Star crossed lovers
People still want to believe
We ended up in Verona for the weekend. It was my husband’s thirty-first birthday, which he called anticlimactic. I found it funny and was excited to have some time with him in a quaint Italian city.
It was cold and rainy, and there was not much to do except eat. The Arena, which is supposed to be beautiful, was closed for repairs. Apparently, in the summer they hold operas there, but that day it was five degrees. I remembered that Juliet’s house from Romeo and Juliet was in Verona. I rolled my eyes at the idea of going somewhere touristy like that. However, I was curious, and the city was empty.
I stood under the famous balcony, where there is a bronze statue of “Giulietta,” and I couldn’t help but smile. Here we were, in a place that was not historically real, however a real medieval house, inspired by a fictional story from centuries ago. A few people were there smiling, pointing, taking pictures, and I understood it. The story of Romeo and Juliet is a story true to our human core. It is love against everything else. We learn this story about two young lovers when we are also young, and imagine how it feels to love with that intensity.
When I was thirteen or fourteen, I watched Shakespeare in Love for the first time. I remember being fascinated by Shakespeare’s character. How could such an impressive historical figure be portrayed as a reckless young man in love? This movie won seven Academy Awards, including Best Costume Design by Sandy Powell. Gwyneth Paltrow’s beauty, combined with the extravagant Elizabethan fashion, resulted in a sensual yet delicate wardrobe. The movie itself has a beautiful combination of historically accurate costumes with a modern touch- something special I cannot quite put my finger on. Shakespeare is portrayed as a kind of rebel with a romantic soul, dressed in leather, light blouses, and an earring.
This fictional love story, centered around a very real character, blurs the line between reality and imagination. It creates a world that holds the most human feelings at its core: love, and the desire to believe.
I stepped into this world when I stepped into Juliet’s house in Verona. I wondered how dexterous a writer must be to cultivate feelings and stories that endure across so many generations. It gave me faith to think we can still relate to writing in this way, and that young people still return to a real place that holds such feelings.
Charles Dickens visited Verona in 1844 and later published Pictures from Italy in London in 1846, where he described the city and dedicated a tribute to Shakespeare, calling it “Pleasant Verona!” Verona was pleasant indeed- but what stayed with me most was how comforting it felt to see that, centuries later, people still want to believe.
Excellent reflections and centuries connections!
A question: May be The Beatles were also inspired by the same muse in 1967?, when they created and launched the song “All you need is love”.