Mercutio

Mercutio (

Though often fun-loving and witty, the latter demonstrated in his Queen Mab speech in the first act, Mercutio's sense of humour can at times be facetious or even coarse, much to his friends' annoyance. He is also moody and given to sudden outbursts of temper, one of which sets a key plot development in motion.

Role in the play

One of Romeo's closest friends, Mercutio entreats Romeo to forget about his unrequited love for a girl named

The name Mercutio was present in Shakespeare's sources for Romeo and Juliet, though his character was not well developed and he was presented as a romantic rival for Juliet.[3] The name is first used in Luigi Da Porto's 1530 Giulietta e Romeo. Da Porto briefly introduces a character named Marcuccio Guertio, a noble youth "with very cold hands, in July as in January", who makes Giulietta Cappelletti appreciate the warm hands of Romeo Montecchi.^[4][5]

Mercutio's death

Earlier versions of the story described a different chain of events leading to Tybalt's death, omitting Mercutio completely. Arthur Brooke's The Tragical History of Romeus and Juliet and William Painter's 1567 versions of the story both left the entire episode solely to Romeo and Tybalt. In both stories, Tybalt attacks the pacifist Romeo with such force that Romeo is forced to take up the sword to defend himself. He is then banished rather than executed because the killing was provoked. In 1672, English poet John Dryden wrote, "Shakespeare show'd the best of his skill in his Mercutio, and he said himself, that he was forced to murder him in the third Act, to being killed by him."^[6]

The addition of Mercutio into the fray increases the tension, and Tybalt is seen as a slightly more peaceful character than in previous versions, as Mercutio is disgusted by the fact that Tybalt continues to search for a quarrel with Romeo, when Romeo is trying to bring peace between them. Mercutio hurls insults and taunts at Tybalt, and draws the sword first, in reaction to Tybalt's insults, which are directed to Romeo.

Mercutio's death in Act III, scene I is the pivotal point of the play, which up to this point is relatively light-hearted.^[7] Mercutio's death is sudden and makes death a dark reality for several characters, causing a domino effect that leads ultimately to the tragic climax.

Performers

A number of famous actors have played the role of Mercutio. A small sampling follows.

Stage

• In 1933–1934, Orson Welles played the role of Mercutio in the Katharine Cornell repertory company's seven-month transcontinental tour — his professional debut on the American stage.
• In 1935, Laurence Olivier and John Gielgud alternated the roles of Romeo and Mercutio in a London stage production directed by Gielgud.
• In 1945, Ralph Richardson made his Broadway debut as Mercutio opposite Maurice Evans’ Romeo and Katharine Cornell’s Juliet.
• In 1947, Paul Scofield played Mercutio in a production directed by Peter Brook.
• In 1958, Alec McCowen enjoyed a major success as Mercutio in London.
• In 1976, Michael Pennington played the role opposite Ian McKellen and Francesca Annis in Trevor Nunn's production for the Royal Shakespeare Company.
• In 1992, Colm Feore played Mercutio in a production directed by Richard Monette at Canada's Stratford Festival. Antoni Cimolino played Romeo and Megan Follows was Juliet.
• In 2006, Benjamin Walker portrayed Mercutio during the Williamstown Theater Festival with Emmy Rossum as Juliet and Greg Hildreth as Benvolio.
• In 2024, Ashley Byam portrayed Mercutio to critical acclaim in a new production at Shakespeare's Globe in London.

Film

• In 1936,
  Leslie Howard
  as Romeo.
• In 1961, Russ Tamblyn played the Mercutio character, Riff Lorton, in the film adaptation of West Side Story, the musical modernised version of Romeo and Juliet.
• In 1968, John McEnery portrayed Mercutio in Franco Zeffirelli's film Romeo and Juliet.
• In 1976, Robin Nedwell played Mercutio in the Thames Television production directed by Joan Kemp-Welch, with Christopher Neame as Romeo and Ann Hasson as Juliet.
• In 1978, Anthony Andrews played the role in the BBC Television Shakespeare production, the first in a series of adaptations of all Shakespeare's plays.
• In 1996, Harold Perrineau portrayed Mercutio in Baz Luhrmann's modernised version, William Shakespeare's Romeo + Juliet.
• In 1998, Ben Affleck portrayed actor Edward Alleyn in the romantic comedy Shakespeare in Love. In the film, Alleyn serves as history's first Mercutio.
• In 2007,
  Romeo x Juliet
  .
• In 2011, Hale Appleman portrayed Mercutio in Alan Brown's Private Romeo, a modern-day adaptation set at an all-male military academy.
• In 2013,
  film adaptation directed by Carlo Carlei, starring Douglas Booth as Romeo and Hailee Steinfeld
  as Juliet.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Mercutio.

• Complete listing of all of Mercutio's lines
• Mercutio Character Analysis at Shakespeare Online