Romeo, Romeo

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A large National Council of Teachers of English teacher survey reported by Education Week lists Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth, and Hamlet among the most frequently assigned texts in U.S. And Folger Shakespeare Library notes its edition sales (a good “what schools buy” proxy) had Romeo and Juliet first, followed by Hamlet, Macbeth, then A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Othello, and Julius Caesar.

But before I start talking about British school subject matter, I better describe one certificate and one assessment of skills that are more or less standard in the United Kingdom.

First, there is the GCSE or General Certificate of Secondary Education.
It’s the main set of school qualifications students typically take in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, usually at age 15–16 (Year 11). Students take several subjects (like English, Math, Sciences, History, etc.), and the results are used for next steps such as A-levels or vocational courses.
And then there is the AQA -  which stands for Assessment and Qualifications Alliance an exam board in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland that creates the syllabuses, sets the exams, and award qualifications for subjects such as English, History, Sciences, etc.).
Now back to the Shakespearean plays most frequently studied in the United Kingdom.

Most-studied in UK secondary schools - In the UK, the gravitational center is Macbeth—especially at GCSE level. A UK secondary teaching survey reports Macbeth as the most popular overall, and one study cited within the literature reports ~65% teaching it for GCSE (with Romeo and Juliet next).
Exam boards also list Macbeth, Romeo and Juliet, The Tempest, The Merchant of Venice, Much Ado About Nothing, Julius Caesar and Twelfth Night.  12th night is sometimes add it to the list.

So before I start going into some of the modern productions of Shakespeare's plays, I thought it might be more fun, as well as instructional, to go back and look at the originals.

But first I'm going to give you what I hope is a simple timeline - about a minute - that roughly puts Romeo and Juliet into perspective date wise.
Early 1590s: early blood-and-thunder tragedy + first big history hits (think Henry VI plays, Richard III).

1594–1596: lively early comedies and experiments as his voice sharpens (e.g., Love's Labour's Lost, A Midsummer Night's Dream).

c. 1594–1596: Romeo and Juliet (mid-1590s), one of his early breakthrough tragedies.
1595–1596: Richard II (another key mid-1590s work).

1596–1597: The Merchant of Venice (often placed around this period).

1598–1599: Much Ado About Nothing (late-1590s “mature comedy”).

1599–1600: Julius Caesar (turn-of-the-century political tragedy).

1599–1601: Hamlet (written around this window; many place it at 1601).

Early 1600s: the “big tragedy” period ramps up (including Macbeth, usually dated after James’s 1603 accession).

1610–1611: late “romance/magic” phase, including The Tempest and The Winter's Tale.

1613: very late career work like Henry VIII.

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