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9 - Shakespeare in the City

Adapting Romeo and Juliet

from Part II - The Work Itself and Its Context

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 January 2025

By
Jane Barnette
Edited by
Paul R. Laird  and
Elizabeth A. Wells
Paul R. Laird
Affiliation:
University of Kansas
Elizabeth A. Wells
Affiliation:
Mount Allison University, Canada
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Summary

As a dramaturg who specialises in adaptations for the stage, Jane Barnette considers West Side Story in light of its source, Romeo and Juliet. There are many different ways to focus dramaturgical work for theatrical adaptations, depending on the specific needs of the work in question. Although the entirety of any dramaturgical approach for West Side Story ultimately depends on the approach taken by the director and creative team behind a particular production, in this essay, Barnette grounds her initial inquiry regarding the relationship of West Side Story to Romeo and Juliet in questions central to adapturgy itself. Specifically, she examines the ‘spirit of the source’, as well as the pleasures available for spectators familiar with the source material. Finally, she questions the geography of adaptation–how questions of time and space figure into comparisons between the texts–as well as their production histories.

Keywords

West Side StoryRomeo and Juliettheatrical adaptationArthur Laurentsdramaturgy
Type
Chapter
Information
The Cambridge Companion to West Side Story , pp. 154 - 169
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2025

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