LET”S THROW A WEDDING FOR ROMEO AND JULIET!

THE MONTAGUES and MORE

Group One - The Guest List & Conversation: Who Is Invited, Where Do They Sit, and What Do They Talk About? One of the toughest tasks when planning a wedding of this size is simply getting all the people together. You have two households, both alike in dignity, to consider. From the head of each household, to his immediate family, the bride and groom, their friends, their servants, their servants' servants, well connected businessmen and politicians, old family friends, the shady relatives from the highlands, the royalty!! Your task is awesome. You can't afford to offend anybody, yet there must be peace in the wedding hall.

Your group must complete the following tasks:

* Guest List Fact Finding Sheet (one per group)

* Guest List (including the rank, title, occupation, and interests of each guest) The guest list should include at least 20 people, including family members.

* Names of Guests and where they will sit at the wedding. The seating should take into consideration the different families, social classes, as well as the differing personalities.

* A Sample Conversation Between the Guests at the Ceremony. It must be a minimum of two pages of dialogue. Topics might relate to everyday life, politics, social events, and cultural events.

* Keep the swords in check. Don't have your guests explode into a major argument. (Minor ones are ok)

GROUP SCRAPBOOK: All the above information should be written and compiled into an attractive scrapbook.

Group Two ~ The Service ~ What Type of Wedding Will This Be? What Are Their Beliefs?

Your group has the most important task of all... scripting the wedding. In the play, Friar Lawrence performs the wedding outside the prying eyes of Shakespeare's readers. You are to research your sources and design the entire service including the Friar's words, Romeo and Juliet's vows, the witnesses' roles, any hymns sung during the service, special objects, and any legal or financial conditions that must be considered... after all, we want this relationship to last this time! Make sure it is legal in the eyes of heaven and the law.

Feel free to use the resources for the other groups.

Your group must complete the following tasks:

* Service Fact Finding Sheet (one per group)

* A script of the wedding ceremony, including bride, groom, friar, witnesses, parents, etc. This script should include all key parts of a ceremony and necessary items used in the wedding.

* A performance of the wedding ceremony. Your group may recruit members of other groups to play certain roles. You will rehearse with them prior to the day of the ceremony.

GROUP SCRAPBOOK: All the above information should be written and compiled into an attractive scrapbook/notebook.

Group Three ~ Announcing the Wedding, Creating Decorations and The Wedding Program. How do the bride and groom feel and how will you reflect it in their surroundings?

The wedding of the centuries deserves to be presented in style! You will work closely with the other groups to gather information about their needs in order to create an elegant environment for the wedding! How were weddings announced? Where did they take place? Were there written wedding programs like we use today? What do you think the lovebirds would be feeling on this special day and how might you capture that feeling and express it through your assignments?

* Fact Finding Sheet (one per group)

* Write a well-developed response in which you complete the following tasks:

* Compare and contrast Romeo's and Juliet's experiences with love

* Based on those experiences, predict the thoughts and feelings of each character as they prepare for their wedding.

* Work closely with Group 2 to create the Wedding Program based upon the Ceremony they create. Design a wedding program to distribute to guests highlighting the order of the ceremony and the participants.

* Research the process for announcing a wedding and choose the manner in which you will let guests know they are invited to attend.

* Design SIMPLE wedding decorations and gather props from the Prop Room and from other students in class to decorate for ceremony and feast. The other groups will assist you in the decorating process but you make the decisions!

GROUP SCRAPBOOK: All the above information should be written and compiled into an attractive scrapbook.

Group Four ~ Fashion ~ What Do the Wedding Party and Guests Wear?

The first thing your group will do is to search your resources and determine what types of outfits your wedding party and guests will wear. What can we expect to see at this stellar fiesta? You are to design an ensemble for Romeo. You are to create a scrapbook of outfits that the guests will be wearing.

Remember this is the wedding of the century... your guests will be DRESSED TO THE NINES. Feel free to use the resources for the other groups.

Your group must complete the following tasks:

* Fashion Fact Finding Sheet (one per group)

* A scrapbook of outfits that the Montague’s and their guests will be wearing

* Include a 1-2 page summary of Elizabethan fashions for men, women, and children at the beginning of your scrapbook. Be sure to make distinctions between the clothing of different social classes.

* Include a written description of each outfit (materials, style, color, type of person who would wear it). You should also include a rationale for why this outfit would suit that particular person.

* The pictures may be from books, magazines, the Internet, or original drawings.

* Pay particular attention to Romeo's ensemble. You will design and find an outfit for Romeo to wear in the ceremony. REMEMBER: You have two steps. 1) To design your "dream" version ON PAPER of the costume Romeo would wear and 2) to pull costume items from the costume shop or home to create a simple costume for Romeo to actually wear in our wedding. WE ARE NOT CREATING AN ELABORATE COSTUME! The costume Romeo wears is simply a suggestion of your ideal version on paper!

* Share your findings with the class in order for them to create a simple costume to wear to the wedding.

GROUP SCRAPBOOK: All the above information should be written and compiled into an attractive scrapbook. Your group scrapbook should include a picture and written description for each of the following types of guests at his wedding: upper class man, upper class woman, lower class man, lower class woman, bridal party, bride, and groom.

Congratulations on all your efforts!!! Now you know what it takes to put on a wedding of epic proportions. I hope you had fun broadening the scope of your knowledge of Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare, and the history behind the play. You should be proud of yourselves! If you have any more questions about Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare or his time, you know where to find out about the real stuff, so get going!