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One of Shakespeare's most famous plays gets a 21st century makeover in a
new version of "Romeo and Juliet" which will unfold through Twitter messages and
on the YouTube video website.
Entitled "Such Tweet Sorrow," the experiment is a collaboration between the
Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) and Mudlark, which produces entertainment on
mobile telephones.
Organizers have already outlined a contemporary "narrative arc" loosely
based on the original tragedy, and the cast will improvise the rest through
Tweets which have already begun to appear on the website
www.suchtweetsorrow.com.
The production will take place over five weeks and allows for the
characters to interact not only among themselves but also with members of the
"audience."
Each character writes their own tweets, guided by an existing storyline and
diary which outlines where they are at any moment in the adventure.
And so two families named after the original adversaries the Montagues and
Capulets have loathed each other for years after a fatal car crash in an unnamed
English market town in 2000.
Juliet, played by actress Charlotte Wakefield, is just turning 16 and
wonders whether she should have a birthday party to celebrate. She posts a video
on YouTube showing viewers a typical teenager's bedroom.
Her Twitter name is @julietcap16 while Romeo's entry into the messaging
world comes later as "he is too busy on his Xbox."
"We have no real idea of what the next five weeks will bring, but we are
holding onto our seatbelts," said Charles Hunter from Mudlark.
Michael Boyd, artistic director of the RSC, added: "Our ambition is always
to connect people with Shakespeare and bring actors and audiences closer
together.
"Mobile phones don't need to be the antichrist for theater. This digital
experiment ... allows our actors to use mobiles to tell their stories in real
time and reach people wherever they are in a global theater."
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