Working with Shakespeare

Thanks to Esmeralda and Polka Dot, I am retelling Romeo and Juliet is my screenplay project this month. This is giving me some unique challenges.

As I've mentioned, before I am a huge Shakespeare fan. Romeo and Juliet, however, is not my favorite play and West Side Story's retelling may have scarred me forever. ;-)

I just don't know what Shakespeare was trying to say with this play.

Is Romeo and Juliet's romance serious, even from the beginning? It seems so over the top. And Romeo and Juliet are the victims of the play--they do not drive a lot of the events like majority of Shakespeare's tragedies.

I feel like Shakespeare play retellings should stick with the message he was trying to communicate...but when I'm not sure what that was, I'm lost.

So, how do I cope with this? Could I mix two Shakespeare plays to spice things up and create something more original?

There are several similarities and contrasts in Romeo and Juliet and Hamlet that have always fascinated me. Could I combine these?
What if Romeo and Juliet were not the victims of the play, but truly drove some of the conflict?

I think my story is going to stray from many of the themes of Romeo and Juliet, but I hope I can still keep its essence. I also hope I can explore and borrow from Hamlet, which happens to be one of my favorite plays. ;-)

We'll see. I still have 9/10 to go in my script. I keep reminding myself this is an exercise and that it will not and would not be the next box office sellout. If I can keep my mood light while I am writing, the story will come much easier. And I can always edit, even major plot elements. Right?

Thanks for reading,
Miss Pickwickian