Romeo and Juliet
By William Shakespeare
The Actor:
The drama 'Romeo and Juliet' by William Shakespeare was written in 1595.
The information we get about this person is that he was probably born on April 23rd in 1564 (St. George's Day) in Stratford-on-Avon.
His parents were John Shakespeare (workman and mayor) and Mary Arden.
In 1582, when he was 18, he married Ann Hathaway (*1556, 1623) who was eight years older.
In 1592 he was as an artist in London for the first time. He was the most famous author of this era.
He invested his money in the Globe-Theatre in his birth town.
Where he went back to in 1612/13 and lived there until his dead in 1616.
The Story
The drama of one of his most famous dramas 'Romeo
and Juliet' was set down in
Verona in 1600, as we get to know right at the beginning of the plot 'In
fair Verona, where we lay our scene). We see two servants of the Capulet family
armed with swords, ready to fight with any 'dog of the house [] of
Montague.' The two sites begin to fight. After some minutes the Prince of
Verona Escalus appears. He beats down their swords. Lady Montague is glad that
Romeo was not involved in the fight, but she then says that her son has been in
a melancholy. Romeo than appears. He says he is madly in love with a woman
'Griefs of mine own lie heavy in my breast'.
We get to know that Paris, a noble young kinsman, wants to marry Juliet, Capulets daughter. They will meet at the Capulet′s house at their feast 'This night you shall behold him at our feast'. The fact that Juliet and Romeo will meet and fall in love there for the first time is not said to the audience yet. At the famous balcony scene the two swear each other never-ending love, even they know they are enemies.
It does not take long until Friar Laurence marries
them. He thought it could be the end of the hate between the two families
'For this alliance may so happy prove to turn your households′
rancour to pure love'.
After there marriage there is another fight. Tybalt kills Mercutio under Romeo′s arm. Mercutio curses both families, the Capulets and the Montagues with 'a plague a′ both houses.' before he dies. Romeo fights again Tybalt and kills him.
He flees from the punishment of the Prince, but he
spares Romeo from a death penalty, but banishes him from Verona.
Friar Laurence will give Juliet a potion that will
make her seem to be dead for forty-two hours. After her family finds her in
this death-like state, they will inter her in the family tomb. Friar Laurence
will send word of this ruse to Romeo in Mantua and when she awakes from 'a
pleasant sleep,' she will find Romeo there and the two can then return to
Mantua together. At the next day, after she had drunk the potion, Juliet is
found 'dead' by her Nurse.
Than there is Romeo sees, that one of the
Montague′s servants arrives with word from Verona that Juliet lies dead
in the Capulet family's mausoleum. On the basis of this incomplete report
(Juliet is not dead but only drugged), Romeo seeks out an apothecary to provide
him with poison. He plans to go to the tomb in which Juliet lies and die
alongside her.
After standing over Juliet's body he takes the potion
and dies, right at this moment Juliet awakes, sees that Romeo is dead. She
kisses his lips, but there are not enough potions for her. So she took the
dagger in his hand and stabs herself to death.
The last sentences of this drama are said by the Prince 'For never was a story of more woe than this of Juliet and Romeo.'
