Hamlet Hail to the Thief releases first look photos

Production photos have been released for Hamlet Hail to the Thief, a new adaptation of Shakespeare’s Hamlet.

Premiering at Aviva Studios, Manchester, the co-production between the Royal Shakespeare Company and Factory International integrates the music of Radiohead, with orchestrations by Thom Yorke.

Directed by Steven Hoggett and Christine Jones, Shakespeare’s text is performed alongside reworked versions of songs from Hail to the Thief, the band’s 2003 album. It will later transfer to the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon.

Listen to the show being discussed in an exclusive RSC season preview:

Samuel Blenkin plays Hamlet, with Ami Tredrea as Ophelia, Paul Hilton as Claudius and the Ghost, and Claudia Harrison as Gertrude. The cast also includes Alby Baldwin as Horatio, Brandon Grace as Laertes, James Cooney as Rosencrantz, Felipe Pacheco as Guildenstern, Tom Peters as Polonius, and Romaya Weaver as the Gravedigger. Daniel Davids, Kieran Garland, and Marienella Phillips will serve as off-stage swings.

The band features Ed Begley, Tom Brady, Jenny Clifford, Joe Downard, Shane Forbes, Megan Hill, Tom Knowles, and Adam Martin.

Jess Williams is the choreographer, with creative aspects including scenography by AMP featuring Sadra Tehrani, arrangements by Justin Levine, music supervision by Tom Brady, sound design by Gareth Fry, projection design by Will Duke, lighting design by Jessica Hung Han Yun, and costume design by Lisa Duncan. Casting is by Charlotte Sutton for the RSC, with text consultancy and dramaturgy by Ayanna Thompson.

Hamlet Hail to the Thief will run at Aviva Studios, home of Factory International, until 18 May 2025 before transferring to the Royal Shakespeare Theatre from 4 June to 28 June 2025.