s theatre troupe performs on stage.& Julia is an energetic jukebox musical where the 16th century theatre world meets the disco and party aesthetics of the 21st century. “Let’s shake the dust off Shakespeare! The genius of the musical Jukebox is measured by how skillfully the scriptwriters weave the flow of the story together with the lyrics of hits known to everyone. It creates such speed and energy that the audience will definitely not be able to stay in their seats at the end of the thank you at the latest,” says theatre director Kari Arffman.
Read more in the press release.