Unit 3: Romey & J (Blog 4)

For this blog entry, we need to pick a scene we would like to perform.

I have chosen the balcony scene. I decided to do this scene because I know how famous this scene is and I wanted a chance to do it. So many famous people around the world have performed this scene . It is also a challenging scene and I think that  it is good to challenge myself. I like this scene because it is so sweet and lovely. That may sound like a very cliche thing to say but it is what I think and why I like this scene so much. Also, a lot of emotion is portrayed in this scene which will make it more fun to perform.

If I were to direct the scene, I would need to think about many different elements. Of course the scene will be set at the balcony of Juliette! But there are other things to think of like costumes and lighting. For the staging, I would probably make the balcony out of some chairs to stand behind and a small piece of platform for Juliette to stand on. Costumes would obviously be traditional and also with masks from the party before. For props we could have a rose or some sort of gift for Romeo to give Juliette even if it isn't in the script. For lighting, there would be spot lights on Romeo and Juliette. The one on Juliette would be off until she says her first line.

This is who I would cast in this scene

Romeo:

Farah. Because she is really sweet and kind like Romeo is. She is also uite sensitive when it comes to relationships as is Romeo. None of the boys in our class really fit the role of Romeo.

Juliette: 

Me. Because I think that I really suit her role as she is obeying to her parents and is fun loving just like me. I think I would be able to pull of Juliette

Nurse (Not really in the scene but is heard):

Guglie. Because he is very sarcastic like the Nurse and can be quite funny at times. The Nurse is very outspoken and Guglie does this a lot.

Did I choose a good cast?

That's all! Bye! xx <3

Unit 3: Romey & J - Reduced Shakespeare Company (Blog 3)

In class, we watched a version of Romeo and Juliette by the Reduced Shakespeare Company (R.S.C).
Part 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bzVyqiskpMk
Part 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xKUyq-uCZr0

There were many Shakespearean elements in this version. This includes the fact that their were no girls at all during the play, just like there weren't any girls in Shakespeare's time. Also, they involved the audience a lot in the show. This includes breaking the fourth wall, and interacting with the audience. Whilst on stage, the actors would speak to the audience.

They also made some changes to the play. One of these things was that they broke character but on purpose. An example of this is at the end when Romeo kisses Juliette before he dies, Romeo breaks character and says 'Oh get over it!' to the audience. This is because, a modern day audience isn't used to seeing a boy kiss a boy so the R.S.C made a joke out of it. Another thing they changed was the script. They wanted to shorten the play so that they could fit more plays into their performance time. To do this they only used important scenes and only some of the lines. For example, they shortened the scene where Tybolt is killed to only a couple of seconds.

I don't think that this kind of performance would be successful in Shakespeare's time because it was adapted to suit a modern day audience. Many of the jokes made in the performance would not be funny in his time and no one would get the jokes.


-K xxx