Hamlet

'Hamlet' is to me a great play and one of William Shakespeare's best and most iconic (in terms of characterisation and the amount of memorable quotes there are). Adaptations have varied in quality but actually from personal experience there has yet to be a filmed 'Hamlet' that has disgraced the play and most have ranged to decent to great. Saw this production for its talented cast that includes Maxine Peake, John Shrapnel and Gillian Bevan.

And also for its idea to cast females in male roles, the most notable being Hamlet and Polonious. Was interested in that experiment but did worry as to whether it would be too much of a gimmick or not be tasteful. Then reminded myself that other Shakespeare productions have cast females in male roles and did so very successfully. A notable example being a female Malvolio in the National Theatre Live production of 'Twelfth Night' and it turned out to be one of the most interesting interpretations of the role courtesy of Tamsin Grieg. Also the Ian McKellen 'King Lear' from two years ago had a female Kent performed by the great Sinead Cusack. Onto talking about this production of 'Hamlet' it is interesting, different and decent, yet not great.

The acting is mostly one of the better assets. My vote for the standout performance goes to Shrapnel as Claudius, suitably noble and serpentine. This is another production to double Claudius with the Ghost and he has the spookiness down pat. Also loved Bevan who even with the gender reversal nails all of Polonious' characteristics in a way that is not overdone and did appreciate her sincere matronly take on the role too. Barbara Marten is a conflicted Gertrude. Most of the supporting cast fit their roles very well.

Visually, this 'Hamlet' generally looks appealing enough. It is modern dress, which will raise alarm bells for traditionalists but for those that have no issue with change won't mind so much. The sets are minimalist but don't look too grim, which is amazing considering the play's tone. The photography is not overblown or too claustrophobic. Shakespeare's dialogue never stops shining in its wide range of emotions and poetry. Even with cuts to the Fortinbras subplot, the drama still has enough cohesion despite the plot feeling somewhat jumpy at that point. The staging is mostly tasteful and enough of it makes sense and has intensity and emotion.

It is not a perfect 'Hamlet' though. Like others, my feelings on Peake were mixed. She definitely has a commanding presence, but the performance could agreed have done with a lot more nuance and toning down as she does try too hard when things get more manic in the drama. Also found Katie West too passive as Orphelia. The music also for my liking didn't fit with what was going on in the drama or with the mood, it was not at all appealing to listen to, it was intrusive and it was like someone was experimenting with Expressionism with not much understanding of the form.

Costumes were too much of a mishmash stylistically, some of the clothes not particularly appealing to look at. Especially those vests. While liking the staging on the whole, there are some very odd touches scattered here and there, such as the actors not holding what are specific objects in the text and story but instead knitwear and such for no discernible reason.

All in all, a lot to like but didn't wow me. More an interesting experiment than a great production. 6/10

Just a quickie synopsis, Hamlet's father, was the king of Denmark, now dead. Hamlet's uncle quickly marries Hamlet's mother. Hamlet's father's ghost returns to say someone dispatched him on purpose (murder most foul). While Hamlet seeks revenge, he is also distraught with indecision. How he acts with friends and relatives to conduct his plans of revenge is what the play is about.

For more insight into Hamlet before watching this presentation you will want to read "Hamlet: Poem Unlimited" by Harold Bloom. Some surprises there.

Everyone wants to improve the presentation of Hamlet. Some want it to be shorter and cut out Rosenkranz and Guildenstern. Some curtail sections during wartime. Others just can not help but make it up to date and still use the original Iambic pentameter. Will there be no end to this corruption?

This presentation uses a woman Maxine Peake as Hamlet (Shelley Long's character plays Hamlet in the (1987) film "Outrageous Fortune.") Wait there is more Polonius, father of Ophelia, goes to Sweden and gets a gender-affirming procedure to Polonia.

This is a minimalist stage production, with props from the present day, maintaining original Shakespearian Iambic pentameter.

If you want to watch a gender change that works, then watch "The Tempest" (2010) with Helen Mirren as Prospera. Filmed at Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park, Hawaii, USA.

Absolutely stunning production from stage to screen. Maxine Peake as Hamlet works brilliantly and her performance was a real tour de force. My only criticism was that the music was discordant and overly loud at times making it uncomfortable to listen to. It is VERY long - take refreshments, you'll need them but there is an interval which, for comforts sake, would have been better a little sooner than it came. The second part seemed very much shorter but I didn't time it. Most of the the supporting actors were very powerful with some gorgeous comic touches and how they managed to convey everything with such simple staging is beyond me. Go see this, it will knock your socks off!

The production is solid, the corps quite capable and there are some touches - The Mousetrap section- which are quite good changes. The Polonia in place of Polonious is a trick and not particularly interesting.

Judgement rests here on Hamlet/Peake. Her performance has merit but it has many defects. The shouting, the shrillness and the pitch is set very high and almost old fashioned in its quaint gestures. She does not command through physical movement which is rather too similar to Tom Cruise when he tries to be strong, and instead conveys a lower than average statured man mimicking power. Overall Peake's Hamlet is like a very young angry gang kid from a housing project.

There is, as with the Benedict Cumberbatch Hamlet, which received so much attention, a sense that these productions are used to raise status and advance careers above anything else. This is not a great Hamlet; it is quite interesting, that is all.

It's not so uncommon to see 'tour de force' performances on screen because cinema and TV affords the actor the physical space and respite to tear the arse out of a performance. It's a one off and retakes allow them to experiment and finesse the part and to build in nuances.

But of course the stage has many 'tour de force's' to reference, Olivier springs to mind in the Shakespearian silo, but they are fewer in number and elitist in observation.

Nevertheless, in the digital cinema world, to that august canon must be added Maxine Peake's Hamlet.

Let's ignore the gender issue here. It's a red herring. The fact is that Peake is, by anyone's measure, slight.

And yet the sheer energy she exudes performance after performance is ant like in its ability to punch above its physical weight.

Her skill is to mesmerisingly tic and twitch her way through a descent into moral madness. It's very compelling indeed.

And yet her slightness brings with it a vulnerability that really draws you in. Captured on the big screen it only serves to emphasise the greatness of this performance at the Royal Exchange Theatre during last year's Manchester International Festival.

If you get a chance to see one of these 'live' theatre screening jump at the opportunity. You will thank me.