Send in the Clowns! Hamlet finished at Wyndhams Theatre on August 22, 2009

Hamlet is now showing at National Theatre, Lyttelton

25 Sep - 22 Nov
More infoBook Tickets

Hamlet

Hamlet at Wyndhams Theatre

Send in the Clowns! Hamlet finished at Wyndhams Theatre on August 22, 2009

Hamlet is now showing at National Theatre, Lyttelton

25 Sep - 22 Nov
More infoBook Tickets

Why see Hamlet?

The King of Denmark is dead.

Consumed with grief, Prince Hamlet determines to avenge his father’s apparent murder, with devastating consequences for his family and the kingdom.

Michael Grandage directs Jude Law as Hamlet in Shakespeare’s iconic revenge tragedy

Prince Hamlet's father has recently died, and his mother has wasted no time before marrying her dead husband's brother, Claudius. When Hamlet sees his father's ghost, who reveals he was murdered by Claudius, he is moved to revenge, faking his own madness to try and discover the truth.

Law, who is best known for his film work including The Talented Mr Ripley, Road To Perdition and Cold Mountain, has an extensive theatrical background including appearances in productions of Dr Faustus and 'Tis Pity She's A Whore at the Young Vic.

Key Information

Audience

Hamlet is suitable for audiences aged 12 and upwards.? Children under 5 will not be admitted to the Wyndam's Thatre.

Run Time

3 hours and 10 minutes including one intermission.

Dates

Finished 22 Aug 2009

Cast

Jude Law as Hamlet
Penelope Wilton as Gertrude
Kevin R McNally as Claudius
Ron Cook as Polonius
Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Ophelia
Alex Waldmann as Laertes
Peter Eyre as the Ghost of Hamlet's Father & The Player King
Matt Ryan as Horatio
David Burke, 1st Gravedigger / Barnardo
Henry Pettigrew as 2nd Gravedigger / Marcellus
Ian Drysdale as Osrick
Jenny Furnell as the Player Queen
Gwilyn Lee as Guildenstern
John MacMillan as Rosencrantz
Alan Turkington as Fortinbras / Francisco

Creative

Directed by Michael Grandage
Written by William Shakespeare
Design by Christopher Oram
Lighting Design by Neil Austin
Composer & Sound Design by Adam Cork

Reviews

Our review

Compelling, Outstanding, Incredible

Michael Grandage's production moves swiftly through the unfolding drama and apart from a slightly heavy opening scene the pace is as swift as the actors performances are delicate and un-selfconscious

Josephine

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Customer reviews

7 reviews, average rating: (4.7 Stars)

KPC

Amazing and intense compression

A taut, tense and engrossing production with outstanding performances from all of the six cast members. Mark Arends is captivating as Hamlet and plays the role eloquently, finding new meaning and emphasis in the lines . This is high energy, high emotion, physical expressionist theatre of a high order. The intensity always threatens to snap, but it is cleverly paced and contained. There are some unexpected twists, eg , Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are subsumed into Laertes, and the 'play within the play', is given a completely new life.In the intimate space of Trafalgar Studio 2 the audience is pulled into this storm twister of grief, poisoned loves, blood and psychosis. High risk, high octane theatre at its incendiary best, this is Hamlet stripped bare to its internal core. Serious business. ... Read more

Anonymous

Under-powered cast put pressure on His Cumberbatchness

It is disconcerting seeing a Shakespearean drama in the Barbican, where, after all the 'no phones/photos' announcements and signs go out, a high-tech safety curtain opens to reveal an ernormous stage with a fantastic set, ceiling and all. But I was mystified by the costume choices - somewhere between period/comtemporary/billy-the-butler blue coats and a world war II type warm room chic. Somewhere in there were some great ideas that just got lost. And then there was the man of the moment - excellent all round I would say - but you could feel that he had to player striker, centre half, winger and goalkeeper for the team to keep it all moving. Perhaps it was the cavaernous space on stage or just that all eyes were on Hamlet throughout, but it didn't feel like the rest of the cast stepped up to make this the oustanding performance it deserves to be. Shame. On the plus side the audience were incredibly well behaved - not a phone or camera to be seen! More please! ... Read more

londoner

Pretty good

Some outstanding roles, but Hamlet was a bit too much of a pussy and lacked conviction regarding his treatment of Ophelia. That said, this is a tight production well delivered. ... Read more
All your reviews

News

Michelle Terry Stars as Hamlet!

Michelle Terry Stars as Hamlet!
News Desk, April 12th, 2018

The Globe's new season kicks off with Hamlet this month and marks the first season with Michelle Terry as the new Artistic Director. The full cast has now been announced with Terry herself taking on the Titular role of the haunted Hamlet. ...

Read more

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