This is a retelling of the entirety of Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare. I made sure that I had down all the details. I started writing it in March, and finished typing it in June. After all, isn't ROMEO AND JULIET a long story too? Enjoy! :)
(Did you ever notice that it only takes two characters to sum up the plot of the story? Read on!)
(Did you ever notice that it only takes two characters to sum up the plot of the story? Read on!)
Romeo and Juliet, two lovers of their time,
When Shakespeare wrote a play about them, this is what he had in mind.
The Montagues and Capulets despise each other so,
But the reason’s long forgotten; they let their fury go.
The Capulets begin a very long and bloody fight,
And the Montagues fight back, lasting long into the night.
Benvolio wants the fight to stop but Tybalt just says no.
Prince Escalus turns red in anger; the fight continues so.
Romeo loves Rosaline but because she does not,
Upon setting eyes on Juliet, he then loves her a lot.
She feels exactly the same way, but realization comes too late,
As she loves her family’s enemy, and this initiates fate.
The party starts and Romeo talks but Tybalt overhears his voice.
He wants to kill Romeo out of hatred, but is stripped of his only choice.
A good reputation that Romeo has, as he is never one to fight,
So after meeting Juliet, he vows to keep her in sight.
Juliet confesses her secrets, standing on the balcony in her house.
But she doesn’t notice Romeo waiting below, as quiet as a mouse.
As conversations begin between them, they soon agree to marry.
But alas, for poor Romeo and Juliet, there’s a heavy burden they will carry.
Dawn soon breaks and Romeo leaves to tell the friar that
He wants to marry his dear Juliet, whom he had only just met.
Friar Lawrence indeed says yes because he says this might
Just end the Capulet and Montague’s bloody and everlasting fight.
As Mercutio and Benvolio wait, a little teasing start
On their friend Romeo, as he arrives, love is in his heart.
He later speaks with Juliet’s nurse to send her to the friar.
He plans to make a ladder too, to send him up a little higher.
Juliet awaits word from her nurse about her lover Romeo.
But after three hours of much delay, finally the message our Juliet knows.
Romeo is at the Friar’s cell, waiting for his love.
When Juliet finally arrives, they know God is smiling from above.
After Romeo and Juliet are married, Mercutio and Tybalt begin to fight.
Mercutio is slain, and Romeo kills Tybalt, another bloody scene in sight.
Romeo and Juliet’s parents arrive with the Prince; but Romeo has vanished.
For killing Juliet’s favorite cousin, poor Romeo is banished.
When Romeo receives news of this, he contemplates suicide.
He says death is preferable to banishment. The opposite is true, push the worries aside.
The Friar tells Romeo that he will see Juliet tonight,
Then before the break of dawn, he must leave, for Mantua is in his sights.
The nurse arrives with Juliet’s ring as a little gift for Romeo.
As we see that love is still as pure, the more we ought to know.
Capulet wants Juliet to marry Count Paris, but what he doesn’t know,
Is that she really disobeyed her father, as she’s already married to Romeo.
As Paris waits, he becomes impatient to marry this adolescent girl.
Like before, Romeo wanted to quickly marry Juliet, it wasn’t the end of the world.
Making time seen to fly faster, Thursday will be the day,
When Juliet and Paris will be married, but by then, Juliet will be away.
Romeo and Juliet, happily, together spend the night.
But when Romeo leaves, her parents begin a verbal fight.
Capulet says she must marry Paris, or she will meet the street.
One by one, her family members desert her; it is Friar Lawrence she shall meet.
With a visitation to the Friar’s cell, Paris confirms his wedding.
But when he goes, Juliet says she would rather be married to her grave bedding.
This sentence is sadly prophetic, as her words will soon prove true,
Because Tybalt's dead, and Paris will be, then much later, Romeo's dead too.
When Juliet offers to kill herself, the Friar just says no.
There is a plan, which he will devise, together with a concoction Juliet will know.
By taking the Friar’s potion, to her family Juliet will appear dead.
This way she avoids the marriage, as she’ll be unconscious in her bed.
Romeo will come and take her away to a place that is afar,
To the place of Romeo’s banishment, the place called Mantua.
Juliet arrives back at her house; she confirms her father’s plan.
And he shifts the wedding one day up, so she’ll be ready to marry the man.
Juliet must be left alone, that night before the big day.
She then drinks the vital potion, after the Nurse and Lady Capulet had gone away.
Early Wednesday morning, there is music and Paris is arriving,
Everyone seems so jovial this day; the day seems to be thriving.
The time soon comes for Juliet to wake, everyone but the audience sees she’s dead.
Oh, what an ironic sentence this is, as she will never again wake in her bed.
The wedding turns into a funeral, as Juliet lies in a trance.
The Friar says, “You should be glad she’s at peace.” Juliet had no second chance.
Balthasar tells Romeo that Juliet is no longer alive.
One in a series of misinterpreted messages, Romeo bids farewell to his wife.
He visits an apothecary and buys some poison that will,
With the strength of more than 20 men, as fast as lightning, kill.
He vows to return to Verona, to, for the last time, visit his wife.
But sadly, when Juliet will wake, Romeo will have taken his life.
Friar John tells Friar Lawrence that he could not deliver the letter.
This leads to the play’s final tragedy, since nothing changes for the better.
Delayed, the letter was, because the plague had stopped him there.
Romeo would not get the message. Oh, this isn’t fair!
While we know that Juliet is still alive, Romeo had planned his death.
But sadly soon thereafter, his sword will be unsheathed.
For Juliet will be soon awake, Friar Lawrence rushes there,
To Capulet’s vault and Tybalt’s grave, because about Juliet, he cares.
Outside the Capulet’s burial vault stand Paris and his Page.
But shortly soon hereafter, sadness turns to rage.
The Page whistles as instructed, so Paris goes to hide.
Romeo and Balthasar arrive; says Romeo, “By my rules you shall abide,
As here for my father, is my written letter.
You’ll be dead if you don’t obey, nothing will be any better.”
At that exact same time, Paris lays the flowers.
Romeo’s mood is wildly crazy, as he will have the powers
To kill that County Paris out of anger, fury and rage.
But later there are four corpses. Luckily, still alive, is the Page.
So Balthasar goes and delivers the letter, while Romeo breaks inside.
Paris then fights with Romeo. Paris dies; his Page stands aside
And watches the anger filled fight, then goes and calls the watch.
Romeo launches into his last and longest speech, as the action is turned down a notch.
Romeo consumes his poison and falls, unseen by Balthasar.
Friar Lawrence enters the scene, he has come from afar.
Balthasar talks with the Friar as they enter the tomb.
As foretold earlier in the play, the Capulet’s vault is purely death’s womb.
The Friar is just right on time as lovely Juliet stirs.
She asks him where her Romeo is, but the Friar then speaks first
Saying he is afraid, he hears a sound; if he stays he will get caught.
But sadly this does not go too well, because later, Juliet will be alive... not.
Friar Lawrence leaves the tomb leaving Juliet all alone.
She isn’t scared and she has courage, for she is death’s empress on her throne.
She sees her lover Romeo dead but finds his empty cup.
She takes his dagger and stabs herself. Sadly, this time, Juliet won’t wake up.
The Elizabethan Police arrive and proceed to search the place.
But right this moment as they talk, there isn’t an innocent face.
The Friar is found, the Prince is called, and the Capulets arrive.
They discuss the scene before them, as Juliet is no longer alive.
Romeo is dead and Paris slaughtered, and Tybalt gone before them.
But alas, poor Juliet- the last to die- to her parents, she was a precious gem.
Romeo’s father then arrives to declare his wife just died
Upon hearing news of Romeo’s banishment. Oh, what a pitiful night.
The Prince acts just like a judge while Friar Lawrence retells the story
Of every single event that happened, every bit of gore and glory.
“Romeo and Juliet fell in love, and in a few days they wed,
But alas for poor Tybalt, that same day he was dead.
She was to marry Count Paris, but already wed, was she.
So the one who gave her a sleeping potion, undoubtedly, was me.
Sent, was she to the Capulet vault, and you all thought she was dead,
When in fact she was very much alive, she was sleeping on death’s bed.
A message meant for Romeo was not sent out by John,
Because of the suspected plague which stopped him there at morn.
When I returned back to the vault dear Juliet had awoke.
But out I went, and she saw Romeo dead, her death that his provoked.
For my old age, my life is short, that’s what I had to say,
For, told, the story is to you, I shall be gone, away.”
Balthasar gave the Prince the letter, the one from Romeo,
Which was read by the Prince himself, who read it like he was in a show.
Paris’ Page then enters, and then says, “Paris
Came to see his lady, who was to become his.
But she was dead, so he laid the flowers and told me to stand aside,
And one came in and fought with him, and then soon my master died.
I felt so scared I ran away so I could call the watch.”
Here no more violent action takes place, and the volume is turned down a notch.
The Prince finds out the Friar’s words were both as good as true,
As the sentence, “Till death do us part,” and part, not, did they do.
Says he, “Romeo and Juliet’s path of love was filled with your anger, fury and hate
For one another, now look what happened. You just caused your own fate.
As like, you are wrong, and sad you are, for I am at fault too.
I have lost Mercutio and Paris. Punished, we all are, and you.”
Montague and Capulet reconcile as friends.
They promise to build statues of their children, as this is a sad and happy end.
A violent feud has come to an end; the sun will bow his head down low,
“For never was a story of more woe, than this of Juliet and her Romeo.”
([Act . Scene . Line]: 5 . 3 . 310)
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