Reviewed 1/14/06
It’s Shakespeare’s longest, but
scholars say it’s his most modern. Hamlet features
what may be the first distinctly Freudian character study written long before
the gentleman from Vienna analyzed his first patient. A play about inaction
doesn’t
seem like it would be an enjoyable way to spend three hours and fifteen minutes,
but Southwest Shakespeare is doing an impressive job of making
that time fly. They’re doing it with Jared Sakren’s trademark
prescient direction that uses a nice balance of modern vocal presentations
and just enough indicating to act as a way of defining the difficult text for
the audience. They’re also doing it with an almost perfect cast, and
a design crew that has turned the Piper Rep into a dank, misty dungeon that
matches Hamlet’s (James Knight) description. This is
a well-reasoned and well-presented production of a difficult script.
At the center is Knight, who offers a rather animated, engaging Hamlet. No downplayed and dour creation, his Hamlet is lively, quick, and much more emotionally present than most. He strikes a balance early on, high energy and expressive. He does not treat the words with reverence, but gives the well-worn language vibrancy. So it is with almost the entire cast. Susan Arnold’s Gertrude is underplayed, a worried mom and smitten bride more than a wanton queen. Sandy Elias’ Polonius is not as annoying as some portray him. Elias’ excellent choice makes him more human, and much more devious than buffoonish. Even the wildest parts of Stephanie Dodd’s Ophelia, almost impossible to portray earnestly, come across as understandable. She handles the character’s arc with strength. Cale Epps is an understated, sympathetic Horatio, restrained and a perfect balance to the madness that goes on around him. The only glaring weakness in this strong ensemble is Herman Schrader as Claudius. Schrader seems to have not memorized Claudius’ impassioned soliloquies and scenes. His speech sputters rather than trips on his tongue in a way I can only describe as “asthmatic pentameter.” His reactions are more than restrained, their soporific. His is the only flatness in a range of varied arcs.
Jason Barth is a solid Laertes, handling well a role that emotionally swings back and forth on a dime. Charles Sohn is excellent in all three of his roles, especially creepy and intimidating as the Ghost. Joe Kremer and Scott Dillon are just regular Joes in the roles of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. Kremer is a bit too giddy and Dillon a tad gloomy, but they work in the context of the show.
Nowhere is there a stray disappointment in the remainder of the ensemble, from the hilariously foppish Osric (Noah Todd) to the peculiarly accurate acting style presented by Sohn and Kimberly Phelps as the Player King and Queen.
Jeff Thomson’s black Swiss cheese monoliths and the rectangle scrim of light make for a forbidding setting. The mist makes for some wonderful effects with Paul Black’s lighting, and Lois K. Myers’ costumes are carefully considered. Only Richard Jennings’ compositions are a letdown; they are rather tinny creations.
Sakren and his cast and crew have made a wonderful night of intellectual inaction. I heartily recommend this show.
