Hamlet

Unlike a lot of the pretentious Shakespeare plays, almeida's Hamlet is stagecraft and magic. The acting is superb in it, making the old words and the modern dress match perfectly, so that we know exactly what the actors are saying, even if we do not understand it literally.

I can't say enough to praise this version of Hamlet! This adaptation, along with Laurence Olivier's 1948 version, are my two favorites now; and this one edges it out, owing to the great performances, and the fact that it's a comparably more complete version of the play. It also incorporates modern elements which work really well and make it more contemporary.

To speak of the performances, Andrew Scott is masterful in the leading role of Hamlet, really capturing all of the anger, sadness, and humor of Shakespeare's complex character in a brilliant and truly remarkable way. I also particularly enjoy David Rintoul as the Ghost and Play Actor. All the other performances are quite effective and fitting as well.

It's a wonderful adaptation which, as I said, is definitely my favorite to watch (the finest version imo), and which will be extremely tough to top! I'm so thankful for it :).

Kudos to the BBC for attempting an almost full-text version of Hamlet, but... it's a shame they don't follow through on it. There are various textual changes and additions which only serve to undermine the quality of the play. Stick to Shakespeare, for Pete's sake.

The production has good things (most notably the always professional Juliet Stephenson); a few scenes are well-done, and overall it's certainly watchable. But its greatest weakness is Andrew Scott. He is a very weird Hamlet. Hamlet must, generally, seem intelligent, assertive, confident, except in certain scenes - but Scott's way of playing him is flailing, chaotic, confused and strangely soft and quiet, which is not in character for Hamlet. The worst is all the soliloquies, which sound slow and clueless, spoken in an inconsequential low style that robs them of all sophistication and fascination. Scott doesn't seem to know what he is doing/saying. Which is disastrous; an actor should be able to at least pretend to know what his character is about. Maybe this is just Andrew Scott's acting style, but... it didn't work for me.

Was lucky enough to see this production at the National Theatre in 2018... four rows back from the stage. Scott was amazing as Hamlet. Then I saw him in Present Laughter at The Old Vic just last summer. Another brilliant, but very different performance. I guess I am a fan!

I've tried to get into Shakespeare multiple times, but I could never really do it. Not only was it hard for me to understand some of the lines, but most of the time, it all just seemed too... theatrical. I'd also brushed off modern interpretations of Hamlet before, because to me, they previously seemed less... authentic.

However, I opened my mind and watched this show, and here's what I have to say:

Andrew Scott and co. Pushed the boundaries of interpreting Hamlet's tragedy-and it paid off very well.

Scott doesn't portray Hamlet as just a tragic, brooding prince. He doesn't depict him as either fully sane or insane. He portrays Hamlet as human-and he does it exceptionally well. He brings out Hamlet as a grieving son, a maddened and introspective prince, a betrayed and lonely man, and an intelligent, vengeful strategist. There are so many layers and depths to unpack in Andrew Scott's interpretation, and he portrays the Prince of Denmark in a way that is so visceral, using not just his voice but his entire body. Despite Shakespeare's complex use of language, it never came off as pretentious or difficult to follow.

And it's not just Andrew Scott's Hamlet that's special. The entire cast understood their assignments, and every single actor delivered with equally powerful performances.

I now understand what the rave is about, and why so many people claim Hamlet to be one of the greatest literary characters ever created. It's thanks to the talented actors and actresses involved in this production that each of their respective characters wasn't just brought to the stage-but brought to life.

No scene or moment felt wasted. No dialogue was stretched too long. No character felt like a caricature. Gertrude didn't feel like just a cruel mother. Ophelia's part didn't feel like tragedy for tragedy's sake. Polonius didn't feel like just an important piece to the plot. Hamlet's dynamics with every single character in the story felt alive and real. The few hilarious moments hit. The intense moments made me sweat. The introspective moments made me reflect. And the sad moments made me weep.

Everyone understood the job and brought to life what is, arguably-in my opinion-probably the most human interpretation of Hamlet of all time.

Masterpiece. 10/10.