Froggy Chair

Just thought I'd put in my two cents worth and give an honest and, not to be too cocky but, an easier to read review. I can't help but sigh at the ridiculousness of some of these other reviews, I mean, they're hardly in English! Anyways, Romeo and Juliet is a tale as old as, well as old as 1595. While some of the tropes might seem a little too cliché to a new reader, once upon a time it was the most original story to have ever existed. If reading hard-to-understand plays is your forté then go ahead, give it a read, though some scenes just don't read the same way as they did back in the 16th century. If you want to follow the same story in an easier format, I'd recommend seeing it on stage. That's how it was originally intended after all. However, the theatre might be a little to hard for some of you to see this so next I recommend you watch an adaptation. 'Why, which adaptation' you ask? Well, I'm glad you did... I'd recommend Baz Luhrmann's Romeo + Juliet for something a little more digestable. If you want something with a little more pizzazz, maybe West Side Story, while it is easier to understand the concepts of the oppressive society in this colour-saturated musical, it does have a slightly different ending, which leads me to my next recommendation. 1968's Zeffirelli classic flick is the perfect film to watch Romeo and Juliet in the original context, no real changes at all. Personally, I think that this is one of the most beautiful stories ever told, not because of the tragic romance, but what it says about society at the time, and why it remains relevant to this day. The way it captures the feuds between the Montagues and the Capulets is done so well, from the death of Juliet's cousin and Romeo's close friend, we can feel the excruciating pain between them and their kinship build into romance. Sure it's exaggerated, however it's both representative of the time and also the severity of the harsh realities of the society they live in. If the relationship was the main focus, then they wouldn't have died, it would have been a romcom much like many other Shakespearian adaptations (She's the Man, 10 Things I Hate About You, Get Over It...). Though it's not, and we know these "star-crossed lovers" were going to take their lives right from the start, so, what's the big commotion? Why are we reading this play even today? Well, it can be applied today. Replace the two families with political spectrums, two countries, two races, two religions, two bands even and I'm sure you could turn Yoko Ono in some Beatle-looped romantic tragedy. It happens in real life, it shows in this play. They say right from the start that "what here shall miss, our toil shall strive to mend". What you don't understand about this "death-marked love", will be mended by the actors' toils, their abilities to show you the strife between the sides, the conflictions between them all. This is why the story is so important, it's not about the romance, it's about why it couldn't last. This is also why it's crucial to see it played in front of you in a context you'll best understand it! Now if you excuse me, I've got a Lennon and Yoko story I need to write, I totally have dibs on those film rights!