Romeo and Juliet~ruclarnation
MAYORAL PROCLAMATION
IN OBSERVANCE OF WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE'S BIRTHDAY
REAS, the exact date of your birthday has been lost to history,
but the fact of your infant baptism in the Church of the Holy
Trinity in Stratford-on-Avon is recorded as April 26, 1564, and the
infant mortality rate of those days made common the baptism of
babies at two or three days of age; and
WHEREAS, April 23rd is the time of the Festival of St. George,
patron saint of England, and the date on which you retired from the
theatre and this world; and
WHEREAS, we Highlanders enjoy honoring literary genius and join
with others throughout your city of Stratford-on-Avon and
throughout the world in celebrating April 23rd as your birthday;
and
WHEREAS, Queen Elizabeth assisted you by keeping the theaters open
in spite of petitions presented to her to close them because of the
plague, and Highlander King James VI of Scotland, successor to
Queen Elizabeth and the first monarch to rule over both England and
Scotland at the same time and James I of England, who changed the
fortune of your theatre on May 19, 1603, when he granted you a
patent appointing you to the King's Players and Grooms of the
Chamber Extraordinary, which made you and your players servants and
favorites of his court and placed you in constant demand with
forty-one court performances in four years; and
WHEREAS, during your lifetime you wrote thirty-seven full-length
plays, five lengthy poems and one hundred fifty-four sonnets, and
we commend you for these lasting literary works of genius and have
planned events this evening to honor your greatness; and
WHEREAS, Romeo and Juliet, your play about two s tar-crossed teenage
lovers which was first published in 1597 and was an immediate
success; and
WHEREAS, we the Highlander Students, Faculty and Citizens of
Clermont wish to honor you with a special party and cake tonight
on this the occasion of your 425th birthday, and we humbly present,
as the chief .entertainment for our celebration this evening Romeo
and Juliet; and
NOW, THEREFORE, I Robert A. Pool, Mayor of the City of Clermont,
Florida, Gem of the Hills, do wish to present to you, William
Shakespeare, the keys to our fair City and bid you welcome. It is
indeed an honor to have so renown a guest in our community.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto
set my hand, and caused the Seal of
the City of Clermont, Florida, this.
,Z,, / ~t day of (.,1,0~ ~, 19 8 9 .
Attest:
Robert A. Pool, Mayor
Clerk