Hamlet (Almeida) review - an electrifying and modern take on a classic

As watching theatre productions is now solidly one of my favourite things to do, I’ve decided to make theatre reviews a thing on this blog. My late Grandad used to write quite a lot of these so I thought it would be a good thing I could do as well. I already did some mini reviews of some plays in my last post but I thought I should dedicate a whole post to this. Just as a warning, this review is not spoiler free, both in terms of the Almeida’s version and the original Shakespeare play (but it has been out a while…). As it is my (as yet) favourite Shakespeare play (I am very far from fully educated on all of them), I was very excited when this play was first advertised, especially with the proposed cast. I had seen the Barbican production of Hamlet back in 2015 so I was excited to see how this one differed. I can safely say they were completely different whilst both amazing in different ways. 

I went to see the production of Hamlet at the Almeida Theatre on the 18th March matinee performance and it's safe to say I approached the theatre with eager anticipation. If you are unfamiliar with the plot of Hamlet, I’ll outline it quickly. Hamlet is the prince of Denmark and his father the King has recently died, yet it is his uncle who has become the new King. This is because his uncle (his father’s brother) has married his mother, not so much as two months after the King’s untimely death. This of course affects Hamlet deeply and he possesses a large amount of resentment towards his mother to be so hasty. Yet when the late King’s ghost appears and reveals to Hamlet that it was in fact his uncle that murdered him (and didn’t die from natural causes after all), Hamlet is shocked. Despite being told not to take revenge, he becomes determined to out his uncle Claudius for what he is. However, he needs proof first… And so it goes from there. As you've probably guessed, more death is involved. 

First and foremost I should say that the Almeida is a very nice theatre. Whilst small and compact (that can get a bit inconvenient at the intervals) it had a lovely airy and modern atmosphere and it’s located in one of my favourite areas of central London: Islington. We managed to get our seats for £10 each, which was practically a steal for show such as this one. We soon discovered they were this price because they were restricted view (I had a couple of pillars in my view) but to be honest once I got used to it, it wasn’t too much of a hinderance to my enjoyment. The play was very long (about three and a half hours not including two intervals), so we definitely got enough theatre for our money. Despite being very long (as the original play is), I feel like the director Robert Icke did a fantastic job of keeping the pace as to maintain suspense. There weren't any points where I was wishing they'd hurry along with it.

I loved the staging in this play and how the foreground and background were clearly separated by a glass wall with patio doors and curtains. It felt like a distinctly modern setting and the decor maintained a level of coldness that I thought was a theme essential to this play. Soft furnishings were minimal and everything was sleek and clean-cut, whilst the lighting did bring the necessary amount of warmth to the stage. They made a lot of the colours in set and costume fairly muted and monochrome (apart from the odd one or two outfits in red) which really created another layer of significance when the play turned darker. 

The first revolutionary thing I noticed about this production was the use of screens throughout the performance. The screen at the front was formed of roughly nine smaller screens and there were also small screens dotted around the room. First, they were used as security cameras for when the ghost of Hamlet’s late father is spotted. I found it an ideal modernisation of this scene - security guards watching from a room rather than patrolling the area in the dead of night. The use of news reports (all in Danish but it was easy to get the gist) added depth to the storyline and brought in the idea of the modern royal family. Over were the days of complete regal secrecy; cameras now let in for publicity and reported to the world.

Whilst the original Shakespearean speech was retained, I found that the modernisation of the plot was pretty seamless. I never felt I was in a play out its time, forced into a modern setting for the sake of it. I found the integration of modern devices clever - such as secretly placed microphones to listen into conversations rather than the classic hiding-in-the-corner approach. It was especially funny when they made it clear that Hamlet was fully aware of this surveillance - speaking loudly into microphones for added effect. It really added to his characterisation as the paranoid prince whilst retaining the sense that he was right to behave as such. Of course, it all added to the humour as well. The modernisation of the female characters was also impressive. Whilst characters like Ophelia (Jessica Brown-Findlay) are often pushed aside and not given so much of a voice in Shakespeare, this version of Ophelia certainly had a bit more bite. She was seen as more of an equal and not just an object of Hamlet’s (possible) affections. Her death also felt very meaningful as her character had been built up well throughout the performance. Her confusion about Hamlet was clearly conveyed and her indecisiveness on what to do felt relatable within a modern context. Gertrude (Juliet Stevenson) was also portrayed as a strong character with a confused moral compass. This is shown during the scene where Hamlet (accidentally) murders Polonius. Whilst she is shocked at what her son has done, she also feels united with her son in what she also now knows about her husband’s murderous plots.

Another thing that this production used technology wise I thought was perfect for this production and one scene in particular. In the scene where they are watching the staged play of "The Mousetrap” unfold, the audience is able to clearly observe the reaction of Claudius during the whole scene due to the use of handheld cameras that were beaming a transmission to the screen. This is an obstacle in Hamlet I am always unsure how people will tackle in terms of staging. How can an audience watch a play being acted out whilst watching the reactions of those watching? Usually, as was the case in the Barbican production, some unusual seat placement is required. Whilst you may think the whole camera thing would not blend in well, it was integrated seamlessly with the themes of this modern royal family. The family are often shown onscreen in news broadcasts and any transmissions were always announced at the start as if they were being broadcast live on television - a perfectly believable scenario especially with publicised modern royal families today.

This play also felt unconventional in terms of how the audience were integrated into the performance and made aware of their presence. For example, some lines were directed towards the audience to create humour (but not in a cheap, thrown away sense). The audience, especially in the stalls, were constantly aware of actors entering the stage from the front by walking past the seats, which really expanded the play past the stage. Also, I loved the unconventional way that the play transitioned into intervals. Up to a minute before the play even came to a stop, stewards were walking in right up to the stage, the houselights went up and the actors looked interrupted. A steward then shouted “pause for fifteen minutes!” and the cast, affronted, walked off. Then the screens at the front read “pause” for the duration of the interval which I felt was a fresh way of doing things. The incorporation of technology was never cringeworthy or overstated which is something that is sometimes difficult to achieve.

One thing that did surprise me about the modernisation was the notorious fencing scene. Whilst Polonius was shot (with a very, very loud fake gun) behind the curtain instead of being stabbed, I wasn’t sure what the modern equivalent of a fencing match would be, as somehow the poison-on-the-end-of-the-foil plot would have to be incorporated somewhere. However, this was kept as a fencing match. Whether this was still commonplace in other cultures to settle disputes I wasn’t sure, but the idea of a duel did feel slightly out of its time. The scene was amazing though as the whole match was also filmed and streamed up onto the screen, electronic scoreboard and all. I loved how loud music was played over this scene so whilst we couldn’t hear the lines (we weren’t meant to, they were mouthed), the audience could easily follow what was going on. Some deaths occurred a lot quicker than others (like Laertes, dying before Hamlet despite having sustained the same injury after him) but I thought Hamlet’s death was done particularly well. The final scene of everybody in the background dancing in the background (I understood that this represented death) whilst Hamlet waited to join them. It felt peaceful and a good, rounded end to the play. When Horatio is the final survivor standing, it took me a moment to realise as he was positioned offstage, watching it all unfold. 

Overall, I was very impressed with the Almeida's production of Hamlet and especially Andrew Scott's amazing interpretation of the role. He took his eccentric energies to the role and provided a very layered and three dimensional portrayal of the young prince. I also felt the whole creative team did an amazing job in terms of staging, music and still managing to surprise the audience despite Hamlet being a very well known work. I would urge everybody to go and see this amazing production whilst it's still running.


All photos credited to Manuel Harlan

Catching up

Hello again. I promised I’d do a more positive post about the stuff I’ve been up to since September so here we go. Of course not every single moment is documented here, but I felt like some of them needed to go on this blog for future reference! Also, I must warn you: if you’re not into hearing me ramble on about theatre productions I’ve seen, this maybe isn’t the post for you…

First, when I left you all I was about to embark on a week’s work experience at my local BBC radio station. Let’s just say it wasn’t what I really expected. I’m slightly terrified if I say too much I’ll be arrested or something because wow there was a lot of paperwork to sign about confidentiality… Basically, it was more pure journalism than I was expecting. To be honest, I don’t know what else I was expecting, but most of what I had to do involved gathering information for stories. I even had to go out with a voice recorder and interview people in the street (about their diets - wow thank you for that easy topic). I also had to go to a school and interview children. Primary school children. If you know me, you’ll know that I am the most awkward person when it comes to talking to kids. So that was an experience all in all. However, I did get two of my pieces I recorded and edited played on air so it’s not all that bad (they even said my name as if I was an actual reporter wow).

On the 1st October, I went to London to see The Boys In The Band at the Park Theatre with my friends Beth and Sam. Just a quick note: what a nice theatre! They even hung books from the ceiling and it was incredibly pleasing to look at. Back to the production, if you’re unfamiliar with the play (which I certainly was), it’s set in 1960s New York and eight (or nine depending on how you read it) gay men meet for a friend’s birthday party. As the night goes on, things get very deep (I don’t want to spoil it if you ever want to read it or see an adaptation). The whole design of the set was so slick and accurate to the era and was open enough to operate as a stage whilst still feeling like you were watching from the outside. Also, the set carpet was very nice, which I can safely say as I was sat front row (no, seriously I was very, very close). Another thing about being in such a small theatre is that I could smell the (real!) lasagne they ate onstage, which didn’t help how hungry I was. The whole play was so engaging and I loved how they slowly introduced each of the "boys" to the audience so that you didn't get confused who was who and it also allowed time to have each character to develop their own storyline - you didn't have any "minor" characters. It often annoys me when television shows or films breeze past introductions of characters despite them becoming vital to plot later on - this thankfully didn’t happen here! It was played so well that you could tell there was a lot more to each of their stories that we weren’t privy to, there wasn’t sole focus on one person’s story. I found it interesting how every time you settled into the humour, a harsh truth relating to gay men in that era was brought up and it really grounded the whole production I think. No character’s portrayal was black and white - and whilst some stereotypical “gay” traits were included in the characterisation, the range of characters were a case in point that gay people should not and cannot be put into a ‘box’. There were dark and light elements to every character, which felt very realistic and honest. Ian Hallard stood out to me as Michael; how he slowly changed his character and intentions throughout the piece so that you don't even notice he's being bitter until he's really got going with it. However, he still maintains the audience's sympathy throughout. I also loved how much seemed unspoken in the play and that felt quite natural and true to life - not every home truth is going to be revealed at a birthday party, is it? The play was also very funny, including Harold’s (Mark Gatiss) line about someone being so cold it looked like they’d been “rimming a snowman”. The whole “straight guy” culture was also lightly mocked which made me laugh as it is still something very relevant today - the situation brought about by Michael’s friend from college visiting (who is reportedly the Most Straight Guy Ever) resulting in everybody needing to ‘play straight’. The awkward silences and conversations only discussing “the game” were deliberately stifled and it was introspective of society in a way that was funny to anybody watching. Also, there was a dancing scene that was so hilarious I was crying with laughter, which I rarely do. I’m so happy that I am going to see the play for a second time in February when it does its two week West-End transfer to the Vaudeville Theatre! Front row again - time to smell that lasagne again!

I’m now realising just how much I ramble about the theatre when I really get going with it… I’m now also remembering I still have two other productions to talk about (I’ll be more brief, I promise). The first one I saw back in July actually (and neglected to blog about it apparently) - Unreachable at the Royal Court Theatre (love that place). It’s about a daring film director Maxim (played by Matt Smith) who is on a quest to find the perfect lighting for his film; much to the dismay of his team (and the budget) as this light never seems to show itself except in the director’s mind. It felt like a very abstract play, whilst being grounded by the humour of a certain character nicknamed ‘The Beast’. Well, he’s not trying to be funny per se, but his excessive anger and dramatics create humour in itself as nobody can take him seriously (also, lots of spitting whilst talking - glad I wasn’t sat front row). It’s interesting because most of the play felt much like a comedy with many one-liners and even times when the cast couldn’t keep it together themselves. Still, there was still a darker undertone running throughout and this was definitely noticeable despite the humour. In the play there was also a very abstract scene with boxes that I won’t go into detail about - let’s just say that was a strange four minutes or so… I think that’s all I need to say about that one. The play really lulled you into a very lighthearted mood with its humour and excessiveness when suddenly the metaphorical rug of lightheartedness is very sharply pulled from underneath the audience’s feet. It ends on a very dark cliffhanger with a very sudden moment at the very end. However, the play still feels complete - this was signified by the fact that ‘the light’ finally shows itself once the tragedy occurred (there was also a live fox onstage, just to contextualise how meta this was) so whether this was purely symbolic could be up for debate.

Another play I went to see recently was Peter Pan at the National Theatre. Unlike most of the other plays I’ve seen, I was unfamiliar with any of the cast. I was excited that I had no idea what was coming. I always love going to the National Theatre (we found our way to one of the top balconies and what a view) so it was pretty much guaranteed to be great. For some reason, I was quite surprised that there were a lot of children and families attending. Yes, I know what you’re thinking, Peter Pan is a children’s book. However, at the National Theatre I usually expect something a bit dark, meta and adapted beyond belief. I had never been to a theatre production aimed at children that wasn’t a pantomime. I actually think it’s a good idea for introducing children to theatre. It was so entertaining! The unique thing about the production was the use of ropes and harnesses; the ‘flying’ made possible by crew members climbing up and dropping down towers of scaffolding, simultaneously operating the cast member on the other end of the rope (it’s hard to explain). It appealed to children (there were songs and everything) whilst still maintaining the spirit of a National Theatre production. It felt like the sort of thing that was perfectly understandable on the surface, whilst maintaining an underlying subtext that could be interpreted as the viewer thought fit (a bit how I see BBC Sherlock, actually). For example, the set props were quite minimalistic and impressionistic in places. Also, the character of Peter Pan was certainly shown to be flawed and his insecurities about having not had a parental figure of any sort whilst growing up were evident. It’s one of those things that becomes obvious when you think deeply about it, but when most people have grown up with normal Peter Pan, this of course is never addressed. His character brought hints of the darker side of things I’m used to seeing in plays at the National. There were also moments where the characters all seemed to lose grip on reality and forget they were pretending which I thought was a really interesting direction to go in and I think it was subtle enough to pick up on but not to confuse children watching. I think I would have liked it to maybe explore the darker undertones more as I found it interesting, but yet again that may have been the point - Peter avoids thinking about serious things as to ‘never grow up’, so perhaps exploring the idea would defeat the object.

Okay, so I said I wouldn’t go on as long. I’m sorry. I just like talking about the theatre… I realise that most of that sounded like an english exam answer.

Other than trips to the theatre, I also travelled to Manchester in November with my friend Jade to see Catfish and the Bottlemen live. It was such a great show (even if I got caught in a mosh pit in the first song and we had twelve year olds in front of us who thought it would be a great idea to drench themselves in water, simultaneously soaking us too) and the band brought so much energy. They’re a band I’ve always wanted to see live and I’m glad to have that one finally crossed off the list. The evening was topped off with getting a lot of chicken from McDonalds afterwards to eat in the hotel room at 1am. I do really like Manchester, it’s a city that I feel always has a lively feel to it but it’s not overwhelming. Also, shoutout to my friend Hannah who helped me to navigate!

Also in November I attended a course to do with becoming a Floor Runner on a film/television set. Now this is an area I’m still not 100% about but at least if I learn more about it I can be more informed in decision-making (well, that’s the theory). I learnt all about the different roles on a set and all the tasks and practicalities of working on a film set. This all took place at a studio (used for filming music videos, apparently) that was very cold. At least it was realistic to what working on a set would be like; long hours and cold temperatures. I learnt a lot of valuable skills that day which will help me should I want to do that sort of work in the future. We also had a talk on how to do your tax returns when you’re on a mix of long and short term jobs - a bit scary all that… All in all I think the biggest task was trying to get back to Paddington station from Ealing Broadway on a Sunday evening (hint: not fun). Half the tubes were being cancelled or redirected and a twenty minute journey took me over an hour. Oh, and my train was delayed. Got to love public transport.

In December I also went back to London for a university open day (not much to say about the day itself) and I was so happy to see all the Christmas lights in London (Is it bad luck to even talk about Christmas after the 6th January? Oh well, guess I’ll find out) even if I was on my own. I had so much time to kill after the event I went to that I travelled to quite a few places in London to look at the lights. As the Coldplay song says, I took my feet to Oxford Street to see the Christmas lights, but definitely didn’t stay past 5pm - I’m not stupid. Although I did go to Covent Garden and use the tube station near rush hour - okay, so I am in fact stupid. Only downside to avoiding the hell of rush hour was having to wait at Paddington for about two hours with nothing to do - there’s only so long you can make a Mcflurry last… I’m always stubborn with trains. If a train is even a couple of pounds cheaper to wait an hour or two extra I will do it. My idea was to “look around London for the evening” but then I remembered that rush hour plus Christmas shopping is a thing.

In December I also I got a job! Okay so originally I didn’t actually get the job that was meant to start in November but they called me back in December as they now had a job for me. It was working in a certain high-street CD/DVD shop (can you tell I get paranoid about employers finding me on the internet?) which suited me to the ground, even if it was a lot of standing up. So that was great to earn some money over Christmas and actually get some experience for my CV. I was lucky I worked in such a friendly, laid-back place and I’m actually gutted my contract ended on New Year’s Eve… At least I don’t have to listen to the same Elvis Presley album again for the twentieth time over. 

What else positive has happened? I’ve seen a lot of cute dogs, that’s been wonderful - always love a cute dog. Also, as I type this, Sherlock is on its second episode of series four and I have a lot of opinions about it (when don’t I?) so I think I’ll do a separate review or something like that soon. It’ll probably be after the finale, which I don’t think I’m ready for at all. I’ve already talked at my friends and family about the deep intricacies of it (I really am sorry) so maybe putting it in a blogpost would be beneficial for us all. 

I have a few things still to look forward to this year, but I am also worried about looking ahead too much in case it stresses me out… I am seeing Andrew Scott in Hamlet in March which I am so excited for, as well as the second viewing of The Boys In The Band next month. I also have a few other things planned but I think I’ll save those until I can actually write about them… 

Anyway, I think I’ve rambled enough for now.

Laura.

Positivity is a strange old beast, isn’t it?

I was recently reminded of the existence of this blog and I realise I should probably get back into the habit of actually writing semi-length pieces again. It’s a bit bad that I say this every time I come on here but I’m just really bad at updating. If I’m honest with you all (because where else can I be brutally honest if not on the internet), I’ve really not been that great lately. It says it all when it’s taken me to this point in the post to remember it’s 2017. Happy New Year, by the way… This seriously isn’t one of those new year’s resolution posts, I promise you. This is just me, sat on my bed typing without any sort of plan to this thing. 

I’m starting to realise lately how unrealistic it is to plan out your life in advance. Personally for me a prime example of this is university. Ever since my sister went to university over six years ago, I’ve always kind of assumed that I would go straight there and do something (I wasn’t sure what). That obviously hasn’t worked out - but that’s okay. It’s not necessarily a bad thing that I had a pre-university breakdown that resulted in me not going to university… Sure, it was stressful and breakdowns are never nice, but I sincerely hope I’ll be in a much better place mentally by September (even if I’m so confused what I’m going to be even doing this year). When people joke about being indecisive I think most people mean choosing between desserts and stuff like that - I am indecisive to the point where even if I have months to decide on something, I still will have a meltdown and not be able to choose anything. This is a serious issue for me and I shouldn’t ignore it (will I get around to deciding whether to do anything about it though? That is the question). 

It’s so weird how people can change their mind as they go through life even when you can be so set on something you can’t imagine wanting anything else. When I was little, I wanted to be an architect. Now I realise this isn’t the most common aspiration of a seven year old, but that’s what I wanted to do! I also used to be obsessed with arts and crafts - you name it and I would attempt to make it out of old cereal boxes and sellotape. I used to draw a lot. Then I realised I didn’t really have the patience to draw things so being an architect was out. Then, it was to be a writer. I used to write (very crappy) full length stories, eagerly handing them into my favourite year three teacher (whose song about vowels is still the one I mentally recite when remembering what the vowels are). Would you believe I even used to write my own versions of Doctor Who books, fully illustrated and everything (actually, if you do know me you’re probably not surprised in the slightest)? Yes, I was technically writing fanfiction before it was trendy. That passion fizzled out too. Maybe it was the fact that I enjoyed reading other people’s stuff more than writing my own. Or it was most likely school. It’s kind of sad that I would no longer describe myself as creative.

I also used to despise studying history. I’m not even joking, at a year 9 parents evening I swore (not actually) to my teacher that I would never ever do GCSE history. Long story short, I ended up doing it. A-level history too. And now I’m going to (maybe) do  a degree in it. Funny how things change, right? I say ‘maybe’ because yet again, I don’t know what my thoughts will be by May, or even next week. This stresses me to no end but what can I do? It shows how much I’m procrastinating and being indecisive by the fact this is a post I originally started to write in October but never finished, so there’s a lot of cutting and changing in this one.

Positivity is a strange old beast, isn’t it?

I’m scared shitless about life, if I’m honest with you all. I don’t know what I want to do with my life anymore as what I thought I wanted to do is just impossible and impractical. I don’t really have any passions. I’m jealous of everyone that knows what they want to do and goes for it - I wish I knew what would make me happy. I’m on round two of choosing universities and I already know I’m going to really struggle to choose again. It’s January and I’m already anxious about it. Basically I am worried that whatever I choose will be the wrong decision and I’ll be committed to something I hate for three years and I’ll only have myself to blame. That I should have known it wasn’t right. Equally, it could go swimmingly. However, as a pessimist that’s not really the most likely outcome for me to predict. I struggle to know where I’m going to be happy because in my mind, there can only be one place I must choose and it’s a right or wrong answer (which I know is irrational, people can be happy in different places). It's not even about moving away from home, I don't get particularly homesick, it's that I worry that I'll hate the place. I was pleased when I managed to avoid seeing any of my old teachers when collecting my exam certificates last night just so I wouldn’t have to explain what I’m planning and what I’m getting up to. Because at the moment I have no bloody clue.

I feel a bit weird hearing “Happy New Year” because I’m very apprehensive about 2017. I think we can all collectively agree that 2016 truly fucked us over. Not just with worldwide events but personally, 2016 did not go how I hoped it would - not really. This time last year I thought I’d be at university by now, happy and confident etc. Let’s just say I’m really not that much better yet. I managed to get a job over Christmas but that’s just ended so basically I don’t have much at the moment, except the last of my wages I’m trying to cling onto and a glass-half-empty philosophy. My mum (bless her) tells me to just focus on the positives to which I always reply “what have I got to be positive about?” (I’m sorry Mum, I know you’re trying). I mean I did do a lot of good things last year like trips out and getting my exam results, but I feel like happiness is a long term thing for me.

As with any piece of writing, I feel like this needs a conclusion of sorts. That’s just it though - I don’t really have one yet.

I’ll make my next post about all the good things that have happened since October. I would have spoken about them now but I feel that would be a weird to put them with all the negative stuff. This post was written to be therapeutic and I suppose time will tell if it's helped. Currently debating whether to even post this… If you’re reading this then I guess I decided to.

Here’s to 2017 being a bit less shit.

Laura.