Friar Lawrence and Paris are talking about Paris's marriage to Juliet when she walks in and Paris and her fight. Juliet asks to confess to Friar Lawrence so he rushes Paris off so he can talk to Juliet. Juliet then says that she will kill herself if the Friar can't figure out how she doesn't have to be married to Paris. Friar Lawrence tells Juliet that the day before the wedding to drink this potion and it will make her fall asleep, but make her seem dead. He will send a letter to Romeo so he will know this, when Juliet is layed in the Capulet's Tomb, he will be there to rescue her when she wakes up. Then they can live happily ever after in Mantua.
The night before Juliet drank the sleeping potion, in the morning the nurse was sent to Juliet's room to wake her up and found her dead. She wailed and Lady Capulet came and weeped with her. Lord Capulet came to see what's wrong, and he was told Juliet was dead. Paris, Friar Lawrence, and musician come in and when Paris saw her, he began to weep as well.
Romeo is explaining a dream he had when his servant Balthasar comes and tells him that Juliet is dead. Romeo cries out, "Then I defy you, stars" He then tells Balthasar that to get him a pen and paper to right to his father, and to hire some horses so he can go to Verona to see Juliet that night. Balthasar is afraid to leave Romeo but Romeo tells him to go, but then asks if Balthasar has a letter from Friar Lawrence, but he doesn't.
Friar Lawrence is in his cell when Friar John comes in. Friar Lawrence asks if Romeo got his letter, but Friar John was not able to deliver the letter because he was quarantined in a house because people thought he was infected by a plague. After hearing this, Friar Lawrence says that he'll go and rescue Juliet since he doesn't think Romeo will be there.
Paris is at Capulet's tomb when he hears his page whistle that theirs someone coming. He hides and realizes that it's Romeo. Romeo asks Balthasar to leave and give his letter to his father, being worried he loosely follows Romeo. Paris and Romeo begin to fight and Romeo wins. He brings Paris down to Juliet and Romeo drinks the poison and dies. Juliet wakes up and kills herself with Romeo's dagger.
Paris's page returns with the watch who find Friar Lawrence and Balthasar loitering nearby. The Prince and the Capulets come and they discover Romeo and Juliet's bodies. Montague arrives and says that his wife died over grieving Romeo's exile. upon the Princes request, Friar Lawrence explains Romeo and Juliet's love, marriage and the consequences. Balthasar gives the Prince the letter Romeo wrote to his father to support Friar Lawrence's claim. The Prince scolds both families because this was all a result of their feud. Both Capulet and Montague end the feud then and there.