ASB bans Queensland Theatre Co. ad for Romeo and Juliet

You've gotta love Queensland. Well, actually you don't...but for the ad land entertainment it provides. Again the serious state has hit the news with the Advertising Standards Bureau banning the ad for the Queensland Theatre Company's latest production of Romeo and Juliet.

Depicting the tragic lovers in a spooning embrace, it is the seeming age disparity that caused the furore with one complainant commenting the image had apparently "made her feel ill".

Overkill? Just a bit. It's hardly Lolita - but even then, should the cover of that film come in a brown paper bag? How disingenuous and counter-productive, even if one was to take the side of the complainers. 

The QTC web page for the play itself shows several photos of the two actors, all quite beautiful. It simply appears this one contentious image shows the actress looking more youthful.

Never mind Shakespeare's Juliet was 14 years old and Romeo a few years older, both actors in the actual image, Melanie Zanetti and Thomas Larkin, are 26 years of age. Yes, there does appear to be an age difference but it's an extremely long bow to draw to link it to the nefarious behaviour stated in the complaints. 

The theatre company withdrew print and outdoor advertising after the ASB ruling but still use it online. In its statement of response the company said the image dramatically captured the core essence of the story - that of doomed young love and forbidden passion. 

All this only a few months after the withdrawal and subsequent reinstatement of a Brisbane-based outdoor safe sex campaign aimed at the gay community. In our contemporary community this all has more shades of uber conservative middle America than the tolerant and free-speaking community we are supposed to be.

As for the QTC, it couldn't buy this kind of publicity. Way to sell out a show people - congratulations.