Blog 13

Blog 13
1. The ending was sad, but not tragic. The girl died under crowd's feet. She did not kill herself, nor have a fight with Andrea. The ending seemed logical, because this kind of accidents do often happen in real life. This seemed like an accident, but it actually a relief to Desiree. Before this, Desiree did not eat, nor sleep well. She still had hope that Daniel could marry her. However, everyone knows this is impossible, except Desiree. Even though Desiree did not die in the accident, she would hurt herself in other ways. It was smart to let the story end here.
2. I think different people will have different opinions while they are reading the book. In my opinion, this book teaches us several lessons. Firstly, you have to have the courage to dream and to achieve your dreams. People dream; I dream; Desiree dreams. However, Desiree actually has that courage to leave the small village and chase her dream. In the journey, several people help her with foods and direction. When she is hungry, vendors give her foods. When she does not have shoes nor dresses, a kind woman buys her shoes and a beautiful dress. This is telling us that if you try really hard to achieve something, even gods will help you. Secondly, this story also teaches us to be realistic to our dream. Everybody has the right to dream, nevertheless the dreams have to be realistic. Do not be greedy about something. In this story, after Desiree can  stay with Daniel, she requires more and more. She wants Daniel to be with her forever; she wants Daniel's love. When her dream grows bigger and bigger, it becomes an obsessiveness. For Daniel, she does not eat, nor sleep. She is obsessive about Daniel's love. This actually causes her death. The story tells us not to let dreams become obsessiveness; sometimes they will hurt you.

4 thinking questions

4 thinking questions:
- what do the fruit symbolize?
- describe the personality of Lucifus.
- why do people speak French in the hotel?
- list three similarities and differences between this book and the little mermaids.

Desire, A Pure But Brave Girl

“To the dreamer, all the things are possible. ” The vendor says this in the book My Love, My Love. Indeed, dreamers are always blind; they sometimes can do anything for their dreams. Obviously, Desire is also one of the dreamers. She travels for several days, but she never leaves the small village. She suffers hunger and laughters. No one understands her, but she still insists her dream. In this story, I like Desire, the pure and naive girl, but I admire her bravery and insistence more. 

First of all, I like Desire, because she is such a pure and beautiful girl. In that small village, she is so different; she is an “outsider”. For example, one day, when other peasants are relaxing and holding a ceremony, Desire is lying in a stream. At that moment, she feels she is free. She takes off her clothes, and she starts dreaming. She wishes someday the gods stop punishing them and let the fields thrive again. She dreams one day she can come to big cities, and she will do anything she wants to do. She has her own dream, even though Mama always mocks her. She believes the little butterfly can make her wish come true, and someday the fields will not be dry anymore. I am impressed that she is such a pure and beautiful girl. Moreover, she is also a very kind person. When Papa Ge threatens Daniel’s life, she saves him. She would rather sell her soul than let Daniel die. She is selfless, and she really has a good heart. Consequently, as a reader, I do not even want to somebody hurt her, a pure and naive girl. 

Secondly, I like Desire, because she has the personality that other characters do not have in this book, a brave daydreamer. In this story, Desire has two wishes: freedom and Daniel. For her, both of the desires are almost impossible to achieve. Firstly, she can hardly leave the small village. Then if she cannot leave, she cannot be with Daniel neither. She actually knows how hard it is too chase freedom and Daniel; she knows there is a long way to black mountains. She still wants to leave. She travels for days without foods and money, but fortunately some good vendors help her. To be honest, most of people will not make this decision and chase their dreams. They will just stay in the village comfortably. However, when they get old, they may regret. Nowadays, more and more people fear to lose, so they do not even try. They like arts, but they have to be a surgeon, because they fear they cannot be an artist. Even though they become artists, they are afraid that artists can hardly make much money. However, Desire does not think too much. The only thing she cares is Daniel. Thus, she just leaves and chases what she wants. At least she is honest to herself. Even though she does not get what she expects, she at least does it, so she will not regret for not chasing her dream. In short, I truly admire this daydreamer, and to be honest, she is even braver than many modern people. 

In conclusion, I like Desire, because I think she is special, and she also thinks herself is special. She is pure and beautiful, and she always has her dreams. However, her bravery is actually the thing that make her dreams come true. Her insistence allows her to insist her dreams. All of those things are the reasons of why I admire her. 

(This picture is not exactly what Desire looks like, but this is how I feel about her...)

Question #4

If I were to stage a play, I would exaggerate two identities of Desire: a peasant and a dreamer. I would choose a little black girl to play this role, because I want to show her simplicity to the audience. Also, I will also show some connections between the girl and the gods to show her uniqueness. 

First of all, Desire is a peasant, who lies in a small village. Thus, I would let the little girl wear tattered clothes, like what slaves wear in the movie, 12 year a slave. She may not wear shoes, because she only works in the fields. Also, if she does not wear shoes, she will be more pure. 

Secondly, even though Desire is a peasant, she still has a naive and good heart. She always daydreams, and she cannot control herself. I cannot show this point from the costumes, but I will design some plots to show this. The actor should always smile. The smile can make people feel calm and happy. Moreover, I will add some plots for the girl. For instance, the girl may play in the stream. She sometimes lies on the bank and looks at sky, sometimes stares to the water, sometimes kicks the water. When she is playing, the butterfly appears, and she starts daydreaming. She may think she is in a beautiful place, where people do not have troubles. People are planting to feed themselves, and they do not have pressure. The weather is good; the gods are like their parents who take care of them. However, when the butterfly flies away, the girl just comes back to reality. In addition, the butterfly may be the connection between the girl and the gods. She delivers gods’ messages. Gods trust her, and they tell her that their life will be better, and the drought will be relieved. To show that there is an imaginary cage in her shoulders, I will stitch a cage pattern on her clothes. Consequently, I will express that the girl is a peasant, but she is also a pure and beautiful. 

Design of Colors

In the book, My Love, My Love, the four gods, Asaka, the goddess of earth, Agwe, the god of sea, Ersulie, the goddess of love, and Papa Ge, the god of death, are actually interesting but important roles. They have different positions, and they have different characteristics. If I can adapt this story to a play, I will design several costumes, makeups, and colors to highlight their own unique identities. 

Firstly, in a play, the characters’ costumes can show their identities, and in this case, I will make the costumes more special to distinguish the gods from humans. In general, I will make the actors wear halos on their heads, and I will use different colors to paint three lines on their faces, like what football fans always do. Another point is that other characters in this book are peasants and rich people. Peasants always wear tattered clothes, and rich people were nice suits for business. The gods were more elegant clothes, and there are shining pearls on their clothes. In short, I will show the difference between gods and human-beings by costumes and makeups. 

Secondly, each of the god will have a unique color or a them, and this will fully express their different personalities. Asaka is the goddess of earth, so green will be her color. Asaka controls everything on the ground, and in my opinion, she is more like the goddess of forest. Also, she is a kind goddess. When Desire’s mother abandoned her, there was a heavy rain, but Asaka used the wind to protect her from the rain. Asaka has a kind and pure heart, and green is the color of nature. Thus, she does not wear makeup, but she wears a beautiful green dress which has some flowers and leaves as decorations. For Ersulie, the goddess of love, I make her a little different. Unlike other goddesses of love, Ersulie will be a older lady. She is wise and kind. She knows love, and she is willing to help lovers. For this goddess, pink will represent her, because pink is a the color of love. Moreover, sea or water are always blue, therefore, I give blue to Agwe. Agwe is an emotional god, and this is interesting. He is mad at Desire’s mother, because she abandoned her daughter. Then Agwe uses a heavy rain to punish people, but he does not think of the little baby. He is not a very rational or mature god, but he has integrity. Thus, this god might be a teenager. He knows justice, but he is not considerate enough. Also, blue is the color of vigor, so Agwe will have blue hair and a blue skate board. In addition, the god of death is always the most mysterious god. He always brings bad news to people, so black will be his color. In the play, Papa Ge will always wear a long black robe, and he always wears the hat. Thus, people will never see his face, or people just do not want to see. Consequently, each god or goddess in the play will has his/her own characteristics, and their costumes or makeups are all designed according to their characteristics. 

In conclusion, the four gods have different gender and different characteristics. It is not hard to distinguish them from other characters, and we make their costumes different to achieve this. However, it is difficult to fully express the unique of the four gods. In the play, I will first give each of them a color which represent their characteristics, and then design the costumes. The four gods are in different ages, so it is good for audience to distinguish them. 

Plant pictures

https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http%3A%2F%2Fi.huffpost.com%2Fgen%2F1205533%2Fimages%2Fo-DEFORESTATION-facebook.jpg&imgrefurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.huffingtonpost.ca%2Fian-lifshitz%2Fglobal-deforestation_b_5874140.html&docid=ZOgK8qGt2VsX7M&tbnid=P4JccMZ9QwHnjM%3A&w=2000&h=1000&ved=0ahUKEwjtqL6l6L_JAhUEYiYKHTKoDnoQxiAIBjAC&iact=c&ictx=1

https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http%3A%2F%2Fmedia.growsonyou.com%2Fphotos%2Fphoto%2Fimage%2F42630%2Fmain%2FFicus_nitida.jpg&imgrefurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.growsonyou.com%2Fphoto%2Fslideshow%2F42630-ficus-microcarpa-f-retusa-nitida-indian-laurel&docid=cxm3BNG3mRuNsM&tbnid=iM3MOhnrW4gHlM%3A&w=540&h=405&ved=0ahUKEwjQmb3i5r_JAhUDJCYKHXLTDAoQxiAIBDAA&iact=c&ictx=1

https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http%3A%2F%2Forig07.deviantart.net%2F63f9%2Ff%2F2011%2F134%2Fb%2F9%2Fmagnolias_03_by_meetmeatthelake2nite-d3gbbwb.jpg&imgrefurl=http%3A%2F%2Fmeetmeatthelake2nite.deviantart.com%2Fart%2FMagnolias-03-208801019&docid=cDwF58jNVsbq0M&tbnid=KWL51GI9owsQgM%3A&w=600&h=399&ved=0ahUKEwi04L6257_JAhVEJiYKHQixDBUQxiAICTAF&iact=c&ictx=1

https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.haititourisme.gouv.ht/images/design/paradis1.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.haititourisme.gouv.ht/&h=390&w=960&tbnid=LP4c93oAPOF36M:&docid=_qCp0DRRE3NxUM&hl=zh-hans&ei=SkVgVuLqJsvLmwG3zpnIBw&tbm=isch&client=safari&ved=0ahUKEwjit7jK57_JAhXL5SYKHTdnBnkQMwhiKDkwOQ&biw=1024&bih=672

https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=https://treeswaterpeople.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/shg-member-planting-moringa_haiti.jpg&imgrefurl=https://treeswaterpeople.wordpress.com/category/haiti/&h=3456&w=4608&tbnid=VuxA6aJDLj2beM:&docid=B1z8XSdPXieDaM&hl=zh-hans&ei=gUVgVtOwEcvRmAHlj4-IBg&tbm=isch&client=safari&ved=0ahUKEwiT9b_k57_JAhXLKCYKHeXHA2EQMwhiKDUwNQ&biw=1024&bih=672

Final Draft

Olivia Cao

Ms. Guarino

IB Literature and Performance SL

12 November 2015

Sarcasm and Comedy

Have you ever thought that someday one of the most classic tragedies become a modern comedy? Or have you thought about a different way for Juliet to say:"Romeo, Romeo, wherefore thee art Romeo?" When people mention Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet always comes into mind immediately. Romeo and Juliet was written in the early career of Shakespeare, but it is one of the most well-known tragedies in the world. When people think of Romeo and Juliet, they always feel mournful about the pitiful and romantic story. However, Romance is not the only theme of Romeo and Juliet; in modern people’s eyes, this story is more unrealistic. From they first meet to the tragic ending, this whole story is too dramatic to believe. To show an unique side of this classic play, we directed a comedic version of Romeo and Juliet, and we set the stage in modern times to show this tragedy from a modern perspective. We picked three significant scenes: Act 1 scene 5(the scene that they first meet); Act 2 scene 2(the balcony scene, which is the most romantic scene); Act 3 scene 1(the fighting scene, which is a big turning point). Unlike most of the tragedy versions of Romeo and Juliet, our performance showed the sarcastic side of their love and extreme immaturity of Romeo. To achieve the goals, we staged the scene in modern times, designed a more rebellious personality for Juliet, and used contrasting and exaggerated music to highlight the comedy theme.

If we looked at this tragedy through a modern person’s eyes, we would see this love story was so ridiculous that it would never happen. In the first scene, Romeo and Juliet met in a loud club. Logically, no one looks for his true love in a club, but Romeo did. Also, it is almost impossible to fall in love with someone in such a short time. In the scene, Romeo and Juliet are no longer shy and naive; both of them enjoy the party. Romeo was attracted by Juliet’s beauty, and he came to flirt with her. Juliet acted frivolously and flirted back. It is difficult for our actors to express the sarcastic emotions and say the romantic words at the same time, because we cannot change the lines. For example, Juliet acted frivolously when she said:“Saints do not move”, and after Romeo kissed Juliet, he just winked at his friends, like exactly what jerks do. Thus, since they first meet, it is a mistake. Moreover, in the balcony scene, Romeo went to Capulets’ house to find Juliet. He climbed up to the balcony with the Mission Impossible music. At this time, Romeo seems so brave. When Juliet told him the place was dangerous and people would kill him, he said that: “The kinsmen no stop to me!” However, when nurse called Juliet, Romeo was extremely terrified. He hid under the table and put his hands over his ears. The actor acted extremely exaggeratedly, and this makes the audience believe Romeo’s changeable love. When he faces Juliet, he makes himself be a brave and lovely man who can do anything for his love. However, that is not true; he does not love Juliet that much. He is still afraid of letting others find their secret love, and he still puts himself above his love. During the whole performance, balcony scene plays an important role, which can show the audience that their love is not pure and real. In summary, from a modern perspective, this story is not logical, and it will never happen in real life. 

Secondly, this play also shows Romeo’s immature personality and behaviors. Whether in the original text or our adapted version, Romeo is always an immature character. However, in this comedic version, we emphasize his personality. Also, there was a contrast of Romeo and Juliet. In the first scene, Romeo and Juliet both play with each other. In another word, they are the same kind of people. However, in the second scene, Juliet changes; she starts to be mature after she falls in love with Romeo. Through Romeo and Juliet’s different behaviors in Scene one and Scene two, the audience is able to see Juliet’s change, but Romeo just remains the same. For instance, when Juliet was complaining about Romeo’s family name and how hard their love was, Romeo was so hotheaded that he said: “I take thy word! I never will be Romeo. ” We took this line from the original text, nevertheless, the way the actor said this line is interesting. The actor said this line loudly, and he acted like he was going to fight in a war. This actually makes the plot so funny, and we also emphasize Romeo’s naive characteristics. Romeo denied his name without even one-second-thinking, and he climbed on the balcony immediately. Love is the only thing in Romeo’s eyes, and he can easily abandon his family for his “true love”. Moreover, in the last fighting scene, when Tybalt and Mercutio were about to fight, Romeo came, which was an extremely bad time. Then, Romeo tried to convince Mercutio and Tybalt to drop their weapons, however he did not help at all. The irony plot is when Romeo started his long “lecture style speech”, Tybalt and Mercutio put their swords back, and with the peaceful music, they almost fell asleep. Then, when Tybalt and Mercutio were fighting, he did not help, but yelled at them. Romeo is like a little child. When he is in trouble, he does not know how to handle the mess. The only thing he can do is to yell and cry. As a result, his friend, Mercutio died. In addition, Mercutio also reflects Romeo’s characteristics. People always say that friends are like mirrors; you can see yourself through them. Before the fight, Mercutio acted brave; he even described Tybalt as a “ratcatcher”. The actor acted like a drunk man, with the alcohol, a drunk man can say anything he wants to say but not take responsibilities. He describes himself as brave as he can, and he says Tybalt is a coward. However, when he was stabbed, he cried, and he blamed on Romeo. The actor acted like a little baby who was crying to his parents for no reason. With a soft music, this farce and the big contrast make most of the audience laugh. In another word, Mercutio is actually a giant when he speaks, but a coward when he really gets into troubles. Moreover, these unreasonable behaviors are exactly what Romeo did in the balcony scene. What they said and what they finally did were totally different. Beneath the fancy words, they are just two cowards. From Romeo’s friend, Mercutio, the audience is able to see how immature Romeo is. Consequently, Romeo’s sarcastic side was what we want to show the audience, and we achieve this goal successfully. 

To adopt a classic romantic tragedy to a modern comedy, we have to change the settings of the whole story to a modern comedic background and the shy Juliet to a playgirl. Firstly, this story happened in modern times. The actors wore modern clothes, instead of Middle ages costumes. Also, the way they behaved and spoke was modernized, even though we still kept the lines from the original text. For example, in the fist scene, people were dancing with hands up, like exactly what modern people do in clubs, instead of the classical couple dancing. In addition, after Romeo kissed Juliet, he was exited. Then he high five with his friends, like what teenagers do now. Secondly, we added funny plots as many as possible. For instance, in the original text, nobody could see each other's faces clearly in the party, and this was romantic. However, in the club, because of the loud music, they could not hear each other. Romeo and Juliet just repeated their words again and again, like old people, and this change made the scene so hilarious. Also, in the balcony scene, Romeo climbed on the balcony, which was so funny. He looked around while he was climbing exaggeratedly, and he was not good-looking at all. In addition, the Mission Impossible music just made Romeo look like a thief or a spy. When Juliet saw him, she was so terrified that she fell on the ground and almost fainted. This should be a romantic scene that Romeo overcame the difficulties to see Juliet, but we just adapted it into a farce. Thirdly, we also change Juliet’s personality; in our play, Juliet is not shy at all. In the first scene, Juliet just flirted with Romeo. In the second scene, when Juliet was speaking on the balcony, she did not act romantically, instead, Juliet freaked out. She stamped her feet and tore her hair, like a willful kid who did not get his favorite toy. This setting was a huge difference from other versions of Romeo and Julie. Consequently, these huge changes on stage and characters actually made the play more funny and unique.

Music also played an important role in our scene. It showed the audience the settings, and we also changed the relaxing and the intense music to show the atmosphere and the contrasts. First of all, we used music to highlight our settings. For instance, our first scene was staged in a loud club. If we only danced on the stage, the audience must feel bored and confused. Then we came up with an idea that we used loud club music to show our settings. It worked well, especially with the actors’ exaggerated dancing. Secondly, the change of the songs was an important highlight in our scene. In the fighting scene, when Tybalt and Mercutio were quarreling, the music was so intense. However, when Romeo came, exactly when he started his “speech”, the music suddenly was changed to a extremely relaxing music. Moreover, the music was well-known; it was one of the songs in Sponge Bob, the cartoon. This song emphasized how funny Romeo was, and the song was actually a lullaby for Tybalt and Mercutio. Then, when Romeo finished his long “speech”, the intense music was suddenly changed back. This actually woke Tybalt and Mercutio up, and they got ready to fight immediately. Also, when Tybalt stabbed Mercutio, the music became relaxing again. With the hilarious music, almost everyone laughed. In short, music did not only show people the settings, but also made our scene funnier, especially the change between intense and relaxing music. 

In conclusion, to show our feelings to the audience is one of the most important task for directors and actors. I think it is ridiculous and sarcastic when I read the story of Romeo and Juliet, and I want to show my ideas to more people. My partners and I then adopted it to a comedy. In our scene,we show the sarcastic side of the story and the immaturity of Romeo. To adopt a successful comedy, a good stage was necessary. To show a modern perspective, we staged the scene in modern time; to show a contrast between Romeo and Juliet, we designed a new rebel characteristic for Juliet. Also, music was a big part in the scene. It was used to show the settings, and we also showed the funny side of the fighting scene by using the contrasting music. This comedic version was not only funny, it also showed a unique sarcastic perspective of Romeo and Juliet. 

More Helpful Than You Think!

People always say that a good article is always revised thousands of times. Sometimes it is hard for ourselves to find our own mistakes, so it is a good choice to go to writing center to get some professional opinions. As I expected, my paper had numerous problems, either in grammar part or contents. Writing center is helpful for students, and I will come to writing center when I feel stuck or when I feel my paper is perfect in the future.

Firstly, I corrected my little grammar mistakes, and I learned much about punctuations. When Ms. Swift and I were reading the passage, we could hardly find even two consecutive correct sentences. To be honest, I counted my grammar mistakes in my introduction paragraph; I had six mistakes. Fortunately, they were small mistakes, and I could easily find them. However, I have more serious problems in punctuations, especially the use of semicolons. I always used semicolons instead of periods in my paper, but Ms. Swift told me that was not right. I was surprised, because I had always been telling to write sentences as long as I could. However, Ms. Swift told me that when the two sentences were not related, I should end the sentences. In short, it is helpful to come to writing center when I have grammar issues.

Secondly, Ms. Swift and I also talked about the ideas of my paper, and she suggested me to analyze more and not to repeat one thing over and over again. I have a big issue on the balance between analysis and performance, which means I have too much performance interpretation in my paper. Then Ms. Swift suggested me to analyze the lines we picked, because I did not do it at all. I only analyzed the ridicules of the story and the immaturity of the Romeo. About the lines, I only mentioned them as evidences to support my two points. Moreover, I only had a few more than 1,500 words, and I should write more. Thus, it was a good choice for me to add more analysis about the lines. In addition, Ms. Swift also told me a big problem in my paper; I kept repeating the same things. For example, I used the words, “funny” and “hilarious”, many times, but actually I had to use more new words. Therefore, I would work on revising my words. Consequently, I also got several good advice on the contents of my paper.

In the future, I will go to writing center when I feel stuck or when I finish checking my paper on my own. Firstly, Ms. Swift can help me to improve my ideas. When I was writing this paper, I felt I had no more to write. However, Ms. Swift gave me a good advice, which was to analyze the lines. Thus, I’ll go to writing center when I feel stuck. Secondly, this time, when Ms. Swift and I were going over the paper, I found so many simple grammar mistakes. Then we spent some time on correcting them. If I checked my paper by myself first, it would save us much time. Therefore, next time I will go to writing center after I go over my paper on my own. In summary, in the future, I will focus more on revising the contents of my paper, so I will go to writing center when I have troubles on thinking up ideas or after I check my little grammar mistakes.

 In conclusion, it is good to have a writing center in our school. I actually can get more help than I think, either on grammars or ideas. I think ideas are important, so in the future, I will go talk to Ms. Swift when I cannot think up a good point. Also, I will go to the writing center after I finish writing the paper and checking the grammar mistakes, because I wish to get more feedback on my contents, not only on grammars. 

Fairytale Dream

Almost every child dreams to fly, and almost every girl dreams that one day she can be a princess. People love fairytales, because they give us a chance to dream. Peter Pan was a fairytale that was about fairytale. Most people have watched the Disney version of Peter Pan, but yesterday’s play was the original version. The actors’ professional acting impressed me, but the stage actually was not as good as other things. 

Firstly, some of the designs were so clever, and the actors were so skillfu. Before I went to the show, I already knew this Peter Pan was not the Disney Peter Pan, and I was so curious about this original version. How could it be possible to fly in Black box? Actually, the actors did not have to fly, instead, they jumped to the backstage. This was smart, but this also required more acting skills. The actors must act extremely professional to make the audience believe they were truly flying, and Wiebke, Amalia, Maddy, and Erin did a really good job. Also, Charlotte literally surprised me. Her acting was detailed and real. At the beginning of the play, she was walking around and tidying up the house. The way she swept flicked the cupboard made me believe she was really the mistress. Consequently, the actors’ excellent performance was one of the most important reasons of why this show was successful. 

Secondly, even though some of the stagings were smart, the facilities in Black Box was a little flaw. When I was watching the play, I noticed that when the settings changed, the stage crews just covered the cupboard and the window by some simple decorations. To be honest, I do not think this worked well. The audience still recognized everything, and this made the stage messier. However, if Black Box was bigger, we could have some curtains which would separate the different settings. Even if the facilities were not perfect, the show was still an excellent play. 

In conclusion, after I performed Romeo and Juliet, I understood how hard it is to be a good actor. When I watched the play, I was truly impressed by those actors. However, if Black Box becomes bigger, the show will be better. 

Second Draft

Olivia Cao

Ms. Guarino

IB Literature and Performance SL

12 November 2015

Have you ever thought that someday one of the most classic tragedy become a modern comedy? Or have you thought about a different way for Juliet to say:"Romeo, Romeo, wherefore thee art Romeo?" When people mention Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet always comes into mind immediately. Romeo and Juliet was written in the early career of Shakespeare, but it is one of the most well-known tragedy in the world. When people think of Romeo and Juliet, they always feel mournful about the pitiful and romantic story. However, Romance is not the only identity of Romeo and Juliet; in modern people’s eyes, this story is more unrealistic. To show an unique side of this classic play, we directed a comedy version of Romeo and Juliet. We picked three significant scenes: Act 1 scene 5(the scene that they first meet); Act 2 scene 2(the balcony scene, which is the most romantic scene); Act 3 scene 1(the fighting scene, which is a big turning point). Unlike most of the tragedy versions of Romeo and Juliet, our scene showed the sarcastic side of their love and extreme immaturity of Romeo from a modern perspective; to achieve the goals, we staged the scene in modern times, designed a more personality for Juliet, and used contrasting and exaggerated music.

If we looked this tragedy through a modern person’s eyes, we would see this love story was so ridiculous that it would never happen . In the first scene, Romeo and Juliet met in a loud club. Logically, no one looks for his true love in a club, but Romeo did. Also, it was almost impossible to fall in love with someone in such a short time. In the scene, Romeo and Juliet were no longer shy and naive; both of them enjoyed the party. Romeo was attracted by Juliet’s beauty, and he came to flirt with her. Juliet acted frivolous and flirted back. Due to we could not change the lines, the actors had to act the emotions. For example, Juliet acted frivolous when she said:“Saints do not move”, and after Romeo kissed Juliet, he just winked at his friends, like exactly what jerks did. Thus, since they first met, it was a mistake. Moreover, in the balcony scene, Romeo went to Capulets’ house to find Juliet. When Juliet told him the place was dangerous and people would kill him, he said that: “The kinsmen no stop to me!” However, when nurse called Juliet, Romeo was extremely terrified. He hid under the table and put his hands over his ears. His love was so changeable, he did not love Juliet that much. We exaggerated the characteristics to show that their love was not pure and real. In summary, from a modern perspective, this story was not logical, and it would never happen in real life. 

Secondly, this play also showed Romeo’s immature personalities and behaviors. No matter in the original version or our adapted version, Romeo was always immature, but in this comedy version, we emphasized his personalities. Also, there was a contrast of Romeo and Juliet. In the first scene, Romeo and Juliet both played with each other. In another word, they were the same kind of people. However, in the second scene, Juliet changed; she started to be mature after she fell in love with Romeo. Juliet acted more normal in the balcony scene, but Romeo just remained the same. For instance, when Juliet was complaining Romeo’s family name and how hard their love was, Romeo was so hotheaded that he said: “I take thy word! I never will be Romeo. ” Romeo denied his name without even one-second-thinking, and he climbed on the balcony immediately. Love was the only thing in Romeo’s eyes, and he could easily abandon his family. Also, the actor acted hyperbolically while he was speaking the lines and climbing, and this clearly showed Romeo’s immature personality. Moreover, in the last fighting scene, when Tybalt and Mercutio were about fight, Romeo came, which was a extremely bad time. Then, Romeo tried to convince Mercutio and Tybalt to drop their weapons, however he did not help at all. The irony plot was when Romeo started his long “lecture style speech”, Tybalt and Mercutio almost fell asleep. Then, when Tybalt and Mercutio were fighting, he did not help, but yelled at them. This series of actions showed that Romeo was still a naive teenager, he did not know how to handle his life or deal with troubles. In addition, Mercutio also reflected Romeo’s characteristics. People always say that friends are like mirrors; you can see yourself through them. Before the fight, Mercutio acted brave; he even described Tybalt as a “ratcatcher”. However, when he was stabbed, he cried, and he blamed on Romeo. This was exactly what Romeo did in the balcony scene. What he said and what he finally did were totally different. From Romeo’s friend, Mercutio, the audience was able to see how immature Romeo was. Consequently, Romeo’s sarcastic side was what we wanted to show the audience, and we achieved this goal successfully. 

To adopt a classic romantic tragedy to a modern comedy, we had to change the settings and the characteristics of Juliet. Firstly, we changed the stage from Middle Ages to modern time. For example, when Romeo and Juliet first met, they met in a club, instead of in a party. Also, the actors wore modern clothes, instead of Middle ages costumes. Secondly, we added funny plots as many as possible. For instance, in the original version, nobody could see each other's faces clearly in the party, and this was romantic. However, in the club, they could not hear each other, and this change made the scene so hilarious. Also, in the balcony scene, Romeo climbed on the balcony, which was so funny. He looked around while he was climbing exaggeratedly, and he was not good-looking at all. Thirdly, we also changed Juliet’s personality; Juliet became more sociable and flighty. In the first scene, Juliet and Romeo were in a club. Both of them were dancing exaggeratedly. Romeo was attracted by Juliet’s beauty, and he went to Juliet and flirted with her. If you were watching a normal version, Juliet must act shy, however, in our comedy, Juliet just flirted back. Juliet was always in clubs; she knew this badly. This setting was a huge difference from the original version. Consequently, these huge changes on stage and characters actually made the play more funny and unique.

Music also played an important role in our scene. It reminded the audience the settings, and we also changed the relaxing and the intense music to show the atmosphere and the contrasts. First of all, we used music to show our settings. For instance, our first scene was staged in a loud club. However we could not really go to a club, and we could barely change the stage in the theatre. If we only danced on the stage, the audience must feel bored and confused. Then we came up an idea that we used a loud club song to show our settings. It worked well, with the actors’ exaggerated dancing, some people under the stage even shook their heads. Secondly, the change of the songs was an important highlight in our scene. In the fighting scene, when Tybalt and Mercutio were quarreling, the music was so intense. However, when Romeo came, exactly when he started his “speech”, the music suddenly was changed to a extremely relaxing music. Moreover, the music was well-known; it was one of the songs in Sponge Bob, the cartoon. This song emphasized how funny Romeo was; Tybalt and Mercutio almost acted they almost fell asleep. Then, when Romeo finished his long “speech”, the intense music was suddenly changed back. This actually woke Tybalt and Mercutio up, and they got ready to fight immediately. Also, when Tybalt stabbed Mercutio, the music became relaxing again. With the hilarious music, almost everyone laughed. In short, music did not only show people the settings, but also made our scene funnier, especially the change between intense and relaxing music. 

In conclusion, to show exactly their feelings to the audience is one of the most important task for directors. I thought it was ridiculous and sarcastic when I read the story of Romeo and Juliet, and I want to show my idea to more people. I tried to break the tragedy and adopt it to a comedy. In our scene, our group showed the sarcastic side of the story and the immaturity of Romeo. To adopt a successful comedy, a good stage was necessary. To show a modern perspective, we staged the scene in modern time; to show a contrast between Romeo and Juliet, we designed a new rebel characteristic for Juliet. Also, music was a big part in the scene. It was used to show the settings, and we also showed the funny side of the fighting scene by using the contrasting music. This comedy version was not only funny, it also showed a unique sarcastic perspective of Romeo and Juliet. 

A Body Paragraph

       To adopt a classic romantic tragedy to a modern comedy, we had to change the settings and the characteristics of Juliet. Firstly, we changed the stage from Middle Ages to modern time. For example, when Romeo and Juliet first met, they met in a club, instead of in a party. Also, the actors wore modern clothes, instead of Middle ages costumes. Secondly, we added funny plots as many as possible. For instance, in the original version, nobody could see each other's faces clearly in the party, and this was romantic. However, in the club, they could not hear each other, and this change made the scene so hilarious. Also, in the balcony scene, Romeo climbed on the balcony, which was so funny. He looked around while he was climbing exaggeratedly, and he was not good-looking at all. Thirdly, we also changed Juliet’s personality; Juliet became more sociable and flighty. In the first scene, Juliet and Romeo were in a club. Both of them were dancing exaggeratedly. Romeo was attracted by Juliet’s beauty, and he went to Juliet and flirted with her. If you were watching a normal version, Juliet must act shy, however, in our comedy, Juliet just flirted back. Juliet was always in clubs; she knew this badly. This setting was a huge difference from the original version. Consequently, these huge changes on stage and characters actually made the play more funny and unique. 

UPDATED OUTLINE: 

-Introduction

-Stage: introduce the stage and the change of the characteristics.

-Stage: the contrasting music.

-Analysis: unrealistic and sarcastic side of the classic love story. ( mention first two scenes)

-Analysis: immaturity of Romeo. ( mention all of the three scenes)

-Conclusion 

REVISED THESIS: 

 Unlike most of the tragedy version of Romeo and Juliet, our scene showed the sarcastic side of their love and extreme immaturity of Romeo from a modern perspective; to achieve the goals, we staged the scene in modern times, changed identity of Juliet to a modern teenage girl, and used contrasting and exaggerated music.

a question:

Can I write the body paragraphs by the order of our scenes? (analysis and stage are together)

Thesis&Outline

Thesis: Unlike most of the tragedy version of Romeo and Juliet, our scene showed the sarcastic side of their love and extreme immaturity of Romeo from a modern perspective; to achieve the goals, we staged the scene in modern times, changed characteristics of Juliet, and used contrasting and exaggerated music.

Outline:
-Introduction
-Stage: introduce the stage and the change of the characteristics.
-Stage: the contrasting music.
-Analysis: unrealistic and sarcastic side of the classic love story. ( mention first two scenes)
-Analysis: immaturity of Romeo. ( mention all of the three scenes)
-Conclusion

First Draft

Sarcastic Comedy

Outline: 

• Thesis: A love story can be sarcastic; a prince can be a coward; a comedy can also be meaningful. 
• Introduction
• It is an unrealistic and sarcastic story; how to show this in our performance. 
• Romeo’s immaturity; how to show this in our play. 
• Explain how we made the scene funny. Give details. 
• Expand the importance of music
• Conclusion

When people mention Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet always comes into mind immediately. Romeo and Juliet was written in the early career of Shakespeare, but it is one of the most well-known tragedy in the world. When people think of Romeo and Juliet, they always feel mournful about the pitiful and romantic story. However, Romance is not the only identity of Romeo and Juliet; in modern people’s eyes, this story is more unrealistic. To show an unique side of this classic play, we directed a comedy version of Romeo and Juliet. We picked three significant scenes: Act 1 scene 5(the scene that they first meet); Act 2 scene 2(the balcony scene, which is the most romantic scene); Act 3 scene 1(the fighting scene, which is a big turning point). We used A love story can be sarcastic; a prince can be a coward; a comedy can be meaningful; simple music can also play an important role. 

To fully show how unrealistic the story is in modern people’s eyes, a modern setting and funny plots are necessary. The whole scene was set in modern time, instead of middle ages. In the first scene, Romeo and Juliet met in a loud club. Logically, no one looks for his true love in a club, but Romeo did. Also, it was almost impossible to fall in love with someone in such a short time. In the scene, Romeo and Juliet were no longer shy and naive; both of them enjoyed the party. Romeo was attracted by Juliet’s beauty, and he came to flirt with her. Juliet acted frivolous and flirted back. Due to we could not change the lines, the actors had to act the emotions. For example, Juliet acted frivolous when she said:“Saints do not move”, and after Romeo kissed Juliet, he just winked at his friends, like exactly what jerks did. Thus, since they first met, it was a mistake. Moreover, in the balcony scene, Romeo went to Capulets’ house to find Juliet. When Juliet told him the place was dangerous and people would kill him, he said that: “The kinsmen no stop to me!” However, when nurse called Juliet, Romeo was extremely terrified. He hid under the table and put his hands over his ears. His love was so changeable, he did not love Juliet that much. The different characteristics of Romeo and Juliet actually satirized the story; their love was not pure and real. In summary, from a modern perspective, this story was not logical, and it would never happen. 

Secondly, this play also showed Romeo’s immature personalities and behaviors. No matter in the original version or our adapted version, Romeo was always immature, but in this comedy version, we emphasized his immaturity. Also, there was a contrast of Romeo and Juliet. In the first scene, Romeo and Juliet both played with each other. In another word, they were the same kind of people. However, in the second scene, Juliet changed; she started to be mature after she fell in love with Romeo. Juliet acted more normal in the balcony scene, but Romeo just remained the same. For instance, when Juliet was complaining Romeo’s family name and how hard their love was, Romeo was so hotheaded that he said: “I take thy word! I never will be Romeo. ” Romeo denied his name without even one-second-thinking, and he climbed on the balcony immediately. Love was the only thing in Romeo’s eyes, and he could easily abandon his family. Also, the actor acted hyperbolically while he was speaking the lines and climbing, and this clearly showed Romeo’s immature personality. Moreover, in the last fighting scene, when Tybalt and Mercutio were about fight, Romeo came, which was extremely bad time. Then, Romeo tried to convince Mercutio and Tybalt to drop their weapons, however he did not help at all. The irony plot was when Romeo started his long “lecture style speech”, Tybalt and Mercutio almost fell asleep. Then, when Tybalt and Mercutio were fighting, he did not help, but yelled at them. This series of actions showed that Romeo was still a naive teenager, he did not know how to handle his life or deal with troubles. In addition, Mercutio also reflected Romeo’s characteristics. People always say that friends are like mirrors; you can see yourself through them. Before the fight, Mercutio acted brave; he even described Tybalt as a “ratcatcher”. However, when he was stabbed, he cried, and he blamed on Romeo. This was exactly what Romeo did in the balcony scene. What he said and what he finally did were totally different. From Romeo’s friend, Mercutio, the audience was able to see how immature Romeo was. Consequently, Romeo’s sarcastic side was what we wanted to show the audience, and we achieved this goal successfully. 

Not Just A Comedy

This comedy version of Romeo and Juliet is the most successful project I have done for this class. When we watched the videos, even ourselves felt so impressive and funny. The main purpose of this project was to make the scene funny and show the sarcasm of this classic love story. Compare to our first rehearsal, it was much better after we made some change. From this project, I learned many performance skills, and I also realized my problems. 

The performance was successful, because we achieved our goals——making it funny and sarcastic. As a comedy, the performance must be hilarious, and we also added sarcasm elements to the comedy. We showed how ridiculous this love story was in modern people’s eyes, and we also showed Romeo’s immaturity. For example, their first meeting was a mistake. They met in a club, and Romeo was just attracted by Juliet’s face. Their love was not true, and it would not last long. Moreover, we also satirized Romeo. Romeo was such an immature person. The things what he said and what he did were totally different, and his love to Juliet was not that sincere. For instance, in the balcony scene, Romeo acted so brave that he was not scared of death at all. However, when the nurse called Juliet, he just went hide under the desk immediately. He actually was not as brave as he said. In addition, when Romeo tried to stop the fight between Mercutio and Tybalt, he just used a “lecture style”, which did not help anything, but made Merutio and Tybalt bored. Consequently, even though this performance was a comedy, I think we were more successful on creating a such immature Romeo. 

Music also played an important role in this scene. When we were performing different scenes, the music was always changing. Firstly, music helped the audience understand the settings. We set our first scene in a club, and Juliet could not even hear Romeo. If we only perform without the music, the audience would not be able to understand what we were doing. Secondly, the music also underlined the intense or the relaxing atmosphere. In the fighting scene, we have two songs. One is intense; one is relaxing. When Tybalt and Mercutio were quarreling, the intense music just made the scene more real. Since Romeo started his “lecture”, we changed the song to a soft song. Once Romeo finished talking, the intense music was playing again. When Mercutio was dying, the soft music was playing again. The change of songs made the scene so funny, and I think this was the smartest idea in our performance. In summary, without music, it would be harder for audience to understand the scene, and the whole performance would be less hilarious. 

Compare to our first rehearsal, our scene was much better this time, and I also improved my own performing abilities. Firstly, when we first rehearsed our scene, the music was too loud. We watched our first video together, but we could hardly hear ourselves, because the music was too loud. This time, we fixed this problem, and we put the speaker close to us, not to the audience. Secondly, memorizing the lines was helpful for us to make more body movements. After the first draft, we realized that memorizing the lines could make our scene better. Even though we still held the paper while we were performing, we could say most of the lines without looking at the scripts. This literally made our scene smoother. In addition, I learned a lot when I was doing this project. To make a funny comedy, I watched many videos. I found acting was really important, and body movements were important for acting. Then I tried to memorize the lines and made more movements when I was talking to myself in the balcony scene. However, it was not successful; I kept forgetting my lines, because I was nervous. Also, I found that I was not good at acting; I could hardly get the right emotions of the characters. Or even if I knew what emotion I should express, I just could not act that way, so I have to work on my acting. In short, after fixing our problems, I was so satisfied with our final performance, even though my acting was still not good, at least I learned things from the project. 

In conclusion, as far as I am concerned, our scene was successful. We made it funny, and we also showed our analysis about the story and Romeo in our scene. I really learned much from this project. From researching to performing, everything had to be done by ourselves. I was not good at acting, but I was trying hard. I will keep working hard on improving my acting skills. 

First Draft Reflection

First of all, I think our first draft was successful, and everybody in our group did excellent job. We actually did stage the scenes through modern people's eyes, and we showed how funny and unrealistic the story was. Juliet and Romeo met in a club; both of them just wanted to play with each other. We made the balcony scene funny to make the audience believe that the scene is neither romantic nor realistic at all. Also, we showed how immature and funny Romeo was. In the balcony scene, Romeo said he loved Juliet and he was not afraid of death at all. However, when the nurse called Juliet, he was just so scared that he even hided under the desk. Moreover, in the fighting scene, we also showed how immature Romeo was, and we made the fight like a fight between little children. When Mercutio and Tybalt were fighting, Romeo just tried to convince them by saying beautiful words. His words did not help anything, but made Tybalt and Mercutio bored. After Romeo's long "lecture", Tybalt and Mercutio fought. The fight was also very funny. Mercutio said he was brave, but when he was stabbed, he was scared. He even cried. Our use of relaxing music actually made this plot more sarcastic and funnier. In addition, when Romeo killed Tybalt, he was horrified. He thought he was brave, but when he actually killed a person, he just ran away, like exactly what little kids do.

Secondly, there is a personal issue; I have to work on my acting. I tried many times, and I still cannot express the right emotion, especially while I am speaking the lines. Thus, I have to keep thinking how to make Juliet funny. Also, I always have a problem that when I am nervous, I cannot read the lines fluently. When I was acting today, I had this problem again. Even though I read it thousands times when I was practicing. Therefore, I think I should try to relax and practice more before videoing.

Thirdly, I think there are also several little problems that we should work on. Firstly, the music was too loud, and we were not speaking very loud. When we were watching our videos, we could hardly hear ourselves. Thus, when we perform it again, I will make sure the music sound does not drown out our voices. Moreover, when we are watching the videos, we found we lacked body movements when we were reading the lines, because we had to hold the scripts. Thus, it might be better to memorize our lines.

Class analysis

In this scene, our group use set the scene in modern time, and we will show people how unrealistic the story is. First of all, I want to talk about how Juliet changes. In our first or second scene, Juliet seems like a rebel or outgoing girl who often goes to clubs. Even in balcony scene, she is still cripy. Then in the last scene, she actually changes into a sad and mature girl. Her costumes can actually show this big contrast. However, the sad thing is Romeo barely changes. He says he loves Juliet, but what he does can only hurt Juliet, so we let the fight scene end the play. Second, I want to show how funny modern people think the story is. It is so hard to fall in love with someone that quick, especially in a party. We set the scene that they first meet in a crowded club with loud music, and Juliet can hardly hear what Romeo says. Thus, in this scene, the funniest thing is Romeo and Juliet just say "what?" and repeat their sentences again and again. Moreover, Juliet is immature and rebel that time, so she just behaves very funny. For instance, when Romeo tries to play her, she also flirts back.

Lines

Scene 1.5

In this scene, we are going to show the scene that Romeo and Juliet first meet each other.

Settings: Club, LOUD MUSIC, CROWD

Characters: Romeo(James), Juliet(Olivia)

Costumes: Casual

At least five people are acting funny.

Romeo is talking to his friends. He saw Juliet and came to her.

Because of the loud music, people can't really hear each other. Romeo and Juliet repeat the lines again and again. Juliet shakes Romeo. People are dancing. Romeo’s friends make fun of Romeo.

R: My lips, two blushing pilgrims, ready stand. To smooth that rough touch with a tender kiss.

J: Good pilgrim. For saints have hands that pilgrims’ hands do touch, and palm to palm is holy palmers’ kiss.

R: Have not saints lips, and holy palmers too?

J: Ay, pilgrim, lips that they must use in prayer.

R: O then, let lips do what hands do

J: Saints do not move.

R: Then move not.

(He kisses her)

my sin is purged

J: Then have my lips the sin that they have took.

R: Sin from my lips? Give me my sin again.

(Kiss again)

(Juliet exits)

2.2

Juliet acts creepy(obsessed with Romeo)

J: O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo? Deny thy father and refuse thy name. What’s in a name? Romeo would, were he not Romeo called, retain that dear perfection which he owes without that title.

R: I take thee at thy word!

(Runs to Juliet’s house and climbs up to the balcony)

Music: Mission Impossible

I never will be Romeo! (his face and clothes are dirty)

J: (Juliet shocked as hell) What man art thou that? So stumblest on my counsel?

Art thou not Romeo and a Montague?

R: Neither. If either thee dislike.

J: (Worried, and shocked) the place death, considering who thou art, if any of my kinsmen find thee here.

R: Thy kinsmen no stop to me.

J: They will murder you thee!

(Nurse calls from within)

(Romeo is frightened and tries to hide somewhere)

J: Stay but a little, I will come again.

(Juliet exits)

R: O blessed, blessed night!

(3 seconds later she comes back)

Three words, dear Romeo, and good night indeed.

R: If my heart’s dear love...

(from inside) Nurse: Madam!

(Romeo is frightened again and almost crying)

J: I come---- A thousand times good night.

(She exits)

Scene 3.1

Characters: Romeo(Joseph), Mercutio(James), Tybalt(Ryan).

(though it is modern time period, they use sword to fight)

Walk in peacefully. (With a good mood)

Tybalt: Gentlemen, Good e’en.

M: Make it a word and blow.

T: You shall find me apt enough to that sir, an you will give me occasion. Mercutio, thou consortest with Romeo.

M: What? dost thou make us minstrels? An thou make minstrels of us, look to hear nothing but discords. Here’s my fiddlestick ; here’s that shall make you dance. Zounds , consort!

M: Well, peace be with you, sir. Here comes my man . Romeo, the love I bear thee can afford No better term than this: thou art a villain.

Romeo walks in

R: Tybalt, the reason that I have to love thee Doth much excuse the appertaining rage To such a greeting. Villain am I none. Therefore farewell. I see thou knowest me not.

M: Tybalt, you rat catcher , will you walk?

T: What wouldst thou have with me?

Start fighting

R: Tybalt, Mercutio, The Prince expressly hath forbid this bandying in Verona streets.

Romeo holds Mercutio.

Tybalt stabs Mercutio.

M: I am hurt. A plague o’ both houses! I am sped .’tis not so deep as a well, nor so wide as the church's door. M Why the devil came you between us? I was hurt under your arm.
I thought all for the best.

R: This day’s black fate on more days doth depend . This but begins the woe others must end. Now, Tybalt, take the “villain” back again That late thou gavest me, for Mercutio’s soul.

T: Thou wretched boy that didst consort him here Shalt with him hence.

They fight, Romeo stabs tybalt.
Remember: when Romeo stabs SLOW MOTION
Tybalt dies.
Romeo is horrified, and he runs away.

Modern Tragedy

Title: Modern Tragedy

Group members: Ryan, James, Joseph, Olivia

For this scene, our group will totally change how people think the “tragedy”, Romeo and Juliet. First of all, we will adapt the tragedy to a comedy; sarcasm, hyperbole, and contrast are the whole scene’s “souls”; hyperbole and contrast are actually the ways to express sarcasm. Normally, people feel sad for this unfortunate couple, but does fate really cause the tragedy? Our answer is no. Actually, we incline to blame Romeo and his irrational love; we believe that his personalities and behaviors cause the tragedy. As far as I am concerned, Romeo is an extremely immature, but interesting character, so most of the sarcastic and funny plots will be in his lines and acting. For example, Romeo is a changeable person, and this is one of his funniest characteristics. We are going to express this point by the hyperbolic acting when he sees Juliet. 

We will combine three scenes together, Scene1.5, Scene2.2, Scene 3.1. Our goal is to make the scene logical and funny for modern people, and we stage the scene in modern time. In this scene, Romeo is a irresolute and immature boy; Juliet is a rebel, and hip-hop girl. This makes a big contrast. After they meet, Juliet become a clean and kind girl, but Romeo remains the same. Also, actors will wear funny costumes and act hilariously. In addition, I think the more hyperbolic the acting is, the more funny the scene will be. Thus, this requires actors to read lines and behave extremely hyperbolic. For instance, I think the fighting scene can highly express Romeo's irrationality. To make the scene sarcastic and funny, Romeo will say some romantic words to Tybalt, such as "I love you" or "I don't wanna kill you", but as the mean time, Romeo just grabs the gun and shoots Tybalt. After this, Romeo is so terrified that he runs away, and he finds an excuse for himself. 

In this performance, our group has four members. Ryan plays Romeo; Olivia plays Juliet; Joseph plays Tybalt; James plays Mercutio. To be honest, the lines are not perfectly equal, so for some characters, such as Mercutio and Tybalt, they will have more acting part. 

Three Ideas

1. What did Shakespeare want to say by creating this tragedy?
     a. The scene Juliet and Romeo first met. (Scene 1.5)
     b. Romeo asked Friar Lawerence to approve their marriage. (Scene 2.3)
     c. The last scene. (Scene 5.3)
     d.  The prologue of Act 2.

2. What role did Romeo's friends (Benvolio and Mercutio) play? OR How did they reflect Romeo's personalities?
     a. Romeo, Benvolio and Mercutio's conversation. (Scene 1.4)
     b. The fight. (Scene 3.1)
     c. Some other short conversations, such as "Rosaline conversation" between Romeo and Benvolio,  their short conversations after the ball, and the scene that Benvolio was testifying in front of The Prince. (I won't take the full scenes; I'll just take the important parts.)

3. What do modern people think of Romeo and Juliet.
     a. The scene that they first met.(Scrne 1.5)
     b. Comedy version of Balcony scene.
     c. Comedy version of the fight.
    For this one, I only have two scenes,and I'll change them to a comedy. I'll use a modern perspective to direct the scene. When I was reading the book, I felt this story was so ridiculous, so I'll use a rational(not romantic) and funny way to direct the scene.