Author Sue Barnard takes her readers to Verona

27th September 2017

#TalkingLocationWith…. author Sue Barnard, who takes her readers to Verona.

Two households, both alike in dignity,

In fair Verona, where we lay our scene,

From ancient grudge break to new mutiny,

Where civil blood makes civil hands unclean.

From forth the fatal loins of these two foes

A pair of star-cross’d lovers take their life,

Whose misadventured, piteous overthrows

Do with their death bury their parents’ strife…

So begins William Shakespeare’s tragic tale of Romeo and Juliet, the story for which the city of Verona is justly famous. In fact, more than one-third of Shakespeare’s plays are set wholly or partly in Italy, and all of them display an amazingly detailed knowledge of the country, its customs and its people. Indeed, some Shakespeare scholars believe that this is where the Bard spent his so-called “lost years”, between leaving his home town of Stratford-upon-Avon in 1585 and arriving in London seven years later.

The jury is still out on whether or not this is true, but the fact remains that Verona (perhaps more than any other place which is the setting for a Shakespeare play) has definitely made the most of this association. Fans of Romeo & Juliet can now visit several sites in the city which claim to have links with the characters and events from this iconic love story.

Casa di Giulietta

Casa di Romeo

The best-known and most popular of these is the Casa di Giulietta (Juliet’s house), situated in a small courtyard just off the busy Via Cappello. The attraction itself is a twentieth-century invention, but the three-storey period house is tastefully and sensitively furnished, and includes some of the costumes and furniture which were used in Franco Zeffirelli’s wonderful 1968 film. The courtyard, which is free to enter, is home to a bronze statue of Juliet (see above) – no doubt a reference to Lord Montague’s promise to “raise her statue in pure gold” – and is overlooked by a small but perfectly-formed balcony which is accessible from inside the house.

A couple of blocks away, along the Via Arche Scaligere, is the Casa di Romeo (Romeo’s House). This impressive-looking fifteenth-century building is believed to have originally been the home of the Montecchi family (who became the Montagues in the play). The house is now a restaurant.

Juliet’s Tomb

The other main attraction is the Tomba di Giulietta (Juliet’s tomb) – a fine red marble sarcophagus which can be found in the medieval cloister of a former Capuchin monastery. This is the scene where, in Shakespeare’s play, Friar Lawrence’s plan to reunite the lovers goes so horribly wrong.

The crypt of San Remo

A short walk away is the magnificent San Remo church with its highly unusual two-storey structure. Although there is nothing to link this church directly to the story of Romeo & Juliet, I can easily imagine the chapel in the crypt being the location for the lovers’ secret wedding.

But Verona isn’t just about Romeo & Juliet; visitors who can tear themselves away from the story of the star-cross’d lovers will find lots of other things to entertain them. The amazing Roman Arena, which flanks one side of the Piazza Brà, is now home to the famous annual Verona Opera Festival. Other attractions include the Giardino Giusti gardens, the Roman Theatre, the historic Castelvecchio, and an awesome array of fascinating churches. One of my favourites is San Zeno Maggiore, a short distance from the city centre. This spectacular medieval basilica boasts some amazing frescos of the Last Supper, at which the Disciples appear to be eating roast scorpion washed down with pints of Guinness or lager!

San Zeno

My personal favourite place in Verona is the discreet spot where tasteful homage is paid to the English playwright who placed the city so firmly on the literary map. In one corner of the Piazza Brà, adjacent to the large arched portal which marks the start of the road to Mantua, is a small bronze bust of Shakespeare himself. Alongside, in English and Italian, are inscribed the words spoken by Romeo on receiving the news of his banishment from Verona:

There is no world without Verona walls

But purgatory, torture, hell itself,

Hence banishèd is banished from the world,

And world’s exile is death.

If you love the story of Romeo & Juliet but hate the way it ended, you might enjoy The Ghostly Father. The novel is a part-prequel, part-sequel to the original tale, told from the point of view of the Friar, with a few new twists and a whole new outcome. What if the story really did happen in 15^th-century Italy – and what if it didn’t happen quite the way we think it did…?

Thank you so much to Sue for sharing such great tips for a trip to Verona. You can of course buy her book through the TripFiction database to transport you to the city via fiction and you can follow Sue on Twitter and Facebook

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