Hamlet My Captain

I decided to use the second variation of Hamlet that I analyzed (the one with the ship theme, hence my title) and look at it in a different light. I watched it again without sound and looked at the character movement. It's a pretty big set so the actors are able to move around a lot. A lot of tension is is brought about when Ophelia moves towards a person as the queen backs away from her, Claudius seems almost angry and tries to move to call for help offstage. Hamlet shows concern for her and leans towards but never makes contact, this makes it appear that Ophelia and her mental state are now unreachable at this point. Many other versions have Ophelia as the only one moving to keep the attention on her, but the actors movements in this version are telling of the emotion and tension of each of the characters and the scene as a whole.

Color me Basic

So when I was looking through the list of plays we were allowed to review, I had no clue of any of the ones listed, with the exception of the great tragedy, Hamlet. This was also the first play I ever performed in the 7th grade so it punches with impact. So, away we went.

I started by watching this one, which was a modern high school performance that took a modern adaptation. I thought it stood out because of, not just the shaky camera or poor acting, but the amount of heart these kids put into Hamlet. It was endearing to watch Ophelia deliver her lines with such conviction and their fun choice of costume which was different than a classic adaptation.

The second one I watched was a more classic adaption from college students a Texas State University. Keeping a running theme by watching the first part of the play, I liked the intro to this one as well as the black had everyone looking unified and interesting to look at. The beginning monologue where Bernardo and Francisco are talking about seeing the king's ghost around, I thought was really well done in this adaptation. 

And lastly, I watched the beginning of this one which held a professional adaptation of the show. They were superior, they were always in character and I thought their modern choice of dress brought another level to the show. Francisco and Bernardo made this adaptation more interesting and set the scene beautifully and they brilliantly introduce the deceased king of Denmark.