Above: Jonathan Goad (Left) as Hamlet, Geraint Wyn Davies (Right) as The Ghost
Hamlet. Perhaps the greatest known work of William Shakespeare's with over 4,000 lines for the actor playing Hamlet himself. It is a huge understatement to say that Hamlet is quite the undertaking, between its themes, characters and powerful emotions it brings from start to finish. Taking such an iconic Shakespeare play and turning it into a fresh production is perhaps the greatest challenge every theater company faces, but as usual, this proves no trouble for the actors at the Stratford Shakespeare Festival and its director Antoni Cimolino.
Hamlet tells the story of Prince Hamlet, the Prince of Denmark and heir to the throne. After losing his father and learning of his mothers remarriage to his fathers brother Claudius, Hamlet becomes removed and is uneasy with the fact that such a man could take the throne. Hamlet soon learns that a ghost, appearing in the image of the fallen king, has appeared to a few men and Hamlet vows to speak with him. Upon meeting The Ghost and learning that it is his father himself and that he was murdered by his own brother in order to ascend to the throne, Hamlet vows to take revenge on his uncle and all those close to him. But amidst the madness will he lose his mind and himself along the way?
The deciding factor that makes one production of Hamlet shine is non other than the actor playing Hamlet himself. After attending the festival last year and learning that festival favorite Jonathan Goad would be taking on the lead role, I was interested to see how the production as a whole would play out. Needless to say, I was not disappointed. Goad brought a new and incredibly intriguing approach to the Prince of Denmark, enhancing the madness and bringing every ironic or sly remark to light. Goad's Hamlet was both powerful and breathtaking, while still showing Hamlets softer side along with his incredibly vulnerability. Festival director, Antoni Cimolino, could not have picked a better leading man.
Also important and equally impressive were the supporting members of the cast. Festival veteran and fantastic actress Seana McKenna took on the role of Gertrude, Hamlet's newly remarried mother, while Geraint Wyn Davies took on the dueling roles of Claudius and The Ghost (Hamlet's father). Opposite of Hamlet was Adrienne Gould, taking on the role of Hamlet's tortured love Ophelia. I was especially happy to see Gould take Ophelia to a whole new level and make her as cunning as her father while still embracing her happy and easy going personality. Ophelia's mad scene especially was remarkable as Gould took Ophelia from being a frail young girl to an incredibly physical character as she slipped farther away from reality.
Another remarkable part of the production was its set and costumes. A minimalist set made up of only several black movable pillars and benches, the cast was able to move about the stage freely and use the entire space to their advantage and do everything from running circles around the stage to climbing over five stories in the air, Secondary to the set and incredibly symbolic was the costume design and color scheme used in the production. Hamlet was dressed always in black with a majority of the characters wearing this, gray or other dark colors, while the Players and Queen were the only characters ever seen wearing color. As the play continued these characters changed into dark colors until black, white and grey were worn by all members in the final scenes. These aspects only enhanced the production and took this iconic classic to a striking modern day Hamlet.
Tragedy. Drama, Emotion. All the driving forces of Shakespeare's greatest and most renowned play. But through all the hardship and struggle Stratford brings another Shakespearean classic to life, asking audience members that familiar question : "To be, or not to be?"
Stratford Shakespeare Festival's Hamlet Trailer
For stage photos and videos from this production, visit:
http://www.stratfordfestival.ca/OnStage/productions.aspx?id=29231&prodid=57749
OR the Stratford Festival YouTube Channel
For more information about the Stratford Shakespeare Festival, visit:
http://www.stratfordfestival.ca/Default.aspx
***NEXT REVIEW: The Taming of the Shrew***
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