Romeo and Juliet, St Martin's Church, West Stockwell Street, Colchester. Until Sunday. 01206 573948.

I SUSPECT many walked by St Martin's Church at the weekend and imagined they had heard a wistful, melancholy tune or a plaintive cry from two star-cross lovers.

They probably walked on and thought no more about it.

Well more fool them because they are missing out on one of the best theatrical productions I've ever had the fortune to experience in my 15 years as an arts critic.

Romeo and Juliet by the Mercury's stupendously talented Young Company is quite simply stunning.

It looks gorgeous, it sounds beautiful and it has some really great acting in it as well.

Perhaps the best part is it's abridged, edited down by director Feliz Ozcan, and impressively so keeping in all the important bits, but also making it uber pacey and actually far more emotionally stronger.

This production is also greatly aided by it's location, the spectacular St Martin's Church, now run by the Churches Conservation Trust which in the past has been the setting for many productions but not as great as this one.

In the Mercury Young Company's Romeo and Juliet the church bristles with atmosphere thanks to Stuart Brindle's lighting design and Matt Marks' gorgeous musical soundscape.

It also helps the audience get right into the action as we switch from one side of the church to the other. At one point I was literally a matter of feet away from a brutal death and it actually made me very uncomfortable.

With such an accomplished ensemble as this it is perhaps a little unkind to single out any one actor but it would be re-miss of me not to mention the very impressive Ivy Dillon and Peregrine Maturin-Baird as the lovers as well as Freya Leslie's sassy Mercutio and Jess Cuthbert's smart and funny Nurse.

Please go and see this wonderful show - it will be a tragedy if you don't.

NEIL D'ARCY-JONES