Origin of the Feud: Essays on Shakespeare's 'Romeo & Juliet'

A collection of essays on Shakespeare’s ROMEO & JULIET by author, actor, and director David Blixt, exploring the nature of the show, revealing its history and inspirations, unlocking the hidden comedy in the famed Balcony Scene, and positing a never-before-heard origin to the famous Capulet-Montague feud - an idea that sparked Blixt’s acclaimed Star-Cross’d series. Having performed and directed this play in more than three-dozen productions, Blixt often jokes that he knows this play "better than I know most people." In this deeply-researched yet accessibly conversational work, he has collected his thoughts on the play in the form of short essays, each exploring a different aspect of Shakespeare's great love story - which Blixt often likes to refute, saying "in a great love story, they'd live." From THE JULIET TRAP to THE WINDOW SCENE, Blixt turns the misconceptions about the play on their head, returning to the text to find great humor, and through that humor, greater tragedy. A must-have for all serious Shakespeare scholars and every actor tackling this classic play!