Hamlet

Synopsis

Written between 1599 and 1601. The play, set in Denmark, recounts how Prince Hamlet exacts revenge on his uncle Claudius, who has murdered Hamlet's father, the King, and then taken the throne and married Gertrude, Hamlet's mother. The play vividly charts the course of real and feigned madness - from overwhelming grief to seething rage - and explores themes of treachery, revenge, incest, and moral corruption.

Our Review:

21 February 2006

The English Touring Theatre production of Hamlet has been on an extensive tour of the UK throughout autumn and winter before coming to London. There were paparazzi out in force for the press night but it certainly didn’t feel like a celebratory occasion.

Stephen Unwin’s production is a swirl of black, brown and grey, courtesy of Michael Vale’s rather austere set. The effect is rather like seeing a Rembrandt painting brought to life, an effect enhanced by Mark Bouman’s costumes and Malcolm Rippeth’s lighting.

But it makes for a rather gloomy Elsinore. The spirit is set in the second scene; the celebration of Claudius’s and Gertrude’s marriage. This is a downbeat affair. Hamlet’s explanation of thrift has never seemed more accurate – this is a most joyless palace. Indeed, Anita Dobson’s Gertrude spends most of the play with a single expression on her face – a moue somewhere between...

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