Roztańczone słowa. Potencjał teatralny sceny balu w dramacie Romeo i Julia Williama Szekspira. Część 1
Dancing Words. Theatrical Potential of the Ball Scene in Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. Part I

Summary/Abstract: The function of dance in Shakespeare’s plays, as in all Renaissance culture, has its roots in antiquity, in which dance symbolized concord and harmony that reflected the cosmic movements of celestial bodies. In this context the significance of dance in the ball scene at the beginning of Romeo and Juliet presents itself as a fascinating material to be studied from the perspective of the theatrical potential of the dramatic text. In this scene, music and dance play a symbolical role the aim of which is to highlight the dramatic irony realized by the fusion of rhetorical language and choreography, with the rich formalized poetic language and the ball situation as the key elements of the plot. This fusion opens a range of possible theatrical interpretations, each decision having a major influence on the meaning of this episode. In the article the ball scene is analyzed from the literary, dramatic and historical perspective. The realization of its theatrical potential is illustrated with chosen stage interpretations which prove this scene’s crucial role in suggesting possible interpretations of the whole tragedy.

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