Olivia Hussey from Zefferelli’s ‘Romeo and Juliet’ makes the intense vulnerability of true love look magnificent.
Sir Kenneth MacMillan’s version of ‘Romeo and Juliet’ is my favorite full-length ballet, Sergei Prokofiev’s breathtaking score a favorite composition of music. As a student of martial arts, I loved drawing my sword in defense of my Capulet kin.
Romeo and Juliet’ is two love addicts acting out, and look how that ended.
I think ‘West Side Story’ is one of the greatest, if not the greatest, musicals ever put onscreen – or stage, for that matter. I, frankly, like Zeffirelli’s ‘Romeo and Juliet’ very much, too. I grew up with that… I loved it. I loved the score; I loved the acting.
I have one car that works; it’s fast and safe: an Audi 5. And I have two old cars that never work: an old Peugeot convertible, and an Alfa Romeo Giulia.
When I step out onto the ice to compete ‘Romeo and Juliet,’ I don’t feel like a fighter. I feel very nervous, and it’s very difficult for me to get into the mindset for it.
Romeo is the most misunderstood character in literature, I think. He’s hardcore to play because he’s displaying the characteristics of Hamlet at the beginning, and, well, then everything else happens.
I take the subway all the time here in New York. I love people watching and trying to figure out everybody’s background, especially teenagers – they’re so uninhibited when they display puppy love. I concoct stories in my mind: ‘Are you guys like Romeo and Juliet?’
What if Shakespeare had had a test audience for Romeo and Juliet or Hamlet?
Sometimes the leads are equally balanced, like in ‘Romeo and Juliet,’ but sometimes they’re just not.
Doing Shakespeare in the Park has always been a dream. Everyone else says Hamlet, but I want to play Romeo.
I think by around the time I was about 8 or 9, the idea of filmmaking probably took hold. I made little Super 8 extravaganzas when I was a kid, the first being my own version of ‘Romeo and Juliet,’ and where I played all the parts except for Juliet.
When ‘Romeo and Juliet’ came along, I fell in love with the way that it was written and how innocent and vulnerable it was and how different it was from ‘True Grit.’ I really liked that.
I wanted to show people I’m like a modern Romeo. I’m romantic, but I can also be seductive. I can be cool and charismatic, swagger-type.
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