Romeo and Juliet adaptation

GCSE English

Romeo and Juliet adaptation

In my adaptation of Romeo and Juliet I am going to cast the following actors and actresses:

Prince Escalus: Vinny Jones

Romeo: Michael Owen

Juliet: Rachel Powell

Montague: Johann Cruyff

Capulet: Sven Goran Eriksson

Nurse to Juliet: Dawn French

Paris: David Beckham

Mercutio: Lenny Henry

Benvolio: Thierry Henry

Tybalt: Nicholas Anelka

Friar Lawrence: Stephen Tomkinson

Balthasar: Steven Gerrard

Lady Montague: Hayley Mills

Lady Capulet: Ulrikka Jonsson

This adaptation of Romeo and Juliet is based on a football theme. There are two rival chairmen and their families of two football clubs Manchester United and Manchester City. Both of these football clubs are in Manchester. On the east of Manchester we have Manchester United, on the west of Manchester we have Manchester City. The chairman of Manchester City is Capulet and the chairman of Manchester United is Montague. These two rival football teams have battled through thick and thin to win the Championship to take the title of premiership winners. Every year like a pendulum swings from side to side the championship is won by united one year and city the next it’s carried on like this for years. But one season when Manchester City won the cup, the chairman Capulet threw a party for all those in the team and executives of the club. Romeo the son of Montague the chairman of united was heartbroken and depressed. For his team had lost the cup. Benvolio, Romeo’s cousin persuades him to gatecrash the Capulet’s party with him along side Romeo’s friend Mercutio. They do this and get to the party. The party was going great, as the guests entered old Capulet himself greeted them. Romeo and friends wore bandannas round their mouths so they wouldn’t be recognised, The party was in full swing and everything was going great. Tybalt the nephew of Capulet told old Capulet that Romeo and friends had gatecrashed the party. Capulet wasn’t bothered. Juliet and Romeo then meet as Juliet spills punch on Romeo. The party ends and Romeo is on his way home but climbs a wall and finds Juliet by her window.

They vow to get married. Next morning Romeo goes to church and asks Friar Lawrence to marry Romeo and Juliet. They get married. But then Mercutio and Tybalt have a show down and fight each other. Tybalt kills Mercutio; Romeo is so hurt by this he kills Tybalt because he killed his best friend. Prince Escalus hears of this and banishes Romeo from Manchester.

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Juliet becomes engaged to Paris but she cannot marry him as she is in love with Romeo and is already married. So Friar Lawrence helps her out and gives her ‘magic sleep’. It is a drug, which makes her appear dead for 48 hours. She takes it and ‘dies’. Meanwhile the Friar gives Romeo a phone-call; no one answers so the Friar leaves a message. Romeo doesn’t get it, as his machine is broken. Juliet’s family, grieve for her and Friar Lawrence takes the service. Balthasar, Romeo’s most trustworthy friend, appears at the church and sees what has happened. He immediately drives down to see Romeo and tells him what has happened. Romeo immediately drives to the church, he sees Juliet lying in the coffin, and he commits suicide by shooting himself. Juliet wakes up and sees what has happened and then kills herself with the remaining bullet left in the pistol. The funeral is now for Romeo and Juliet and both teams and chairmen bury the hatchet of the past and vow not to let there be anymore violence between them again.

That is the outline of the story.

I am setting it in Manchester, as it does have to rival teams in the same city. The ‘derbies’ between Manchester City and Manchester United have always been exceptional. Manchester has two high profiled football clubs. The places in which the two rival gangs of Capulet and Montague meet are always in the car park of The Trafford Centre, I have set this here as it’s a popular place and when the gangs arrive it’s always in very expensive cars. The killing of Tybalt and Mercutio is happens just outside the Old Trafford Stadium by the Bobby Moore statue.

I am casting Vinny Jones as Prince Escalus because as he is known as the “hard man of football” I think that people will listen to him when he gives the sentences to Capulet and Montague about having the lives pay the forfeit. I think also that he will be loud enough for the part as well. I have featured Dawn French as the nurse as she is a comedienne and in Shakespeare’s original play the nurse is a light-hearted person with a sense of humour which I think Dawn French is ideal for. I think Lenny Henry is ideal for the part of Mercutio, as in Shakespeare’s original play Mercutio is a funny character and is thinks that life is a permanent joke. As Lenny Henry is a comedian he is ideal for the part. I have put Michael Owen as Romeo and Rachel Powell as Juliet because they can both play football and both play for the opposing side in this movie. Rachel Powell plays for the female side, Rachel Powell is of a different creed and is black I thought this would be good because there is never a Juliet from a different racial background.

I have made it up to date in the sense of the tension between different gangs today, for example arson and murders. Everything is up to date including the team kits of the teams.