Romeo and Juliet Like you've Never Seen it Before
On September 1st after fall fling at Cheshire Academy, my IB Lit and Peformance class went to see Shakespeare in the park. It took lace at Edgerton Park in New Haven Connecticut. The play that was performed was "The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet" this version of the play was far different from any I had ever seen, and incorporated an unseen forth modern twist. The director of the play was Raphael Massie. Mr. Massie works in the department of threaten arts at UNH and is well known in theater industry, espically in the state of Connecticut. The themes of the play are love, and tragedy. The plot of the story takes places between two star crossed lovers from Verona, and their path to being together. Lady Capulet who is Juliet's mother tries to arrange the possibility for her daughter to marry the wealthy Paris, however this is far from what happens. At a party where Juliet and Paris are supposed to be arranged to marry, Romeo, who sneaks into the party, and who comes from the Montague family who ironically is Juliet's family's arch rival hit it off at the party. Romeo and Juliet fall madly in love with each other at this party that was thrown by the Capulet's, and this starts their everlasting love affair.
When Romeo and Juliet decide and swear that they will marry, Romeo gets Friar Lawerence to marry them. Shortly after the two marry Juliet's cousin Tybalt challenges Romeo to a duel. Romeo denies this invasion which drives Tybalt to kill Mercutio who is a close friend to Romeo. Romeo driven with anger kills Tybalt and is vanished from Verona by the Prince. When Romeo leaves Verona, Juliet's parents go forth with the orignal arrangment for Juliet to marry Paris. Sickened by this Juliet turns to Friar Lawrence who gives her a potion to appear dead, so that she can await for Romeo's return. However this message was never delivered to Romeo, and when Romeo hears the news of Juliets death he decides to kill himself with poison. When Juliet awakens from her false death only to find her true love dead beside her, she too kills herself so she can finally be with Romeo in the afterlife. After the Montague's and Capulet's discover their two children have committed suicide after having a love affair the families decide that it is best to put their differences between them so their hatred for one another won't destroy anyone else lives.
The stage crew did an unbelievable job putting the set together. Before the play had started my friends and I had walked around the park, and I noticed that the stage was on the only piece of flat land in the park. That took some serious prepping to find that spot in the park. The lighting was great. Rarely did beams of light ever catch the audiences eyes which means they were positioned perfectly. The actors did a great job braving the elements, and my favorite actor in the play was Courtney Jamison who played Juliet. She did a unbelievable job with her movements, and being able to play dead for what seemed like an eternity. Not to mention she was one of the only cast members to be in a dress for the entire play. I'm almost positive she was freezing, but she didn't show it on stage. Cassandra DeMarco also played a great role with all of the sword fights and I found her role exciting as well.
The atmosphere of the performance was live with modern music, great acting, and homemade ice cream. The man selling the ice cream was friendly and always has a smile on his face. I ended up buying two servings of it because it was flat out delicious. The vanilla was so rich and flavorful I don't think I can ever go back to eating freezer ice cream again. However my favorite flavor was the butter pecan which tasted so much was butter it was scary. The people attending the play went all out bringing wine, dinner foods, and snacks. I wish I had prepared like these people because I was starving midway through the play. The weather was a cool autumn night feel, but our blankets we had brought kept us warm, and the overall peformance of the play, the people, and the atmosphere of the park overshadowed the cool weather.
I felt I learned how important intreptation is in the world of theater. The modern production of the classic play helps a younger generation relate to it more by the language, and how the actors portray themselves to the audience. Even the wardrobe choices from Raphael Massie all symbolize a more modern feel. Many applaud and appreciate the effort to make the classic more appealing but I feel that the original version of anything is the best. Multiple times while I was at the play I kept thinking back in time and seeing if this is really how William Shakespeare pictured it. We as a younger generation maybe more attracted to a modern version but I feel somewhere along the line we as a society start to lose the sense of the original presentation of the play.
When Romeo and Juliet decide and swear that they will marry, Romeo gets Friar Lawerence to marry them. Shortly after the two marry Juliet's cousin Tybalt challenges Romeo to a duel. Romeo denies this invasion which drives Tybalt to kill Mercutio who is a close friend to Romeo. Romeo driven with anger kills Tybalt and is vanished from Verona by the Prince. When Romeo leaves Verona, Juliet's parents go forth with the orignal arrangment for Juliet to marry Paris. Sickened by this Juliet turns to Friar Lawrence who gives her a potion to appear dead, so that she can await for Romeo's return. However this message was never delivered to Romeo, and when Romeo hears the news of Juliets death he decides to kill himself with poison. When Juliet awakens from her false death only to find her true love dead beside her, she too kills herself so she can finally be with Romeo in the afterlife. After the Montague's and Capulet's discover their two children have committed suicide after having a love affair the families decide that it is best to put their differences between them so their hatred for one another won't destroy anyone else lives.
The stage crew did an unbelievable job putting the set together. Before the play had started my friends and I had walked around the park, and I noticed that the stage was on the only piece of flat land in the park. That took some serious prepping to find that spot in the park. The lighting was great. Rarely did beams of light ever catch the audiences eyes which means they were positioned perfectly. The actors did a great job braving the elements, and my favorite actor in the play was Courtney Jamison who played Juliet. She did a unbelievable job with her movements, and being able to play dead for what seemed like an eternity. Not to mention she was one of the only cast members to be in a dress for the entire play. I'm almost positive she was freezing, but she didn't show it on stage. Cassandra DeMarco also played a great role with all of the sword fights and I found her role exciting as well.
The atmosphere of the performance was live with modern music, great acting, and homemade ice cream. The man selling the ice cream was friendly and always has a smile on his face. I ended up buying two servings of it because it was flat out delicious. The vanilla was so rich and flavorful I don't think I can ever go back to eating freezer ice cream again. However my favorite flavor was the butter pecan which tasted so much was butter it was scary. The people attending the play went all out bringing wine, dinner foods, and snacks. I wish I had prepared like these people because I was starving midway through the play. The weather was a cool autumn night feel, but our blankets we had brought kept us warm, and the overall peformance of the play, the people, and the atmosphere of the park overshadowed the cool weather.
I felt I learned how important intreptation is in the world of theater. The modern production of the classic play helps a younger generation relate to it more by the language, and how the actors portray themselves to the audience. Even the wardrobe choices from Raphael Massie all symbolize a more modern feel. Many applaud and appreciate the effort to make the classic more appealing but I feel that the original version of anything is the best. Multiple times while I was at the play I kept thinking back in time and seeing if this is really how William Shakespeare pictured it. We as a younger generation maybe more attracted to a modern version but I feel somewhere along the line we as a society start to lose the sense of the original presentation of the play.
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