What is Bas Lurhmann trying to achieve by placing

What is Bas Lurhmann trying to achieve by placing “Romeo and Juliet” in a modern context?

The opening scene of any play is extremely important because it can play a major role in establishing key elements throughout the rest of the performance. The main elements are the characters, themes, language, settings and plot. The audience can form a basic idea of these elements involved to spark their interest in the play. At the end of an opening scene the audience have usually had an insight into the typical mood and language of the play. It also enables the viewers to have a taster of the style of the author´s writing.

In Victorian England, when Shakespeare’s first plays were being shown, the language in the opening scenes was particularly important. The plays were shown in open-air theatres, with no music, lighting and scenery and therefore the main factor, which could keep the audience interested, was the language. The opening of any play is always the most critical time. If an actor can’t grab an audience’s attention in the first ten minutes, it’s unlikely that he/she will succeed in holding it for the other part of the play.

In the film “Romeo and Juliet” Bas Lurhmann is using a modern situation to appeal to modern audience. He makes it interesting and attractive to young people, he changes their whole view about Shakespeare’s play. Lurhmann also updates the old version with some modern features: TV newsreader, guns instead of swords, modern setting (in Verona is replaced by USA), modern clothes and hairstyles.

Romeo and Juliet” is a great tragedy written in 1594. The play is remarkable for its fine language. Romeo and Juliet” has been popular with audiences for generations and has been made into several successful films.

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The film starts with a prologue to introduce us to the setting. The prologue is told by a newsreader, this is a modern way of introducing the prologue. Using a black person to read the prologue is also a method of showing the development in modern culture, it shows the human equality of the modern world. Then we hear the prologue by a voice over on a modern action film scene, then we see the prologue is seen in text titles, still images (flashed titles). Lurhmann uses that so we can understand what the story is about, we understand that the film is going to be a combination of an action and drama “new mutiny” “take their life”, and will have love scenes “star crossed lovers”.

At the beginning of William Shakespere’s unforgettable tragedy, “Romeo and Juliet”, there is a prologue to the play, which is spoken by one of the actors. A prologue introduces a play and explains up what is going to happen. By listening to this speech the audience know from the play’s introductory chorus that “Romeo and Juliet” will end in tragedy:

“”From forth the fatal loins of these two foes”

“A pair of star-crossed lovers take their life”,”

From these lines the audience will understand that suicide and death will be a powerful theme throughout the performance.

The words and the pictures in the prologue help us to understand the plot by telling us background information of where the is the setting “in fair Verona”, where is the conflict (the two families), who are the main characters, what is the story going to be about.

In the film, the music has a big part of the setting and the mood of the characters, every character has his own music which reflects and differs them. Capulets have a western (spoof) music and Montegues have modern hip-hop music. The music expresses comedy in some moments and can control audience’s view.