DS12 and Romeo and Juliet - help me make a decision!

[eternityabove]

My 12 year old ( dyslexic, very young for his age) has been invited by his school to see Romeo and Juliet as a play in the theatre. He does not want to go but asked if we can watch a film of it at home. So we are going to show him that version with Leonardo Di Caprio and Clare Danes. Which I think is a brilliant adaptation of the play..

They will later be studying R&J in school.

However, I have always needed to read the Shakespeare play before seeing a production to understand what is going on. So my dilemma is:
If I read R&J with him before showing him the film, will this put him off ( I am sure he will find it dull as dishwater)?
Or if I show him the film will it be engaging enough that he will enjoy it or will it put him off as he won't understand a word they are saying?

When I gave him examples of how they speak in R&J ' Romeo, Romeo wherefore art thou?' ' If you ask for me tomorrow you will find me a grave mean' ' You have made worm meat of me.' He exclaimed ' That's not english!' Which I think gives an indication of how he is going to struggle with the language. He struggles with normal modern English let alone Elizabethan!

So, do I read R&J with him before showing the film, or just show the film?

Just show him the film. Which will be easier for him that reading the play

I think you're overthinking it - the plays were written to be performed not read off the paper. Let him watch it before reading it.

Show the film. That was huge when I was 12. Meant when we did it for GCSE we knew what it was all about and knew half the lines already.

Based on what you've said, I'd let him watch it first.
Then afterwards maybe look at small chunks of the text from his favourite parts of the film.

We have these which are a good introduction to the story to help understand a full length production. We've used them for Hamlet and MacBeth
Shakespeare books for kids

Thanks everyone.

I have huge stresses in every area of my life right now and really struggling to think straight about, well anything.

I often find Shakespeare, Dickens etc easier to understand if I’ve seen the film first. Having seen it acted out means I’m less likely to get bogged down in the archaic language and actually follow the overall plot. Might be the same for your DS?

Ooh , thanks for this - that's really helpful!

If the only options are film and playscript, absolutely film first.

However, another option might be a short easy-read story version so he gas an overall understanding of the plot and main characters, so he can follow the film even more easily? Something like this
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Shakespeare-story-Romeo-Juliet/dp/B004ZKVVE0 which is aimed at KS2?

Cross-post, sorry!

I think you are right.

I am one of those strange people who actually likes reading plays as I love all of the detailed analysis of the text and plot etc.

But DS is not me. When I was helping him with some poetry for school, he looked at me - me all lit up and excited - and said, ' you really love this don't you Mummy? You were one of those kids at school, weren't you Mummy?' And yes, I was. He is not however, so you are right, being bogged down in the language as his first experience will probably not help him.

We saw that version at school. It was a long time ago, but seem to remember some nudity and sex scene. Maybe a PG version would be better if your DS is young for his age?

No offence but reading Shakespeare first will ensure he never understands the story. Plays are meant to be watched and experienced. You just need to find 2 decent modern interpretations - one that uses Shakespearen language and one that doesn’t. My neice loves Black - it’s set in gangland Brussels and is a love story between an North African and a Sub-Saharan African.

There are cartoon / kid appropriate versions. Bollywood versions. You just need to research

Thank you : )

Show him the film. I used to be a TA in secondary and that film used to engage the boys that hated Shakespeare - it's brilliant.
If you're anywhere near London they're currently doing screenings with a live choir at the Union Chapel:-www.backyardcinema.co.uk/romeo-juliet-london/

Show him the Romeo and Juliet version but put the subtitles on.

Then (if you can) find a more classical slower version and do the same.

Show him the film. I teach Shakespeare at degree level and always recommend that students watch the plays rather than just reading them (and plenty of undergraduates struggle with the language too, at first, and would probably agree with your son that it's 'not English' 😉).

I agree that giving him a quick plot summary first ought help too.

Wow! That sounds really interesting!

Wow, that sounds brilliant but we are not near enough to London really.

I often wish I did live in London though.

That's a good idea.

BBC has short animated versions aimed at KS2 that are, again, a really good entry point:

www.bbc.co.uk/teach/class-clips-video/articles/zg339ty

Oh and if you can get to a real life version even better

Also when reading look at dyslexia friendly book options (at least at home. He might decide he would be seen dead with it at school) https://amzn.eu/d/1SHSiWQ and consider getting an audio book he can listen to at the same time

@ChristmasPuddingAllRound what age range would you say those books are good for?

(Sorry to hijack your thread OP. FWIW I agree with everyone else that you should show him the film!)

Oooh thanks!

It’s not strange at all, as an adult I completely understand it and will usually read books before seeing films if they’re not complicated classics. But when I had to read Great Expectations aged 14 I vividly remember being assigned 3 chapters as homework to read over the weekend and my mum eventually found me sobbing in my bedroom; I understood all the words individually but just couldn’t derive any meaning from the text. I was a very academic child so she’d never seen me have a panic attack over reading homework before, it was the only time she ever wrote me a note to get me out of homework. I still remember the feeling of being totally stuck on this book and it was twenty years ago!

Sounds like he’s going to be absolutely fine with you there to guide him through the learning experience, and maybe he’ll come to love it