Romeo & Juliet 2021.Indd

STUDENT-TEACHER STUDY GUIDE CREATED BY THE EDUCATION DEPARTMENT OF LANTERN THEATER COMPANY About the Lantern Lantern Theater Company produces plays that investigate and illuminate what is essential in the human spirit and the spirit of the times. We seek to be a vibrant, contributing member of our community, exposing audiences to great theater, inviting participation in dialogue and discussion, and educating audience members about artistic and social issues. Illumination Education Program Our Illumination education program complements and expands on the work of classroom teachers to bring an essential artistic lens to curricular material, allowing students to connect to classic stories in a dynamic way and empowering teachers with new approaches to traditional literature. Our lessons are designed to support student development in three key areas: the ability to think critically and problem solve, the ability to communicate eff ectively, and the ability to collaborate. Following a decade of providing arts-integrated instruction in the classroom, we have found that exposure to the theatrical discipline deepens student understanding of assigned material and fosters empathy and positive collaborative habits – essential skills that will provide long-term beneﬁ ts to students into their adult lives.

If you or your students are interested in learning more about our education programs or the world of professional theater, please contact M. Craig Getting, Education Director, at [email protected] or 215.829.9002 x104.

Lantern Theater Company’s education programming is part of Shakespeare in American Communities, a program of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with Arts Midwest.

Lantern Theater Company’s education programming is made possible with leadership support from the William Penn Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts, as well as funding from the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, a state agency funded by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the National Endowment for the Arts. Additional major support is received from the Wyncote Foundation, the Hilda and Preston Davis Foundation, The Shubert Foundation, CHG Charitable Trust, and the Philadelphia Culture Fund, as well as contributions from numerous corporations, foundations, and individuals.

www.lanterntheater.org 3 TABLE OF CONTENTS

Welcome ...... 4 Meet the Company ...... 5 About the Author ...... 6 About the Play’s Style ...... 7 Setting and Characters ...... 8 Timeline ...... 9-11 Glossary ...... 12 From the Dramaturg ...... 13-17 Status and Hierarchy ...... 13 Comedies and Tragedies ...... 14 Dramatic Irony ...... 15 Decision Making and Fate ...... 16 Making the Play ...... 18-19 Classroom Activities ...... 20-32 Four Corner Debate ...... 20 Storytelling Without Words ...... 28 Scenes and Secrets ...... 30

COVER: Tyler Elliott and Melissa Rakiro in Lantern Theater Company’s production of Romeo and Juliet (2018). All Lantern production photos by Mark Garvin. Juliet’s balcony at Casa di Guilietta in Verona, Italy

Two households, both alike in dignity,

In fair Verona, where we lay our scene, From ancient grudge break to new mutiny, “Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean. “ From forth the fatal loins of these two foes A pair of star-cross’d lovers take their life; Whose misadventured piteous overthrows Do with their death bury their parents’ strife.

—William Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet (Act I, Prologue)

At Lantern Theater Company, we believe that great plays can make a diff erence in the lives of people who see them.

We act on this belief not only by telling powerful stories, but also by inviting participation in dialogue and discussion about our productions. Great theater can leave the audience asking big questions, and here are some questions your students might investigate before seeing Romeo and Juliet.

 What are the limits of loyalty?  What would we risk for love?  What do we owe to our families, and what do they owe to us?  How can we bring enemies together?  What power is there in forgiveness, and what would it take to earn it?

This study guide will provide you and your students with information on the context of the play and its themes. We have also included activities to bring its themes of feuds and secrets to life. After seeing the play, we encourage your students to revisit the above questions so they can better compare the story of Romeo and Juliet by unknown artist, 1860 Romeo, Juliet, and their families with their own.

Mike Dees Tyler Elliott Adam Hammet Annette Kaplafka Friar Laurence/ Romeo/Ensemble Mercutio/Ensemble Nurse/Ensemble Ensemble

Keith Livingston Brian McCann Lee Minora Ned Pryce Benvolio/Ensemble Lord Capulet/ Lady Capulet Tybalt/Paris/ Ensemble Ensemble

Kevin Hoover Asaki Kuruma SCENIC DESIGNER COSTUME DESIGNER

J. Dominic Chacon Daniel Perelstein LIGHTING DESIGNER SOUND DESIGNER

J. Alex Cordaro Meghan Winch FIGHT DIRECTOR DRAMATURG Melissa Rakiro Arthur Lee Juliet Robinson Erynn Carr and Rebekah Sinewe Apothecary/ STAGE MANAGERS Ensemble

DIRECTED BY Charles McMahon

This live performance was ﬁ lmed in April 2018 at the Mandell Theater at Drexel University in Philadelphia

William Shakespeare is possibly the most celebrated writer of the English language. His work has survived for over 400 years, and is performed on stages and studied in classrooms around the world today.

He was born in 1564 in Stratford-upon- Avon, 100 miles northwest of London. His father was a leatherworker and a public ﬁ gure, and Shakespeare would have attended school until the age of about 15, learning Latin and writing. At 18 he married Anne Hathaway, and they had three children. By 1592, Shakespeare was living and working in London as a playwright and actor with a theater troupe called the Lord Chamberlain’s Men.

During his 20-year theater career, Shakespeare wrote at least 37 plays and 150 poems. His work has been translated into countless languages, and the Globe Theatre in London — a recreation of the theater in which many of his works were ﬁ rst performed — recently produced a tour that took Hamlet to every country in the world over the course of two years. His most famous plays include the comedies A Midsummer Night’s Dream, As You Like It, and Much Ado About Nothing; the tragedies Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, Macbeth, and Othello; the history plays Richard III and Henry V; and the romances The Tempest and The Winter’s Tale. He died in Stratford in 1616 at the age of 52. William Shakespeare

Romeo and Juliet is one of Shakespeare’s eleven tragedies, a group that includes Hamlet, King Lear, Othello, and Macbeth. Shakespeare’s tragedies have much in common with classical Greek tragedies: generally, a person in a high position begins the play essentially happy, then makes choices that bring about their downfall. They usually have a fatal ﬂ aw of some kind, a personality trait that informs those choices and leads directly to the tragic outcome. The tragic heroes of Shakespeare’s plays do not usually survive the play, and those they leave behind are charged with making sense of the death and what that means for their world.

Romeo and Juliet is unique among Shakespeare’s tragedies in that its central tragic characters are not themselves especially powerful or royal. Their families are wealthy and prominent, but they themselves are teenagers, without positions of offi cial inﬂ uence. In Hamlet and King Lear, the title characters are royals, and in Othello and Macbeth they are military commanders. Romeo and Juliet’s power comes not from governmental positions or royal blood, but from the eff ect their choices have on themselves, their families, and Verona as a whole. Romeo and Juliet by painter Frank Bernard Dicksee, 1884

Romeo and Juliet is set during the Renaissance in Verona and later Mantua, two cities in northern Italy.

Romeo is a son of the Montague slighted. After the party, he seeks family, a prominent house in out Romeo to fi ght him. He kills Verona. He is sensitive and prone Mercutio instead, and is then slain to lovesickness. He is in love with by Romeo. Rosaline when the play begins, but he forgets her when he meets Mercutio is a good friend of Juliet. His family is feuding with the Romeo’s. He is witty and fun-loving. Capulets. His family is not aligned with either house in the feud, though he aligns Juliet is the daughter of Lord and himself with Romeo. He dies when Lady Capulet, another important Romeo attempts to intervene in his Verona family. She is smart, brave, fi ght with Tybalt, and curses both and dutiful, but follows her heart the Montagues and Capulets. rather than her family’s wishes when it comes to Romeo. Her family Benvolio is Romeo’s cousin, is feuding with the Montagues. and friends with Mercutio. He tries unsuccessfully to act as a Friar Laurence is a monk in Verona, peacemaker in the feud. and a confi dant of Romeo’s. He marries the young lovers in secret, Lord and Lady Capulet are Juliet’s and then attempts to plot ways for parents. They want what is best for them to be together after Romeo’s her, but expect their authority to be banishment until his plan is foiled unquestioned. When Romeo kills and he abandons it. Tybalt, they demand that Romeo be executed. Nurse is Juliet’s caretaker from birth. She is Juliet’s confi dant, Paris is a young nobleman pursuing helping to arrange the secret Juliet for marriage. Her parents are marriage and rendezvous for in favor of the match; she is not. the couple, until Tybalt’s death separates her and Juliet. Prince is the leader of Verona, who proclaims that any further feuding Tybalt is Juliet’s cousin. He is will be punished by execution. He hotheaded and prone to violence later banishes Romeo for the fi ght when he feels he or his family is with Tybalt.

1591 – 1595 Shakespeare writes Romeo and Juliet; the exact date is unknown.

1597 The “bad quarto” is published; this is the ﬁ rst publication of Romeo and Juliet, but it contains numerous errors and diff erences with later versions. It references the play’s popularity with audiences, implying that the ﬁ rst performance happened sometime before 1597.

1604 Romeo and Juliet is performed in Germany, making it one of Shakespeare’s ﬁ rst plays to be From Shakespeare’s First Folio produced outside of England.

1616 Shakespeare dies in Stratford-upon- Avon at the age of 52.

1623 The First Folio is published. It includes 36 of Shakespeare’s plays and groups them into comedies, tragedies, and histories for the ﬁ rst time.

1662 Mary Saunderson in the Duke’s Company becomes the ﬁ rst woman to play Juliet professionally. In Shakespeare’s time, women were not allowed to perform on stage and all female roles were played by men.

Mary Saunderson as Juliet (1662)

1680 An adaptation that moves the action to ancient Rome, changes character names, and lets the lovers survive debuts – and it is extremely popular. For the next 200 years, this new happy ending is the norm.

1730 The ﬁ rst known production in North America is performed in New York.

1845 – 1847 The ﬁ rst productions to use Shakespeare’s original play – and the tragic ending – in more than 200 years are performed in the U.S. and Great Britain. By the end of the Judi Dench as Juliet (1960) century, Romeo and Juliet will be the most produced Shakespeare play of the 1800s.

1947 Peter Brook directs a production that omits the families reconciling at the end.

1960 The ﬁ rst major production to use young actors is produced in London, starring a 26-year-old Judi Dench as Juliet.

1968 The 1960 stage production becomes the basis for Franco Zeff erelli’s ﬁ lm, which casts 17-year-old Leonard Whiting as Romeo and 16-year-old

Olivia Hussey as Juliet. Olivia Hussey as Juliet and Leonard Whiting as Romeo (1968)

1996 Baz Luhrmann’s ﬁ lm version starring Claire Danes and Leonardo DiCaprio is released. This adaptation uses Shakespeare’s text but a modern setting, and remains the highest grossing live-action Shakespeare movie in history.

By the end of the 20th century, Romeo and Juliet will be the second- most produced Shakespeare play of the 1900s, behind only Hamlet.

2000 – Present Romeo and Juliet continues to be performed onstage, and inspires both faithful and loosely inspired movies, including 2011’s animated Gnomeo and Juliet. The Lantern’s annual production of Romeo and Juliet for high school audiences debuts in 2018.

Melissa Rakiro as Juliet (2018)

Leonardo DiCaprio as Romeo and Claire Danes as Juliet (1996)

It is impossible to know how many words and phrases Shakespeare contributed to the English language, but some scholars estimate it around 3,000 — including “bump,” “uncomfortable,” and “worn out,” which all appeared for the ﬁ rst time in Romeo and Juliet. Below are some other words and phrases that appear in this play.

Agate-stone: A ring set with Good den: A greeting meaning Pilgrims: People who travel to agate, a stone with a variety of “good evening” a holy place out of devotion or colors appearing in stripes or Gyves: Shackles or restraints religious reasons shapes Happy: Lucky or fortunate Plague: A curse against both Apace: Swiftly or quickly families, wishing them disease Hurdle: A device on which Apothecary: A person who English prisoners were secured Poultice: A warmed, often prepared and sold medicines and then brought through the medicated solution applied to a and drugs streets on their way to execution cloth and then put on sores Atomies: Creatures that are as Inconstant: Variable or irregular; Prodigious: Remarkable, in an small as atoms when referencing a person, not ominous way Baggage: Good-for-nothing dependable or faithful Profane: To treat with disrespect woman, harlot Lammas-tide: An old English or vulgarity Bite my thumb: An Italian insult holiday, celebrated on August Proof: Impenetrable or shielded at the time, possibly obscene 1st. Bread made with the fi rst Queen Mab: One of the fairy Bounty: Generosity crop of harvested wheat was queens, who is in control of taken to church and blessed, humans’ dreams By the book: According to rules symbolizing fertility and plenty. and convention Runagate: Fugitive or runaway Live chaste: Stay unmarried for Charnel-house: A building where life Shrift: Confession, at church bodies and bones are kept Mantua: A city in northern Italy, Shrived: Have a confession Cockatrice: A legendary serpent about 30 miles south of Verona heard and be forgiven that can kill a person by looking Mickle: A lot, or great Star-cross’d: Destined to meet a at them sad fate Mutiny: Riot, public disturbance Consort: Associate with Strange: Reserved or aloof Orisons: Prayers County: Paris’ rank, which is Tassle-gentle: A term in falconry Count Osier cage: A basket made of for a male hawk willow Dian’s wit: Diana was the Trespass: A sin, or violation of goddess of the moon and the Passado: In sword fi ghting, a morals hunt, and known to be clever. forward thrust She also never married. Verona: A city in northern Italy Phaeton: The son of Apollo, who where the play takes place Doff : Discard was allowed to drive the chariot Vestal livery: Chaste Dram: Potion of the sun one day. He was unable to control the horses that appearance; dressed very Ensign: Banner or fl ag drive the chariot from east to modestly Fain: Gladly or willingly west, and nearly burnt the earth Wanton’s bird: A bird kept before Zeus struck him down Compliment: Good manners or as a pet by a spoiled and with a lightning bolt. proper behavior; etiquette or undisciplined child custom Phoebus’ lodging: Phoebus is Wherefore: Why another name for Apollo, the Forswear: Swear falsely or break Zounds: A mild swear, from a god of the sun. Juliet is wishing a promise shortened version of “By God’s that the sun chariot would move wounds” Ghostly father: Spiritual and swiftly west to bring on night holy; a priest and Romeo’s visit.

What is a dramaturg? The dramaturg does extensive research on the historical background of the play and its thematic elements, and provides as much context as possible about the play to the director and the actors. For Romeo and Juliet, Lantern dramaturg Meghan Winch provides some contextual information for reading and seeing the play.

Status and Hierarchy

The status of the characters and their hierarchy within the world of Romeo and Juliet are central to its plot. A character’s position relative to the other characters might take power away from them, or give them greater authority. This creates the situation Juliet and Romeo ﬁ nd themselves in, and aff ects their resulting choices.

The Montagues and Capulets, “two households both alike in dignity,” are prominent and wealthy families in Verona. Their social status is high, which means characters like the Nurse are lower in the social hierarchy and beholden to the higher status characters for employment. This limits the choices they can make; there is only so much the Nurse can do for Juliet when Lord Capulet makes a decision. But just as the Nurse and other servants sit below the Capulets and Montagues, so too do the families sit below the Prince, bound by his decrees. He has the power to punish or pardon, and Annette Kaplafka as the Nurse and Melissa Rakiro as Juliet (2018)

is the sole decision maker as to moments and tragedies might have whether Romeo lives or dies after an occasional joke, there’s little killing Tybalt. confusing the two right from the start when it comes to tone and There is also status and hierarchy consequence. Comedies are often in terms of gender and spirituality. about love and romance, and end As a woman in this society, Juliet in one or more marriages, with does not have complete control the promise of life and happiness over her own life; her father can continuing. Tragedies typically deal choose to marry her off to any less with romantic love and more person he wishes. Her marrying with the fate of a powerful person, Romeo is an act of rebellion against brought down by a fatal ﬂ aw. this hierarchy, and her choice to These tragedies end in death and follow the Friar’s plan is one of her destruction. few options in an eff ort to escape that structure. On the other hand, Romeo and Juliet, however, is the Friar’s low social status makes something of a combination. It him ﬂ ee in fear from the tomb. But is a play that starts as a comedy, he also has higher status as a man focusing on romantic love, full of of the church, granting him special humor, and culminating in a secret access to those with more social marriage. But halfway through, status. when Mercutio is killed, it morphs into a tragedy and becomes the As you read and watch the play, story of how the anger between think about how status and the two families and their children’s hierarchy might aff ect the choices desperation leads to death and made in the play. If the structures destruction. Romeo and Juliet around the characters were act rashly, leading to their deaths, diff erent or less restrictive, how devastating their powerful might things turn out diff erently? families instead of joining them in celebration. Comedies and Tragedies Even here at the tragic end, though, Traditionally, in both ancient the play doesn’t quite follow tragic Greece and in Shakespeare’s time, convention. Romeo and Juliet comedies and tragedies were very themselves have little power; it diff erent types of plays. While is their fathers who sit atop the comedies might have serious hierarchy, and who survive the play.

And in some ways, the play does end in marriage and renewal, as the couple dies together, united forever in their families’ eyes, and the feud is ended in honor of that marriage.

Think about the diff erences between tragedy and comedy while you read and watch the play. How do you think using elements of both tragedy and comedy aff ect the way the story unfolds? How might it be diff erent if it was a more traditional comedy or more tragic from the beginning? Dramatic Irony

Dramatic irony is a technique that originated in classic Greek theater where the audience understands the truth of a situation, but the characters onstage do not. This gives us more information than the characters in the play, and we have the ability to evaluate their choices and decisions while knowing more than they do.

In Greek theater, one of the traditional elements of the play was the Chorus, who often commented on the action of the play from outside of the plot and gave the audience information that the characters don’t have in the moment. Romeo and Juliet uses this trope to create much of its Melissa Rakiro as Juliet and Tyler Elliott as Romeo (2018)

dramatic irony by having a Chorus, that could have happened if those or a character fulfi lling the Chorus’ onstage knew as much as we do. role, present two prologues: one at the very beginning of the play, What might be diff erent for our and one at the start of Act II. The experience of the play if we were fi rst prologue tells us, the audience, only given as much information precisely what will happen: two as the characters have? What if children of feuding families will the prologue didn’t exist, and we fall in love and take their own lives weren’t told from the start that this because of that dispute, and their would not end well? Think about deaths will end the feud. From the what is gained by the extensive fi rst lines of the play, the audience dramatic irony in the play; what is it is told that no matter what we see to tell and watch a story that starts early in the play, the story will end with the ending? tragically. The second prologue, by contrast, prepares us for the famous Decision Making balcony scene, letting us know that and Fate we’re about to witness the lovers meeting to express themselves. The use of dramatic irony in the play illuminates the tension After this second prologue, the between fate and free will in the Chorus goes away. The dramatic play. Because we know from the irony, though, does not. Time start what the ending will be, the and again we are given more characters seem fated to always information than the characters are: make the same choices. But by we know about Juliet’s plan, but knowing the decisions made, we the Nurse, the Capulets, and Romeo are also invited to consider what do not. We know that Romeo does choices they could have made not get all the information he needs that might have led to diff erent about her condition, but the Friar outcomes. does not. We know of Romeo’s death, but Juliet does not when she The characters of Romeo and Juliet wakes. These moments of dramatic often speak of fate when it comes irony reappear again and again, to the events of the play, implying giving the audience the ability to that destiny demands everything evaluate the choices the characters that happens. Terms in the prologue make, dread their outcomes, and like “star-cross’d” and “death- mourn the potential happy ending mark’d” tell us that the characters’

fates are written in the stars. Romeo believes this as well, calling himself “Fortune’s fool” and feeling something ominous “hanging in the stars.” Juliet also references a sense of dread, and envisions Romeo as if he were in his grave, all lending credence to the idea that their fate is sealed and inescapable. For Shakespeare’s audience, this would have been readily accepted. Fate was a concept they took very seriously, and destiny was thought to be inescapable.

We can also look at the characters’ circumstances to see why their destinies are predetermined. While there could be a mystical element to their ends, the characters are also stuck in a structure and a hierarchy that limits their options. Juliet doesn’t have enough power in this society to make a free choice about marriage, limiting her options when she is betrothed to Paris. Romeo is subject to the will of the Prince, making his choices very narrow when he is banished.

Considering the structures around the characters, is it a higher fate or societal pressures that bring about the tragic end? Are there other choices that might have been possible?

Tyler Elliott as Romeo (2018)

Romeo and Juliet costume designer Asaki Kuruma on balancing history with practicality:

In our early meetings, we agreed on “a quintessential Shakespeare look.” So my ﬁ rst questions were where and when does this play take place? What are the weather and seasons like? The play takes place in the northern Italian city of Verona, most likely in the late 16th century, which is when Shakespeare himself lived. So I researched what Verona looks like, and what people of Italy around the 16th century wore. Costume design for Lady Capulet, Juliet, and the Nurse (2018) What was the diff erence between nobility and townspeople? When you look at the fashion of that time, you notice the huge ruffl e people wore around their neck, called the Elizabethan collar, which would restrict the actors’ mobility and vision. So I backtracked about 100 years to the height of the Italian Renaissance. Women wore dresses with much lower necklines, higher waistlines, and long skirts. Very simple and looks nice on everyone. Men wore a roomy shirt, doublets — an ornate vest that comes down to your hip — and hose, which are similar to tights. It is always diffi cult to decide how historically accurate you want it to be. There are always some sacriﬁ ces to make it time and cost effi cient. Costume design for Romeo, Benvolio, and Mercutio (2018)

On research:

I looked at a lot of paintings around the era, what kind of fabric they used, what hairstyles they wore, jewelry that was popular around that time. This is called primary research, looking at the things that were created around that time. Everything that was made after that might not be as accurate as the ones from that era. It is okay to watch movies and TV shows about that era to get the vibe of it, as well as to learn how other people do it, but you have to remember that is created through other people’s ﬁ lters. On actors playing multiple roles:

A lot of costumes you see are “rigged” with secret snaps, Velcro, and magnets for actors to remove one costume and get into another in a matter of seconds. They often need other people’s help, and rehearsal time to make it smooth and quick. Our stage crew and stage management team “pre-set” the costume pieces in hidden places, and/or are waiting for the actors to come to them to change. To make one actor look diff erent from another, we have to “establish” the look of one character. For example, the actor playing the Friar is wearing a robe in the ﬁ rst few scenes; his look is “established.” The audience registers that “the Friar is the guy who is wearing the big brown robe.” So when he changes into a diff erent costume, you will recognize his face, but you will understand he is playing another character. And once you learn the pattern, you stick with it. And that is the reason why one character has only one look — to make sure the audience doesn’t get confused. Hats and accessories help, too, to hide the hair or change the silhouette.

Costume design for the Ensemble (2018)

Activity 1: The Four Corner Debate

Goals  Increased level of comfort with talking about “big picture” ideas contained inside a dramatic narrative, speciﬁ cally themes relevant to Romeo and Juliet.  Conﬁ dent self-expression and a willingness to listen to the opinions of others.

Learning Objectives  Students will discuss and explore the thematic concepts of the play and make their own decisions about the important ideas being expressed by the playwright.  Students will develop positive habits in working collaboratively through group discussion.

Anticipatory Set (5-10 mins)  Building the Ensemble: Use the warm-up game below to encourage students to begin thinking about their classmates as collaborators in an ensemble. Respectful listening and collaborative cooperation will be crucial to the success or failure of the Four Corner Debate exercise coming up next.

A Possible Warm-up:  “Yes!” – Pick a group activity, like throwing a party or organizing a picnic. One player starts, saying “Let’s ...” ﬁ lling in what she wants to do. Then she starts actually doing what she said she wanted to do. A second player jumps in, saying “Let’s ...” do something else, to advance the group activity. Both players say “Yes, let’s do that” and start doing whatever was suggested. A third player jumps in, suggests what to do; again, all players loudly agree, and actually do it. Continue until everyone has suggested something. This game can be played in groups or with the whole classroom at once.

Activity 1: The Four Corner Debate (continued)

Guided Practice (5 mins)  Ask the students to deﬁ ne what a debate is.  Read through and discuss the rules of a Four Corner Debate.  Answer any questions about how the debate will work.  Hang the Four Corner Debate signs in the four corners of the classroom.*  Explain the diff erence between strongly agreeing or disagreeing with something and simply agreeing or disagreeing.

Independent Practice (20-30 mins)  Read each sentence from the Romeo and Juliet Statements Sheet and ask students to stand in the corner with the sign that matches their opinion on the statement.* Allow ample time for class discussion.  Ask for volunteers to explain why they chose the answer they chose.  Make sure to hear from someone in each corner. After listening to each group, if anyone in a certain group made a convincing argument, students may opt to change their opinion and move to that group. If no group swayed anyone’s thinking, students should remain where they are. * If teaching virtually, ask students to provide their stance in your program’s classroom chat function and then facilitate discussion altogether or in individual breakout rooms based on those responses.

Assessment  If holding the debate before reading/seeing the play, ask students to predict how these statements might be connected to Romeo and Juliet.  Classroom teachers may assign each student to choose one statement he or she felt particularly strongly about. Each student should write a clear and concise paragraph starting with the chosen position (for example, I strongly agree that...) and include all main points brought up in the group discussion.  Reﬂ ect on this activity after reading/seeing the entire play. Has your opinion changed?

Reﬂ ection  How well did this lesson plan meet the objectives and goals?  Did you have to modify this plan in any way?  Do you have any comments, questions, or observations about this lesson?

We welcome your input and suggestions so that we may continue to provide worthwhile activities for you and your students. ©2021 LANTERN THEATER COMPANY | CONTENTS MAY BE REPRODUCED BY PARTICIPATING EDUCATORS FOR CLASSROOM USE ONLY. 22 CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES

Four Corner Debate

 Teachers, read the sentences that relate to the themes of the play to the class.

 Students, decide whether you: 1. Strongly Agree 2. Agree 3. Disagree 4. Strongly Disagree

 Move to the appropriate corner of the room, or facilitate responses and discussion in your virtual session.

 Give each group about 2-3 minutes to discuss their response among themselves and appoint a “group spokesperson.”

 Ask for volunteers to explain why they chose the answer they chose. Make sure to hear from someone in each corner.

 After listening to each group, if anyone in a certain group made a convincing enough argument, you may change your opinion and move to that group. If no group swayed your thinking, remain where you are.

 Repeat this activity for each statement as time allows.

Four Corner Debate Statements: Romeo and Juliet

 I believe in love at ﬁ rst sight.

 Your parents know best and you should obey them.

 Loyalty to family is the most important thing.

 Sometimes keeping secrets is the right choice.

 I would do anything for someone I love.

 I follow my heart more than my head.

 Adults don’t understand what teenagers are going through.

 I would sneak into a party I knew I wasn’t invited to if I knew a love interest of mine was going to be there.

 I would agree to meet and get to know someone my parents were trying to ﬁ x me up with.

Activity 2: Storytelling Without Words – Warring Factions

Goals  Increased levels of student comfort with each other as collaborators and performers.  Students dramatize the idea of warring factions through tableaux.

Learning Objectives  Students will be more familiar with the dramatic concept of tableaux and how actors reveal character/story through physicality.  Students will have a greater understanding of how theater artists use conﬂ ict and staging to explore speciﬁ c themes.  Students will be able to relate the ideas of opposing interests to Romeo and Juliet.

Anticipatory Set (10 mins)  To warm up the students and to get them thinking about how physicality conveys character, break the class into groups of three or more and task them with creating poses for a leader, a follower, and a rebel. After a minute or two of planning, have each group present all three poses at once to the rest of the class (casting each group member as one of the three types), and ask the class to identify which is which. Brieﬂ y discuss what common elements helped students to identify each type of character. Possible answers might include how characters held their head or upper body, how they carried their center of gravity, or how they regarded the other characters in their group. Provided students can perform their individual pose in their own space, this can be accomplished virtually.

Guided Practice (15 mins)  Brainstorm and discuss ideas on the meanings of warring factions (e.g., What might put two groups at odds? How far can the consequences of a feud reach? What eff ect might status and hierarchy within and between the groups have on how the feud plays out?)  As students share their ideas, call attention to any speciﬁ c ﬁ elds or events they cite as examples (e.g. school achievement, friend groups, sports).  Introduce the concept of theatrical tableaux, which are frozen pictures using only the actors’ bodies. More info here: dramaresource.com/tableaux

Activity 2: Storytelling Without Words (continued)

Independent Practice (15-20 mins)  Break the students into groups of six, and ask them to brainstorm diff erent situations where two groups of people might be in confl ict. Then, have them make three images about that confl ict. For example:  FEUD: Two rival sports teams  Action 1: The teams arrive at the fi eld before the big game.  Action 2: A player from one team helps a player from the other team after they’re knocked down.  Action 3: The two teams react to the gesture.  Task students with creating three tableaux that show the following:  The Status Quo: Two equal but rival groups.  The Meeting: Two people, each separated from their respective groups, connect.  The Response: How do the groups respond to this pairing?  Present the tableaux sequences to the class.  If you’re teaching virtually, students may create their own individual sets of tableaux by drawing them, taking photos of themselves in each position, or using relevant photos from the web to make their frozen scenes.

Assessment  Discuss the impact of the various tableaux for each group. What changed? Did the feud resolve, or worsen?

Activity 3: Scenes and Secrets

Goals  Examine the dramatic function of stakes and how that relates to Romeo and Juliet.  Students will create and stage short scenes, providing opportunities for creative expression, public performance, and collaboration.

Learning Objectives  Students will have a greater understanding of the role stakes can play in advancing plot and revealing character.  Students will better understand the impact of conﬂ ict in storytelling.  Students will be able to make (and hopefully defend!) clear choices in the creation and performance of their scenes.

Anticipatory Set (5 mins) One of the major conﬂ icts in Romeo and Juliet is what characters choose to share with each other and what they choose to keep hidden. Most of the major characters are keeping one secret or another from someone else in the play, the discovery or continued hiding of which drives much of the plot.

 If students have read/seen the play, discuss why characters might choose to keep secrets, and how that aff ects each character’s choices in the play.  If students have not yet read/seen the play, ask students what might make the characters act that way.

Guided Practice (5 mins) Have the class brainstorm the following:

 What kind of situation would make someone feel like they have to be secretive?  How would you react if someone told you a secret and asked you not to tell?  Discuss how people might go about revealing the truth.

Activity 3: Scenes and Secrets (continued)

Independent Practice (20-25 mins) In Romeo and Juliet, most characters keep a secret, often with major consequences. The young couple keeps their love a secret from most people. The Nurse keeps the marriage secret from Juliet’s parents. Juliet’s parents keep their arrangements with Paris from Juliet. The Friar keeps his plan secret from everyone, except Juliet. What are the consequences of these decisions for both the secret-keeper and those in the dark, in the short-term and in the long-term? Who beneﬁ ts and who suff ers? What might be diff erent if the secrets were revealed sooner?

Sometimes, characters are aware of the major stakes at play in their decisions, and sometimes they are blinded by their own wants and what is directly in front of them. As with many diff erent situations, the audience is often able to see more clearly than the characters what eff ect the choices will have on the characters and on their world.

After a brief discussion about how stakes can function in drama, divide the students into groups and task them with the following:

 Create a three-part scene that centers on a secret and make the following choices:  Where does the scene take place?  Who are the characters in relation to each other?  What are the stakes?  Why is the situation so important?

 Part One: Create a brief lead-up to the situation, culminating in the choice to keep a secret.  Let your audience know what situation you’re showing.  Establish the major characters.  Establish why diff erent choices matter to diff erent characters.

Activity 3: Scenes and Secrets (continued)

 Part Two: Show the audience the character choosing to keep something secret.  Establish the eff ect on all of the characters personally.  Establish how those eff ects might continue into the future.

 Part Three: Go back to the moment of secret-keeping and show the audience the character choosing to reveal the information instead.  Establish the eff ect on the characters personally.  Establish how those eff ects might continue into the future.

 Rehearse the scene three times.  Present the scene to the class.

If you’re teaching virtually and group scene creation isn’t feasible, you might consider having them write short scenes in response to the prompts above. Have them choose a situation centering on a secret and the choice to reveal or hide the information, and imagine the consequences of each choice both immediately and into the future. For example, what if Juliet chose to tell the Nurse about the plan to fake her death? What would the Nurse do? How might it change Juliet’s experience upon waking? Would anything be diff erent for Romeo?

Assessment Engage students in a discussion about the stakes of each decision. How far-reaching are the choices made, and how did the characters make their choices? Are there other choices that could have been made?