The scene is Verona, Italy, in about 1450. The action begins with the Capulets planning a marriage between their daughter Juliet (played by 15-year-old Olivia Hussey) and Count Paris. They are having a party that night—a masked ball. There, they hope, Paris will tell the other guests that he will marry Juliet.
Lady Capulet tells Juliet that she may soon be married to Paris. Juliet’s nurse is more excited than Juliet at the news. Marriage doesn’t interest Juliet at this point. But the thought of a ball in her home excites her.
Meanwhile, Romeo (played by Leonard Whiting, 17) is feeling depressed. Rosaline, the girl he loves, won’t pay attention to him. He and his cousin, Benvolio, are walking through town when they meet a servant of the Capulets. The servant is trying to find the houses of people to be invited to the ball. Romeo looks at the guest list. There he sees Rosaline’s name.
Now Romeo wants to go to the ball—even though it is at the house of the Capulets, his family’s enemies. He and his friends decide to “crash” the party. By wearing masks, they figure, they won’t be spotted by the Capulets.
At the ball, Romeo sees Juliet. He finds her so lovely that he forgets where he is and lifts his mask for a better view of her. Romeo and Juliet meet, alone for a moment. They don’t say much, but they don’t have to. Each senses the other’s love.
Later that night, Romeo sneaks into the Capulet garden and hears Juliet calling his name. He climbs up to her balcony, and the two tell of their love for each other. They will get married secretly, the next day—before Juliet is forced to marry Paris.
Romeo rushes to Friar Laurence’s church early next morning. He tells the friar that he wants to marry Juliet. The friar can’t believe that Romeo could fall in love so quickly. Romeo begs the friar to understand and perform the marriage. Finally, Friar Laurence believes Romeo. He agrees to marry the two, hoping that their marriage will end the hatred and fights between the Capulets and Montegues.
Romeo sends for Juliet, who comes to the church. After the marriage, Juliet goes home. The two will wait for a good moment to break the news to their parents. Tybalt, Juliet’s cousin, sees Romeo coming from the church. He calls Romeo a few names, hoping to get the young Montegue into a fight. But Romeo surprises Tybalt by acting friendly, for Tybalt is now his cousin, too. Tybalt, of course, doesn’t know that Romeo has married Juliet.
Mercutio thinks that his friend Romeo is afraid, so he steps in and faces Tybalt. At first, it seems as if Tybalt and Mercutio are just going to insult each other and flash their swords around. But the fight begins to get serious. Romeo jumps between the two men, trying to stop the fight. But when he does, Tybalt runs his sword through Mercutio. This happens so quickly that when Mercutio falls to the ground, everyone thinks he is faking. But he is not. And he dies yelling, “A plague on both your houses!”
Mercutio lies dead in the street. As Tybalt and his friends leave, Romeo struggles with his anger and grief. He doesn’t believe in killing, but he feels he must get revenge for his friend’s death. Finally, Romeo picks up Mercutio’s sword. Then he races through the streets again, Tybalt draws his sword. But this time there is no laughter. There is no fooling around. The fight is fierce and long, sometimes with swords, sometimes without. It ends, finally, when Romeo gives Tybalt a deadly slash.
Tybalt’s body is taken home. The whole family, including Juliet, is very upset. Yet Juliet realizes that if her cousin had not died, her husband Romeo would have. The Capulets, demanding revenge, carry Tybalt’s body to the prince’s palace. The prince, who promised to punish the next person to cause a death, doesn’t ask how the fight started. Instead, he says that Romeo must get out of town.
Romeo rushes to Friar Laurence, who urges Romeo to leave town. But the friar will try to get him and Juliet together somehow. Juliet’s nurse arrives, saying that Juliet wants to see Romeo before he leaves. Late that night, Romeo goes to Juliet’s room. They part the next morning at dawn afraid that they may never see each other again.
Juliet’s father decides that his daughter will marry Count Paris the next day. Juliet runs to Friar Laurence, who offers her a drug that will cause a death-like sleep. If Juliet takes the drug, she will seem to be dead. Later, she will wake up in the family tomb, and the friar and Romeo will take her to Mantua. That night, Juliet drinks the drug.
Juliet’s family thinks the sleeping girl is dead. They hold a funeral and place her body in the family tomb. Friar Laurence sends a message to Romeo, telling about the drug. But before the message arrives, Romeo hears that Juliet is dead. Quickly, he buys some poison and goes to the Capulet tomb. He takes a last look at his love. Then, thinking she’s dead, he poisons himself.
Juliet wakes up—too late. Her Romeo is dead. Feeling no reason to live any longer, she pulls a dagger from his belt. “Let me die,” she says—and stabs herself.
Only now do the Capulets and Montegues see that there has been too much hatred, too much revenge. The two families make peace with each other, as they march together to bury their dead children. The prince urges them never to forget these sad events: “For never was a story of more woe, than this of Juliet and her Romeo.”
