Review of
Hamlet at the Greenwich Playhouse Theatre
We all know
the story of one of Shakespeare’s much loved classics- Hamlet. Set in a corrupt Denmark, the play tells the woeful story
of a young prince who is set the task of avenging his father’s death. In doing
so, intelligent Hamlet must battle his conscience and thus diminishes into an
insane man who drags down almost everyone around him, in this tragic tale.
Having put
on the play eleven years ago, the Galeon Theatre Company has the knowledge of
creating an engaging production. The Greenwich Playhouse allows an audience of
only 84, boasting an extremely intimate experience, compelling everyone present
to connect with the character’s emotions.
Robin Holden
who plays the miserable young scholar captures Hamlet well in all his intelligence,
complexity and sarcasm. He demands a level of compassion in his soliloquies
which you simply don’t get from just reading the play. At the other end of the
scale, Polonius gives balance to the dark, dense atmosphere which embeds most
of the story, giving us light-hearted and bumbling speeches, all wrapped in warm, humours
actor, Barry Clarke.
Whilst I
anticipated the entrance of an especially frightening ghost, and instead was
presented with a profound, old man dusted in ill placed make-up, the play is
impeccably directed and contains a well balanced level of intensity and comedy.
Although it
was written around 1601, and first performed in 1602, Hamlet remains a powerfully relevant, accessible story questioning loyalty,
religion, love and morality. The Galeon
Theatre Company’s production of Hamlet is affordable at just £13.00 a ticket;
it is cultural intelligent entertainment for everyone.
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