 The play is sometimes given a historical setting , enabling audiences to reflect on the underlying conflicts . For example , adaptations have been set in the midst of the Israeli @-@ Palestinian conflict , in the apartheid era in South Africa , and in the aftermath of the Pueblo Revolt . Similarly , Peter Ustinov 's 1956 comic adaptation , Romanoff and Juliet , is set in a fictional mid @-@ European country in the depths of the Cold War . A mock @-@ Victorian revisionist version of Romeo and Juliet 's final scene ( with a happy ending , Romeo , Juliet , Mercutio and Paris restored to life , and Benvolio revealing that he is Paris 's love , Benvolia , in disguise ) forms part of the 1980 stage @-@ play The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby . Shakespeare ’ s R & J , by Joe Calarco , spins the classic in a modern tale of gay teenage awakening . A recent comedic musical adaptation was The Second City 's The Second City 's Romeo and Juliet Musical : The People vs. Friar Laurence , the Man Who Killed Romeo and Juliet , set in modern times . 
