AFTLS brings new perspective to Hamlet

The Actors From The London Stage brought their production of Shakespeare’s classic and oft-performed Hamlet to campus last week, but despite the countless performance iterations of such an iconic text, their rendition was anything but conventional.  The troupe began a tour of college campuses across the country with three nights at Notre Dame, and brought with them an ambitious yet thoroughly engaging show that captivated the audience, spearheaded by Madeleine Hyland’s impressively versatile performance in the title role.

This deviation from the norm was immediately evident as one beheld the stage. Rather than an elaborate set, the stage simply contained five chairs and a variety of costumes and props which, given the context of the play, seemed quite strange. These included neon yellow construction vests as well as modern magazines and newspapers. The five chairs were for the five tremendously talented actors who made up the entirety of the play’s cast. These five actors were the only people who oversaw the production, as they completely staged the show themselves and had no official director to guide them. Now, if you’re thinking to yourself: Wait, doesn’t Hamlet have more than five characters?, you’re absolutely right.  To solve this apparent issue, each of the five actors in the troupe played multiple roles, each playing at least three of the show’s many characters.  This sometimes involved actors changing characters in the middle of a scene, or even a character “conversing” with another character played by himself or herself, literally running back and forth across the stage. Additionally, the specific roles that each actor played added an intriguing element to the show, as many of the characters shared by one actor are closely connected in the play’s plot. For instance, actor Ben Eagle played both the ghost of Hamlet’s deceased father and his uncle Claudius, the murderer of the former. Similarly, Grace Andrews played both Ophelia, Hamlet’s initial love interest, and her bold brother Laertes, who thirsts for Hamlet’s blood by the show’s end. These casting choices did not seem unintentional, and added another layer of richness to the production, especially due to the effective portrayal of the roles by the actors.

While this may sound like it would grow confusing, the costumes of the actors and their distinctly different portrayals of each character made it reasonably easy to tell which character was being played in each scene. Usually only a single article of clothing, like a hat, jacket, or scarf, each character had a defining costume piece that the actor would assume when playing that character. Additionally, the actors employed distinctly different vocal styles for each character, also helping to keep sense of every situation amidst the rather chaotic changes. Actor Peter Bray played these shifts particularly well, easily transitioning from the elderly, limping Polonius to the spry, witty Gravedigger. To be sure, the performance of multiple roles by each actor was utilized for comical purposes at times, but generally the transitions felt seamless, as the staging and costumes prevented the abrupt shifts from becoming a distraction.

It is at least my belief that, given the countless performances of Shakespeare’s works over the years (Hamlet in particular), such breaking of general theatrical standards is nothing but positive and innovative.  Rather than giving a simple conveyance of the plot many already know, the actors managed to keep the whole crowd engaged for the duration of the performance through their unorthodox yet wildly effective style.

If or when the Actors From The London Stage come back to campus in the future, I strongly encourage all to attend their performance.  Regardless of your level of familiarity with Shakespeare, the troupe is sure to give an engaging and entertaining performance that will keep you dialed in for the duration of the show.

Phil Lally is a sophomore majoring in English and FTT living in St. Edward’s Hall.  He can be found singing in the Notre Dame Glee Club, providing wry commentary on life around him, and advocating for general camaraderie and merrymaking among mankind.