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loreofyupu 's review for:
Romeo and Juliet
by William Shakespeare
Oh to be thirteen and foolishly in love!
This is one of those stories that we've always heard about, arguably one of the most famous ones written in English ever. But breaking through the initial language barrier and reading it for yourself is a rewarding adventure. I came across some of the most passionate soliloquies and exquisite declarations of love. Reading them aloud dramatically is part of the experience. Try this, for example.
There are some bits with complicated worldplay that might require a few re-readings (I'm referring especially to Mercutio's lines) but you'll get a good chuckle out of them. The play is labelled a tragedy but it's infused with a hefty portion of comic relief. And surprisingly to me, much of the jokes were sexual innuendos. Shakespeare had a filthy sense of humour.
The plot, of course, has a lot of action. But the way that it's written might put modern 21st century readers off, because the action isn't necessarily explicitly described. A discovery that surprised me was that Shakespeare's plays were performed on stage without a set. And so, when the scenes changed, there was nothing to indicate the shift in setting apart from just mentioning it.
The plays were written in a way that encouraged the audience to imagine the sets. The stage was completely flexible. "The empty space could be a small prison cell, a battlefield, a royal court, a crowded city street, an ocean, and any other place, in rapid succession, without changing a thing."
This is in contrast to the realistically decorated sets of modern day theatre. I think we're so used to information being fed to us that these plays might seem dull. But the imagery is there, and it's vivid. It just requires you to fill in some of the blanks.
And as widely agreed upon, listening to an audiobook (or watching a performance!) is the best way to consume these plays. [https://youtu.be/e4tSfkGyC74 I used this one as a supplement to my reading. The cast of voice actors was quite impressive.]
This is one of those stories that we've always heard about, arguably one of the most famous ones written in English ever. But breaking through the initial language barrier and reading it for yourself is a rewarding adventure. I came across some of the most passionate soliloquies and exquisite declarations of love. Reading them aloud dramatically is part of the experience. Try this, for example.
Come, gentle night; come, loving, black-browed night;
Give me my Romeo; and, when I shall die,
Take him and cut him out in little stars,
And he will make the face of heaven so fine
That all the world will be in love with night
And pay no worship to the garish sun.
There are some bits with complicated worldplay that might require a few re-readings (I'm referring especially to Mercutio's lines) but you'll get a good chuckle out of them. The play is labelled a tragedy but it's infused with a hefty portion of comic relief. And surprisingly to me, much of the jokes were sexual innuendos. Shakespeare had a filthy sense of humour.
The plot, of course, has a lot of action. But the way that it's written might put modern 21st century readers off, because the action isn't necessarily explicitly described. A discovery that surprised me was that Shakespeare's plays were performed on stage without a set. And so, when the scenes changed, there was nothing to indicate the shift in setting apart from just mentioning it.
The plays were written in a way that encouraged the audience to imagine the sets. The stage was completely flexible. "The empty space could be a small prison cell, a battlefield, a royal court, a crowded city street, an ocean, and any other place, in rapid succession, without changing a thing."
This is in contrast to the realistically decorated sets of modern day theatre. I think we're so used to information being fed to us that these plays might seem dull. But the imagery is there, and it's vivid. It just requires you to fill in some of the blanks.
And as widely agreed upon, listening to an audiobook (or watching a performance!) is the best way to consume these plays. [https://youtu.be/e4tSfkGyC74 I used this one as a supplement to my reading. The cast of voice actors was quite impressive.]