I Support Medically Assisted Suicide, Essay Example

For this assignment, I attended a performance of William Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet” hosted by the Northeastern University Department of Theater. I am familiar with this play due to several readings of the script and viewings of movie adaptations. Therefore, I attending this showing with many expectations. Some of these expectations were met and others were not. Ultimately, the performance was close to the dialogue that was included in Shakespeare’s original work and the personality that each actor brought to their character contributed to the success of the show.

“Romeo and Juliet” is a well-known tale about two lovers from feuding families. After meeting, they fall in love instantly and must sneak around to be with one another. Soon, they plan on getting married in secret. Their misfortune arises when Juliet’s cousin, Tybalt, starts a verbal fight with Romeo, which soon turns into a duel with Mercutio. Tybalt is the victor of the dual, which results in the death of Mercutio. This angers Romeo, who kills Tybalt in retaliation and is banished from his home land. Romeo is advised to leave and his friend, Friar Lawrence tells him that he will attempt to settle the feud between his and Juliet’s family so he can return safely. Meanwhile, Juliet is told that she must marry a man named Paris. Juliet asks Friar Lawrence for help to avoid the marriage and he gives her a potion that makes her appear dead so she will not have to break her vows to Romeo. He then informs her that he will devise a plan to reunite her and Romeo. Romeo returns and sees his wife dead before Friar Lawrence can send him the news of his plan. He then kills himself using poison. When Juliet awakes and sees Romeo dead, she then commits suicide using his sword. Upon learning of the death of their children, Romeo and Juliet’s family end their feud in their honor.

This play was successful because it attempted to stay true to Shakespeare’s original writing. While it appeared that some of his dialogue was removed, it was only a small amount and did not change the flow of the story. In addition, the costumes that were used reflected what individuals would wear during the Elizabethan era. Romeo, Juliet, and their family members wore clothing that reflected their high social status. Juliet wore a simple lace dress with several layers when she was not expected to be outside. However, she’d wear a large formal gown in the presence of others. Meanwhile, Romeo was adorned in decorative silks throughout the most of the show and his outfits were more elaborate than Juliet’s. An additional compliment for the show is that the actors managed to bring their characters to life. Each actor truly became the person they were trying to convey.

While the costumes were excellent, the props and scenery used detracted from the story. In the original showings of Romeo and Juliet during the Elizabethan era, the props used were minimal so as to emphasize the story. There were a lot of scenery changes and although the backdrops were well-made, it would have been preferable to only have a few because the scene changes took too much time and left the audience waiting for what would come next. An additional criticism I have of this show is that the actors did not masterfully use the British accent that is typically utilized in Shakespeare performances. It seems that some of the actors tried to do this, but their voices didn’t come close to what was expected.

Ultimately, “Romeo and Juliet” was enjoyable but far from perfect. However, many of the aspects of the show that I didn’t particularly enjoy may have been due to the style of this particular acting group. On the other hand, they mastered the complex script well and delivered their roles well.

Works Cited

Southwick A. “Romeo and Juliet”. 2014. Web. 24 April 2014. <http://www.northeastern.edu/camd/theatre/events/romeo-juliet/>