The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet

Summary

1947 BBC live studio production of William Shakespeare’s tragedy Romeo and Juliet.

Theatre play

Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare [more information]

Play synopsis

'A long-standing feud between the Montagues and the Capulets flares up in a brawl on the streets of Verona, halted only by the arrival of Prince Escalus. Romeo, only son of the Montagues, is hopelessly in love with the unattainable Rosaline. Attempting to shake him out of his melancholy, his friends Mercutio and Benvolio persuade him to go to a party at the Capulets’ house. There he meets and falls instantly in love with Juliet, the Capulets’ only daughter, and she with him. With the help of Juliet’s Nurse, they are secretly married the next day by Friar Laurence. Juliet’s cousin Tybalt quarrels with Romeo and in the fight which ensues Mercutio is killed. Romeo avenges his friend’s death and kills Tybalt, for which he is banished from Verona on pain of death. After spending a single night with his bride, he escapes to Mantua. Juliet learns that her parents plan to marry her to Count Paris. Distraught, she turns to Friar Laurence, who devises a plan. He gives her a drug which will make her appear to be dead. The intention is that her parents will place her in the family tomb and when she awakes from her drugged sleep, Romeo will be waiting to escape with her to Mantua. When Romeo returns to Verona, he believes her really to be dead and kills himself. Waking to find Romeo dead beside her, Juliet kills herself. The two families, united in grief, vow to end their feud’ (source: http://www.rscshakespeare.co.uk/romeoJuliet.html).

Production history

Romeo and Juliet was written in 1595-96 .

Date of transmission

Sunday 5 October 1947

Time

8.30-10.30pm

Channel

BBC Television

Production company

BBC

Credits

Producer

Michael Barry

Playwright

William Shakespeare

Music

James Hartley

Sets / Settings

Stephen Bundy

Cast

Jane Arden
Anthony Bacon
John Bailey	Romeo
Bruce Belfrage	Capulet
Jacqueline Boiteux	Page to Mercutio
Stafford Byrne	Montague
Rosalie Crutchley	Juliet
Basil [Royal] Dawson	Paris
Kenneth Firth	Balthasar
Norma Forrest
John Gatrell	Benvolio
Michael Goodliffe	Tybalt
Eric Hillyard
Margaret Hope
George Howe	Friar Laurence
Douglas Hurn
Agnes Lauchlan	Nurse to Juliet
John Laurent
Marne Maitland	Sampson
Andrew Osborn	Chorus
James Ottaway	Peter
Victor Platt	Abraham / An Apothecary
John Raggett
Jack Rodney
John Rudling	Gregory; An Old Man / Friar John
Robert Sansom	Escalus
André Van Gyseghem	Mercutio
Una Venning	Lady Capulet
Marguerite Young	Lady Montague

Additional details

Origination

Live from studio

Vision original

Monochrome

Later transmissions

Presented again at 8.30pm on Monday 13 October 1947.

Extant status

No archival copy is known to exist.

Play tags

tragedy

Print sources

Title

Radio Times, 3 October 1947 (Magazine)

Linking notes

listing, p. 35; article, p. 33

Title

Romeo and Juliet (Website: database)

Author/creator

BUFVC

Reference

http://bufvc.ac.uk/shakespeare/index.php/title/av37366