Richard Madden is no stranger to Red Weddings. As Robb Stark in Game Of Thrones, he and most of his family were murdered at a marriage feast; now, as Romeo in Kenneth Branagh’s Shakespearean revival (co-directed with Rob Ashford), more or less directly after his marriage to Juliet he witnesses Tybalt’s murder of Mercutio and himself kills Tybalt. As regards pairings of classic lovers, he and Lily James as Juliet last year played Cinderella and the Prince in Branagh’s live-action film version of the story for Disney; James also comes to the project off the back of Downton Abbey and BBC-TV’s latest adaptation of War And Peace. There is, in short, a lot of casting baggage in evidence here.

Which may be just as well, as there isn’t a great deal of dynamism or passion on show in its own right. It may be time to say the hitherto unsayable: that although Branagh is an iconic actor and director, having largely made his reputation in Shakespeare, he’s not actually all that great shakes (no pun intended) at directing the Bard’s work. Like The Winter’s Tale earlier in his company’s current West End season, this Romeo And Juliet shows a sprinkling of ideas for individual moments, but no sign of a spark in overall concept or execution. Yes, yes, the costuming and the occasional musical number here are inspired by Fellini’s La Dolce Vita, but to no discernible end.

The actors are over-focused on playing the verse; when they try to play the emotions as well, matters simply get shouty, even once or twice in the case of Derek Jacobi as an unusually old dissipated-uncle type of Mercutio. James does her best to bring out the young-teen element of Juliet’s character, but at the expense of crafting for her a journey towards bitter knowledge which, for me, is always the most affecting thread of the play. The only fluid, contemporary performance is Meera Syal’s portrayal of Juliet’s Nurse.

The supposed custodians of Shakespeare, the RSC and the Globe, virtually never put on productions so deeply, almost determinedly unadventurous. This is a conventional presentation only with reference to conventions now thoroughly outdated.

Written for the Financial Times.