Tonight was our second evening in the theater, and the first night with (mostly) makeup and costumes. My own costumes as the King are mostly contemporary, with the possible exception of the frock coat at the funeral and, of course, the crown. The crown is only worn in a couple scenes, where something "official" is going on.
I'll do an official "SPOILER ALERT" here, on the off chance there's someone reading this who has never read or seen Hamlet. After all, the full title is The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, and as soon as Shakespeare labels something "the tragedy of," you know you're in for a stage full of bodies and the survival probabilities of a Victor Hugo novel.
This is from Act IV, Scene 7, after the King (me, on right) has convinced Laertes (Devon Porter) that it was Hamlet who was responsible for killing his father. Completely true, of course, even if the king's murdering his own brother before the play begins was the ultimate cause of everything. (All photos by Ashley Collins.)
I honestly like playing villains. I don't think I'm personally evil, but the villain is usually the most interesting character, unless you're doing some sort of medieval morality play, where the villain is some sort of personified sin. If you can't play Hamlet—and at my age that's pretty much out of the question—then play Claudius.
As you can see, the set is almost finished, but for a little paint. This was the first night we all got to see Kat Wexler's gorgeous backdrop installed on the set. The platforms, backdrop, and the two chairs that serve as thrones, are all there is to the set. At one point, with a bedspread thrown over one end, the upper platform doubles as the Queen's bed. Rather an uncomfortable one, most likely, though with Hamlet manhandling and yelling at his mother I don't suppose she'd ever be all that comfortable.
At Ophelia's funeral, (L-R) Laertes (Devon Porter), Gravedigger (Ashton Brammer), Priest (Eduardo Lozano), King (me), Queen (Grace Rinehart), and Mourner (John Grote). I'm not sure exactly what I'm saying there, but it's probably something devious.
Devious is what Claudius does. He's murdered his own brother, taking his throne and his wife in the process. Now, to be honest, a pretty high percentage of Shakespeare scholars hold the opinion that Claudius took his brother's wife a long time before he got around to killing him. Hamlet speaks of the marriage as "incestuous," but that's only true based on a rather weird biblical definition that defines marrying your brother's wife as "incest," which it obviously isn't in any real world definition. Curiously, Hamlet never says anything about Claudius and Gertrude's relationship ever having been adulterous, though considering how quickly they married after old Hamlet was killed it's rather hard not to suspect it was.
There have even been some Shakespeare scholars who suggest that it is Claudius, and not old Hamlet, who is really Hamlet's father. Indeed, this might explain his favorable treatment of the prince early in the play, before the Ghost shows up to set the revenge plot in (admittedly slow) motion. Since I play the Ghost as well, I literally get to murder myself, and then get revenge on myself for murdering myself.
At the plays's climax, our Hamlet (Jack Miller), stabs the King (me) with Laertes' unbated, envenomed rapier. The Queen (Grace Rinehart) has already died from drinking the poisoned wine the King had prepared for Hamlet. I'm not going to tell you just how the King treats the final assault with the poisoned wine. You'll just have to come to the show for that revelation.
Order tickets online at HamletDublin2015.com or cpctheatrical.com. You'll also be able to buy tickets at the door, starting one hour before showtime. Hamlet will be presented this Thursday, June 25, 2015, in a special, reduced price preview at 7 PM, and officially opens for a three-show run on Friday, June 26, at 8 PM, at The Abbey Theater, in the Dublin Community Recreation Center, 5600 Post Road, Dublin, OH 43017. There are two shows on Saturday, June 27, at 2 PM and 8 PM. Tickets are $8 and $10 for the preview, and $10, $15, and $20 for the other shows.
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