A Beginner's Guide to Romeo and Juliet

Romeo and Juliet is one of the most tragic love stories of all time, believed to have been written between 1594 and 1596. 

It follows a pair of star-crossed lovers from two families engaged in an ancient feud. Juliet is a Capulet and Romeo is a Montague, and their love is forbidden. 

The play explores powerful themes such as love, fate, and conflict, and continues to inspire modern stories, art, ballets, and operas. 

Summary of the plot

 

Romeo and Juliet is set mainly in fifteenth-century Verona, a city in Northern Italy. 

The play tells the story of two young lovers from feuding families, the Montagues and the Capulets. 

Juliet’s family, the Capulets, have a plan for her to marry Count Paris, but when she meets and falls in love with Romeo at a masked ball, the lovers persuade a friendly priest, Friar Lawrence, to marry them in secret. 

Their ill-fated romance leads to a series of tragic events, with multiple major characters dying, including the untimely deaths of the titular characters. 

When Juliet’s parents insist her marriage to Paris be brought forward, Friar Lawrence tells her of a drug that will give her the appearance of death, long enough to avoid the marriage. Friar Lawrence tries to get word to Romeo but his message is delayed and he hears of Juliet’s “death” from another source. In despair, he buys poison and dies by her side at her tomb. Juliet wakes to find Romeo’s dead body and stabs herself with his dagger. 

 

Who are the main characters? 

 

• Romeo: Heir of the Montague family. Romeo is dreamy and easily love-struck — but meeting Juliet is different. He secretly marries her but is banished for killing her cousin, Tybalt.
• Juliet: Heir of the Capulet family. Initially sheltered and obedient, falling in love with Romeo reveals a streak of sharp intelligence, practicality, determination, and defiance.
• Friar Lawrence: Romeo’s respectable and well-meaning ally. Friar Lawrence’s greatest hope is to create peace between the Montague and Capulet families… but one could argue he doesn’t always think his plans all the way through. It’s his idea that goes wrong and causes the final tragedy.
• The Nurse: Juliet’s very talkative companion. Sincere and very funny, she does her best to be unfailingly loyal to Juliet.
• Mercutio: Romeo’s loyal friend. A master of wordplay, he has no patience for lovesickness… or Capulets. He is eventually killed by Juliet’s cousin Tybalt, and his death launches the final tragedy of the play.
• Tybalt: Juliet’s cousin. Hot-tempered and one of the main instigators of fights between Montagues and Capulets.
• Lord and Lady Capulet: Juliet’s parents. Though they want to see her happy, they also expect her to be obedient.
• Benvolio: Romeo’s cousin and good friend. A natural peacekeeper and a contrast to the aggressive Tybalt. He is cautious, unlike Romeo.
• Paris: Juliet’s would-be fiancé. He dies in a duel with Romeo at Juliet’s “tomb.”

 

 

Themes

 

Shakespeare used themes and images all the time, regularly exploring the complexities of human relationships.

Romeo and Juliet explores several key themes:

• Disorder/Conflict: The play is full of different kinds of disorder, brawls, and fights, enflamed by the violence of angry passion, infatuation, and false love. Death is constantly being predicted, and five people violently die in the play. Images of the sea are used to suggest unpredictable danger. The disorder of life in Verona is emphasized by the use of imagery related to disease and sickness.
• Fate: Fate is an important theme in the play. From the very start, Romeo and Juliet are described as “star-crossed.” Romeo says he feels his future is “hanging in the stars” and that he is “fortune’s fool.” The overall structure of the play and the way the story unfolds create a feeling of inevitability about the ending.
• Light and Darkness: Images of darkness in the play stand for death, violence, sadness, and secrecy. Images of light, whiteness, or paleness often appear in connection with ideas of love, life, and hope.
• Love: The play is full of overflowing passions, with the violence of the play often set against the peacefulness of the lovers when they are together.

 

Famous quotes 

 

Romeo and Juliet is packed with memorable lines. Whether you’re familiar with the play or not, you’ll likely recognize a few of these famous quotes.

“A pair of star-crossed lovers take their life.”
(Chorus, Prologue)

Abraham: “Do you bite your thumb at us, sir?”
Sampson: “I do bite my thumb, sir.”
(Act 1 Scene 1)

“But, soft, what light through yonder window breaks?
It is the east, and Juliet is the sun.”
(Romeo, Act 2 Scene 1)

“O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?”
(Juliet, Act 2 Scene 1)

“That which we call a rose 
By any other word would smell as sweet.”
(Juliet, Act 2 Scene 1)

“Parting is such sweet sorrow.”
(Juliet, Act 2 Scene 1)

“O true apothecary, 
Thy drugs are quick. Thus with a kiss I die.”
(Romeo, Act 5 Scene 3)

“O happy dagger, 
This is thy sheath: there rust, and let me die.”
(Juliet, Act 5 Scene 3)

“For never was a story of more woe 
Than this of Juliet and her Romeo.”
(Prince, Act 5 Scene 3)

 

 

Popular Productions

 

There have been eight productions of Romeo and Juliet performed at the iconic Shakespeare’s Globe, including Dominic Dromgoole’s intimate and atmospheric version starring Ellie Kendrick ( Game of Thrones) and Adetomiwa Edun (Merlin). 

The Royal Shakespeare Company’s 2018 production, starring Bally Gill (Slow Horses) was also met with widespread acclaim. 

Numerous film adaptations have brought it to life on the silver screen, with notable versions directed by Franco Zeffirelli in 1968 and Baz Luhrmann in 1996. 

The story of Romeo and Juliet is also the source of the 1957 Broadway musical play, West Side Story – which updated the setting to the Upper West Side of Manhattan in the 1950s – as well as the subsequent 1961 and 2021 film versions of the play.

Another famous adaptation is the ballet originally composed by Sergei Prokofiev in 1935. Today, it is one of the world’s most-loved ballets, and it has been choreographed by artists like Frederick Ashton, John Neumeier, Rudolf Nureyev, and Matthew Bourne. 

All these adaptations showcase the play’s timeless appeal and the ability of its themes to resonate across different time periods and cultural contexts. 

For a deeper dive into some of Shakespeare’s most famous plays, listen to our Shakespeare Uncovered series with hosts including Morgan Freeman, Huge Bonneville, Kim Cattrall, and Joseph Fiennes.

Ready to jump into a production of Romeo and Juliet? Check out these titles on Marquee TV.

Romeo and Juliet on Marquee TV:

• Theater: The Royal Shakespeare Company, Romeo and Juliet 
• Theater: Shakespeare’s Globe, Romeo and Juliet 
• Opera: Opera Zurich, I Capuleti e i Montecchi 
• Ballet: The Australian Ballet, Romeo and Juliet 
• Ballet: Ballett Zürich, Romeo und Julia
• Dance: Royal Swedish Ballet, Mat Ek’s Juliet and Romeo