2013 Arts in the City

Scene Analysis

The excerpt I’d chosen from Romeo and Juliette was that of Mercutio’s death. Mercutio is a vital character in the play, and his passing marks one of the most important moments in the play. I chose this segment originally because I thought it was a perfect example of the very real and raw emotions Shakespeare is able to communicate, even within the backdrop of what seems to be a silly love story between children. In my opinion, that is the primary purpose of his death in the play, it effectively reminds the audience that these children live in an adult world in which their childish romances have very real and very frightening consequences.

Watching the play, my opinion was only fortified, as the death of Mercutio was arguably the most powerful moment in the play. The character of Mercutio was given an extremely flamboyant personality, one that absorbed my attention whenever he was on stage. His presence was full of power, charisma, and slight perversion, making his character in this interpretation something of a controversy, but undeniably significant. That is to say, regardless of your opinions on the persona communicated by the actor, you can’t deny that his was a very prominent presence. This makes his death, his cruel and ugly death, a much more powerful moment, if at all possible, than can be communicated in just the text of the play. When reading the lines of Mercutio we do not grasp the large role he plays in the world of the play, it is hard to see what impact he has. It is not until you see him physically die, and until you can’t help but notice how large a void is left by his passing through the lack of his physical presence, that you truly understand the gravity of his death. No more short funny man running around from corner to corner of the stage.

This was not my favorite interpretation of Romeo and Juliette, but I can’t imagine them having done a better death for Mercutio. The raw ugliness of it, the anger and the confusion, they all worked together to expertly contrast the fluffy love the audience had just gotten accustomed too, and in doing so the audience feels the shock of youth as it learns of the cruel world. Shakespeare makes us, for a second, feel like children, and artfully destroys the rosy lovey lens with the death of youthful energy, passion, and misunderstood wisdom personified.

Romeo and Juliet Scene

I chose to examine Act 3, Scene 3 specifically where Friar Lawrence is reprimanding Romeo for all of his foolishness up until this point in the play. When I first read the scene, I imagined Friar Lawrence to be playing the fatherly figure that Romeo really lacked throughout the entire play. I also imagined the Friar’s tone to be stern and instructive. While watching the play, this was exactly how the lines were interpreted. Romeo began preaching to Friar Lawrence his love for Juliet and that without her, his life was not worth living. Immediately, Friar Lawrence tries to show Romeo how foolish he is being.

One line in particular from my section that I was really intrigued to see interpreted was when Friar Lawrence says “Fie, fie, thou shamest thy shape, thy love, thy wit // Which, like a usurer, abound’st in all // And usest none in that true use indeed.” Watching these lines were very different than just reading them. When these lines were played out, Friar Lawrence began to shift his tone a little from reprimanding to caring and comforting. This made sense to me because Friar Lawrence doesn’t want to just insult Romeo. He genuinely wants Romeo to understand that this is his first love and potentially his first heartbreak. His life will go on and that he should not waste the potential that he has in life. I enjoyed watching the play very much and it helped me to understand the lines that I chose so much more.

Acting in Romeo And Juliet

The most noticeable thing about the acting performance in this production of Romeo and Juliet was the amount of subtlety that the actors could afford to use in their performances due to the size of the theatre. Actors often need to employ extremely exaggerated motions to make their emotions clear to audience members in far away seats, but the actors in this performance were far more controlled in their motions, while still conveying a great deal of emotion and passion. Being so close to the action, I could feel the passion and the conviction in each aggressive footstep and repositioning, no mater how small.

Act 3, scene 1

The play overall took a very interesting modern turn in the sense that costumes, for instance, were no where near my expectations. It wasn’t a bad thing, in fact, I liked the way the director decided to adapt the play to more current times. The lines from act 3, scene 1 I chose were represented fairly well. Mercutio’s dominant performance throughout these few lines was, again, vivid and very touching. Seconds before he died, he said the famous phrase that predicts the outcome of everyone’s irrational actions. Actions that shouldn’t only be attributed to the lustful love of young Romeo and Juliet, but also to their rival parents and society as a whole. Not only did his words summarize one of the main themes of the play, but also his death was very symbolic. It started a trend in Verona that neither the Capulets nor the Montagues could halt. Slowly but surely, we see the decay of this society because the youth starts to die. We know that without young people, there isn’t a civilization that can thrive.

Act 1 Scn 4 – The Queen Mab Monologue

I loved this play overall. I was enthralled with how they brought it into such a minimalist, modern viewpoint. I would have never thought to do so. It was like Shakespeare Lite, the quick breathy version that doesn’t force too much thought. It has a bunch of laughs, a lot of sentiment, and then it’s over and you walk away happy.

As for Mercutio’s monologue, I thought they sped through this scene too quickly. The actor playing Mercutio didn’t really take the time to develop the scene to it’s full potential. He was saying the words, but the emotion and subtlety behind it wasn’t there. It was all just a big mush of words, that ultimately were lost and quickly forgotten in favor of scenes that were given more time.

Choreography: The Use of Diagonals and Corners

The use of corners was extraordinary and so brilliant. I noticed that there was never moment in which two performers would stand side by side with each other unless they were in constant movement throughout the course of their dialogue. Performers were always placed at an angle of each other and left the scene using the corners of the stage. I loved how the timeless balcony scene became Juliet simply sitting on a row of chairs at no high elevation whatsoever while Romeo looked “up” at her from the opposite corner of the stage. There was no need for grand props or special effects, rather the mere wit of a choreographer was enough to bring a balcony scene to life with a few chairs and a square shaped stage.
The use of diagonals- especially during the costume party at the Capulet’s and during the fight that ends with Mercutio’s death was so clever. The costume party scene used the diagonal to it maximum potential: changing the direction of the diagonal, freezing some characters while allowing others to talk, placing Capulets, Montagues, and the Prince all back to back, — all of these techniques truly did justice to this scene. It was easy to focus on the character that would be talking and made it so that the audience could see everyone in full action. The choreographer of this particular interpretation of Romeo and Juliet made sure to tell the audience right at the beginning how performers would be stationed and used around the stage. He/She immediately shows us the differences between characters that are in the scene, or are watching a scene unfold, or are about to enter in on the scene quite soon. Act I begins with all of its characters facing backwards in a horizontal line and only the characters in Scene 1 actually in the lighted up section of the stage.

Romeo and Juliet – Music in the Play

The music was mostly modern dance music, and especially in one of the dance scenes. It was particularly interesting how the director of this play chose to make the dance scene look like a crazy house party. The music was like rave music, and definitely added an exciting modern twist to the play.

There was also what seemed to be cinematic, eerie music that played during certain points in the story. When the plot moved forward dramatically, or there was a fight, the creepy music played. The inclusion of this modern, and unconventional music in this play is an interesting choice and, again, I think it helped to add to the modern element.

Costumes

The costumes in “Romeo and Juliet” played a very important role in establishing who each character was. Juliet, for example, always wore a white dress, which represents innocence and purity and youth, with black combat boots, insinuating that she is rebellious. Romeo wore a white v-neck shirt with a blazer, giving off a cool, young, hip vibe. Capulet wore a long, robe like suit jacket that was red and ornate, signifying both his rank and his old fashioned way of thinking. Lady Capulet wore a cheetah print outfit and a lot of pink, which I took to symbolize her desire to be young and reminded me of the mom’s we see in popular movies like “Mean Girls;” she just can’t relate to her daughter because she’s a little too caught up in herself. The costumes were not traditional or coordinated with each other in any way (they even crossed time periods) but I thought it worked.

Romeo and Juliet

Act2 scene2,

The importance of this scene is to show how much love existed between the two. Whether we would call it love or not, is a different question. It is also to show that love  comes in different forms and it can literally make you crazy.

Throughout the performance the costumes that the actors wore were simple. Juliet, wore a simple plain white gown. This is symbolic of the part she represents in the play. Juliet’s white represented youth and innocence. Though she wore her white gown she had on combat boots. This represented the rebellious side of her and an inner strength.

Lighting

The lighting in this production was very minimal, switching on and off immediately between the two parts separated by the intermission. One of the more obvious uses of lights though, was the portrayal of night and day, changing between scene and scene. Light was also used in the beginning of the play to separate the two families. A red line ran down the middle of the stage, creating a separation between the two groups of characters.

Script Doctoring

Shakespearean nerd that I am, I came into this with expectations, despite my best efforts to keep an open mind. It is still debatable if those expectations were met. I found the play diverting and entertaining. But I have to admit that it felt like a SparkNotes version of the play, the most stripped take the director could get away with and still be able to call it Shakespeare. With minimalist set, costumes, lighting, and special effects, the play depended on the acting and plot to drive it, but it had neither full cast nor plot. Cutting lines is one thing. Cutting death scenes and characters is another.

Romeo and Juliet— The Impact of Lighting

This performance of Romeo and Juliet was peculiar in the sense that there was no set stage. Instead, actors performed in a small space on ground level, surrounded by the audience on three sides. Because there was no stage, lighting played a crucial role in both transitional and emotional aspects. Many scenes, such as the Capulet’s dance party, was only made possible by the erratic and dance-esque lighting.

Romeo and Juliet

I loved the intensity of the scene when Romeo and Juliet first meet. They flirted on a careful balance between innocence and mischief; it seemed precisely the way Shakespeare intended it to be.

Juliet’s monologue

Elizabeth Olsen’s delivery of Juliet’s monologue in act 3 scene 2 (“and when Romeo shall die, take him and cut him out into little stars and he shall make the face of heaven so fine that all the world will be in love with night”) was absolutely perfect. Even though the monologue is very poetic and lyrical, it sounded very natural. All of Juliet’s longing and love was apparent in the acting.

Romeo and Juliet: Interaction Between Characters

My favorite interaction was the interpretation of the relationship between Romeo, Benvolio and Mercutio.  The playful way the characters interacted with each other is what made the play ultimately seem more modern and therefore, more relatable.

Romeo and Juliet – Costumes

When walking into the theater, I already knew the costumes wouldn’t be similar to the attire

of the time the play took place, and I was correct. The characters wore the same outfits

basically throughout the entire play, except for certain very special events (wedding, party,

and funeral). The most intriguing outfits were during the costume party, which seemed to

resemble a Halloween Ball due to the giant Winnie the Pooh head, robot mask, and

other retro costumes.

Acting of Act 2 Scene 1

It was interesting to see how forthright Juliet was upon discovering that Romeo had heard her entire soliloquy. Her surprise visibly faded within a mere two seconds, slowly fading into confidence.

Romeo & Juliet – Music

The play opens up and introduces the characters using an ominous and serious tune, corresponding to the seriousness of the characters. Once the play begins, there is no music playing in the background at all, until the Capulets’ party begins. The music at the Capulets’ is music you would hear at a club or a party, it was a very modern approach to the party. I found it humorous that for a play that takes place in what I think of as ancient times, the choice of music was very modern. When Romeo and Juliet decide they want to get married church bells start ringing, the church bells signify the wedding because they would be married in the church. The sounds of an organ playing is also heard when their marriage is mentioned; because the organ is typically played at weddings. Towards the end of the play, when Mercutio and Tybalt are fighting, there is very low music playing in the background. The music progresses louder as the fight escalates. The music has a very somber tone to it, indicating the fight.

Romeo & Juilet – Lighting – Tom

The lighting of the play focused primarily on the time of day and setting. The orange of the early morning sun and the dark blue of the night easily allowed for the audience to understand time of day. White light was used to focus on characters specifically or for indoor lines. The spotlight was used to great extent to specify which person was talking during the party hosted by Capulet. The only other time lighting was used differently was to show two simultaneous events: the marriage between Romeo and Juliet and the conversation between Benvolio and Mercutio. Lights abruptly went out to end the play in a rather unfinished state leaving a the audience wondering if the two families ever managed to make peace.

Music in “Romeo and Juliet”

Music was used in the play either to shift scenes or to promote a certain feeling that went along with the scene. Music introduced the characters at the start of the play, and the drums and guitar gave off an ominous feeling, portraying through the music that this play is a tragedy. There was also techno music, consisting of many beats, during the scene of the masquerade party. This music provided the feeling of a fun and carefree atmosphere, and the love between Romeo and Juliet ensued soon after this scene. When shifting to the moment when Romeo and Juliet were to be wed, the music contained the sounds of bells ringing, to convey a holy, marriage-related feeling. The music grows ominous at the deaths of characters such as Mercutio, Juliet, and Romeo, giving off a dramatic and tragic vibe.

Shakespeare Reading vs. Seeing

This was the first time that I saw Romeo and Juliet performed live.  The scene that I had chosen to examen prior to the performance was the balcony seen in Act 2, in which Romeo and Juliet profess their love to each other.  While reading the play, I pictured a balcony on which Juliet stood overlooking a forrest with Romeo kneeling under the balcony.  Since this scene is known as “the balcony scene”, it was odd that there was no actual balcony in the performance, as I had pictured. In addition to this, the unconventional interpretation of the play in this performance was very different from what I had imagined seeing the play live would be.  Although the lack of a balcony in the performance bothered me at first, the way in which the director planned out the scene did not detract whatsoever, in my eyes, from the feeling of a balcony seen.  During this scene, Romeo was at the far end of the “stage” kneeling towards Juliet, who was standing on a platform of chairs.  The chairs were designed to act as some sort of balcony for Juliet to stand on, as she performed her monologue.  The way Romeo kneeled on the opposite of Juliet created a feeling that he was lower in height to her, which created the atmosphere of a balcony seen.  In addition to the different appearance that I had pictured in my mind, the same passion was portrayed in the performance as I had imagined it, while reading.