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Name of play: Romeo & Juliet.

Playwright: William Shakespeare.

Number of pages: Erm... 235 divided by two?

Rating out of Ten: 9 and 3/4. I thought this was a brilliant play but there were a few minor details left out which frustated me because I like to know exactly who, what, when, where, why and how!

Summary: This play is set in fifteenth-century Verona.  It is the story of two ''star cross'd lovers'' whose lives are led by fate.  They are from two equally noble families, the Capulets and Montagues. The Capulets and Montagues are constantly competing, bickering and fighting, an ongoing feud which has become increasingly violent in recent times (''Three civil brawls bred of an airy word / By thee old Capulet and Montague / Have thrice disturbed the quiet of our streets''). Romeo, a Montague, is melancholic because of his unrequited love for Rosaline, a Capulet. His close friend, Mercutio, persuades him to go to the Capulet's ball, the idea being that Romeo will meet someone nicer than Rosaline. Romeo agrees to go, but only because Rosaline will be there. At the ball, Romeo sees Juliet for the first time. It's love at first sight for both of them. Juliet doesn't know that Romeo's a Montague, nor he that Juliet is a Capulet. Juliet's cousin, Tybalt, recognises Romeo and swears revenge for Romeo's ''invasion''. While the guests are leaving, Romeo finds out that Juliet is a Capulet and Juliet finds out that Romeo is a Montague.

Later that night, the lovers meet and vow their love to one another. Romeo asks Friar Lawrence to marry him and Juliet. Friar Lawrence is a bit shocked that Romeo has forgotten Rosaline already but agrees to the marriage in the hope that it will end the feud between the families. Juliet pretends to go to confession but really goes to church to marry Romeo.

That afternoon, Verona is stiflingly hot and tempers are running high. Tybalt sees Romeo and takes this opportunity to get his revenge for Romeo's trespass. Romeo doesn't want to fight now he is married, as Tybalt is now his cousin. Mercutio sees this as cowardice and intervenes, fighting Tybalt himself. Romeo and Benvolio, his cousin, attempt to separate them. Tybalt stabs Mercutio from under Romeo's arm and Mercutio is mortally wounded. He blames Romeo, who blocked him from seeing Tybalt's sneaky attack, saying on several occasions ''A plague o' both your houses'' and asks Benvolio to assist him rather than his 'best friend', Romeo.

Benvolio runs back to Romeo and tells him that Mercutio has died. Romeo is blinded by anger partly because of Mercutio's death and also, in my opinion, because Mercutio was angry at him and died before Romeo and he could discuss it rationally. His last words were a curse on Romeo's family and the Capulets. Romeo's anger is great enough that, when Tybalt reappears, Romeo attacks him without hesitation. There is a brief fight and then Romeo kills Tybalt.

Romeo realises what he has done - ''O, I am fortune's fool.'' - and rushes away to Friar Lawrence's cell. The Prince arrives on the scene and demands an explanation, after all, he did make it clear that heads would roll if there was another brawl started by the feuding families. Benvolio, the peacemaker, gives a totally truthful account of what happened. Lady Capulet claims he is biased but we know this is not the case. The Prince's verdict is banishment for Romeo and heavy fines for both families.

Juliet's waiting at home for the Nurse to come back with the final arrangements and the rope ladder for Romeo to climb into her room that night. The Nurse comes back all of a dither and keeps saying ''He's dead, he's dead, he's dead!''. Juliet automatically assumes it's Romeo who's dead and immediately mentions suicide. The Nurse wails Tybalts name and Juliet now thinks Tybalt and Romeo are both dead. Eventually the Nurse gets a few words out ''Tybalt is  gone , and Romeo banished/ Romeo that killed him, he is banished.'' Juliet curses her husband using clever imagery: ''Beautiful tyrant, fiend angelical/ Dove feathered raven, wolfish-ravening lamb!'' but when the Nurse decides to join in, Juliet scolds the Nurse, mildly reprimanding herself for insulting Romeo. She reminds herself that she and Romeo must stick together throughout thick and thin but breaks down when she realises that she may never see Romeo again as he is now banished from Verona forever. The Nurse consoles her by saying she will find Romeo to comfort her himself.

Romoe comes but elsewhere Capulet is discussing a hasty marriage with Count Paris..  The lovers bid farewell the next morning, unsure when they will see each other again. Juliet learns that her father, affected by the recent events, now intends for her to marry Paris in just three days. Unsure of how to proceed-unable to reveal to her parents that she is married to Romeo, but unwilling to marry Paris now that she is Romeo's wife-Juliet asks her Nurse for advice. She counsels Juliet to proceed as if Romeo were dead and to marry Paris, who is a better match anyway. Disgusted with the Nurse's disloyalty, Juliet disregards her advice and hurries to Friar Lawrence. He concocts a plan to reunite Juliet with Romeo in Mantua. The night before her wedding to Paris, Juliet must drink a potion that will make her appear to be dead. After she is laid to rest in the family's crypt, the Friar and Romeo will secretly retrieve her, and she will be free to live with Romeo, away from their parents' feuding. 

 Juliet returns home to discover the wedding has been moved ahead one day, and she is to be married tomorrow. That night, Juliet drinks the potion, and the Nurse discovers her, apparently dead, the next morning. The Capulets grieve, and Juliet is entombed according to plan. But Friar Lawrence's message explaining the plan to Romeo never reaches Mantua. Its bearer, Friar John, gets confined to a quarantined house. Romeo hears only that Juliet is dead.   Romeo learns only of Juliet's death and decides to kill himself rather than live without her. He buys a vial of poison from a reluctant Apothecary, then speeds back to Verona to take his own life at Juliet's tomb. Outside the Capulet crypt, Romeo comes upon Paris, who is scattering flowers on Juliet's grave. They fight, and Romeo kills Paris. He enters the tomb, sees Juliet's inanimate body, drinks the poison, and dies by her side. Just then, Friar Lawrence enters and realizes that Romeo has killed Paris and himself. At the same time, Juliet awakes. Friar Lawrence hears the coming of the watch. When Juliet refuses to leave with him, he flees alone. Juliet sees her beloved Romeo and realizes he has killed himself with poison. She kisses his poisoned lips, and when that does not kill her, buries his dagger in her chest, falling dead upon his body.  

 The watch arrives, followed closely by the Prince, the Capulets, and Montague. Montague declares that Lady Montague has died of grief over Romeo's exile. Seeing their children's bodies, Capulet and Montague agree to end their long-standing feud and to raise gold statues of their children side-by-side in a newly peaceful Verona.