Romeo and Juliet
Background Notes
Part One: William Shakespeare Biography
William Shakespeare was supposedly born on ____________________ in
__________________ ____ _______________ in England. He married Anne
Hathaway on November 28, 1582. William was _________ at the time, and Anne
was ______ (and pregnant!) They ended up having _______ children together.
By 1594, he was acting and writing for the ____________________________________,
a theater troop in London. Shakespeare made much more money in his lifetime
as an _____________________, not a playwright.
Shakespeare’s life was during the reign of Queen __________________ and King
___________. He lived during the time of the __________________, which was the
rebirth of arts and sciences.
Shakespeare wrote in a poetic format called _____________________________,
which alternates stressed and unstressed _______________ (5 “feet” per line = 10
total syllables). A line of iambic pentameter would be read with a rhythm like
this: daDUM, daDUM, daDUM, daDUM, daDUM
Example from Romeo and Juliet: But soft, what light through yonder window
breaks?
Shakespeare died in April 23rd of 1616, his alleged _________________. To this day,
he is the most famous ________________ in the world. He was also a very famous
poet and is most known for his _____________, which are 14 line poems.
Shakespeare’s plays fell into one of three categories: ____________, ____________,
or ____________. Romeo and Juliet is a ________________.
Part Two: The Globe Theater
The Globe Theater was built in 1599 by the _____________________________________
Shakespeare’s acting company. It was also known as the “____________________
_____” due its shape. In 1613, the original Globe Theatre _______________________
_________________ when a cannon shot during a performance ignited the roof. It
was rebuilt soon after.
The Globe was _____ stories tall and could house roughly _________ people.
Queen Elizabeth and King James I would frequent the theater along with many
of the rich elite in London. On the other hand, at the base of the stage, there
was an area called the pit, where, for a ____________, common people (the
"_________________") would stand to watch the performance. This ranking system
made the theater available to everyone.
Groundlings were known for being dirty and vulgar. They would __________ for
the whole show and __________________ at the actors if they got bored.
Prostitutes would “work” during the plays as well in the pit so it was a very nasty
place.
__________ flying above the theater would let people know what kind of play
would be performed that day. The __________ would indicate if the play would
be a tragedy, a comedy or a history.
Actors would fill a ________
_______________ up with blood and hide it under
their costume. During a ________________ ________________, one actor would
stab another where the bladder was concealed so he would bleed on stage.
Audiences loved gory _________________ (and sexual innuendo) so Shakespeare
used a lot of it in his plays, including R&J.
____________ were not allowed to be actors during this time period. All
characters had to be played by men. The character of __________, for example,
would have been played by a young teenage boy who had yet to go through
____________.
Staging and props were very __________________ due to lack of technological
advancement. Actors and playwrights relied on _____________ to set the time
period, the ____________ or the _______________ of day that a scene would be
taking place. Shakespeare used a narrator, called the ____________, to also fill in
any holes that audience members needed about time, location, or plot
development.
The Globe was closed down in 1642 by the Puritans. The foundation of the
Globe was rediscovered in _________ and the theater has since been rebuilt to
match as close as possible to the original design. It still stands in
__________________ today and continues to perform many of Shakespeare’s
classic plays.
Part Three: Romeo and Juliet
Romeo and Juliet was supposedly written around _____________ and was not an
entirely original story. A narrative poem called “_____________ and ___________”
had recently been written by ___________ _______________ in _______.
Shakespeare adapted it by changing the _______________, themes, and ________
of the story. He also “borrowed” some ideas from an old Greek myth called
___________________ and __________________.
Romeo and Juliet is set in ________________, ___________ in the ________________.
The entire action of the play takes place in _____ days.
Aside:
Soliloquy:
Monologue:
Romeo and Juliet Character List
Romeo - The son and heir of Montague and Lady Montague who is about 16 in the play.
Juliet - The 13 year old daughter of Capulet and Lady Capulet.
Friar Lawrence - A Franciscan friar, friend to both Romeo and Juliet. Friar Lawrence is an expert in
the use of plants and herbs for both their healing and poisoning properties.
Mercutio - A relative to the Prince, and Romeo’s close friend.
The Nurse - Juliet’s nurse, the woman who has cared for Juliet her entire life.
Tybalt - A Capulet, Juliet’s cousin on her mother’s side. He loathes the Montagues.
Capulet - The patriarch of the Capulet family, father of Juliet, husband of Lady Capulet, and
enemy, for unexplained reasons, of Montague.
Lady Capulet - Juliet’s mother, Capulet’s wife.
Montague - Romeo’s father, the patriarch of the Montague clan and bitter enemy of Capulet.
Lady Montague - Romeo’s mother, Montague’s wife.
Paris - A relative of the Prince, and the suitor of Juliet most preferred by Capulet.
Benvolio - Montague’s nephew, Romeo’s cousin and thoughtful friend, he makes a genuine effort
to calm violent scenes in public places.
Prince Escalus - The Prince of Verona. A relative of both Mercutio and Paris. As the seat of political
power in Verona, he is concerned about maintaining the public peace at all costs.
Friar John - A Franciscan friar charged by Friar Lawrence with delivering an important message to
Romeo.
Balthasar - Romeo’s dedicated servant.
Sampson & Gregory - Two servants of the house of Capulet, who, like their
master, hate the Montagues.
Abram - Montague’s servant
Peter - A Capulet servant who invites guests to Capulet’s feast. He is
illiterate.
Rosaline - The woman with whom Romeo is infatuated at the beginning of
the play.
The Chorus - The Chorus is a single character who, as developed in Greek
drama, functions as a narrator offering commentary on the play’s plot
and themes.