Hamlet – National Theatre

Shakespeare’s much-loved and much-performed tragedy is back with a neo classical adaptation for young audiences by Jude Christian, directed by Ellie Hurt. This energetic and funny show has the little ones completely enthralled, right from the pre-show crowd work that the actors employ to draw in the audience to the many moments of utter shock and surprise throughout the 65-minute performance. The audience is even asked to actively contribute to the play within the play by creating sounds and chanting ‘mur-der-er’ to shame and chase actors off stage.

The play opens with a scene showing the funeral of Hamlet’s father; ‘dad’ and ‘king’ are spelt out in floral tribunals making the event very clear and this intentional clarity is evident throughout the play, making it easy for young audiences to follow the story. The cast of eight is dressed in brightly coloured costumes by Set and Costume Designer Frankie Bradshaw to show the family groups. This makes the characters identifiable in a plot that can otherwise get quite complex. A simple but clever motif of a white veil is used to signify death and proves to be an effective way to unite the dead characters, which is almost all of them! The morbid deaths are not sugar-coated but handled vividly yet delicately by Fight Director Jeremy Barlow.

The Ghost deserves a special mention. The character is brought to life by a well-crafted puppet manoeuvred by four people, making it scary but not too much.

A marked feature of the play is a whole lot of singing and dancing on the big green chessboard style floor of the set. Dom Coyote has created a soundtrack blending pop, Afrobeat and grime with more traditional instruments from Shakespeare’s time. Including a folk song proved to be a big hit, getting all of the audience, young and old, immediately joining in Hamlet, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern on their ship.

What was clear is that the young audience was fully engaged throughout the show. There was lots of clapping, singing and emphatic cheering; there were moments of loud laughter and faces of surprise and hurt; there were arms extended when the actors came close to the audience and hands rubbing vigorously to create the sound of the wind to help the play. While the show seemed to get great responses from its intended audience, as an adult, I do ask whether theatre for young audiences needs to be so over-the-top. The show tries a little too hard to be funny. Sure, slapstick humour is what gets unbridled giggles from children, but can they not be exposed to more nuanced acting from a young age? Does the craft of theatre-making get lost in trying to be funny and elicit laughter, especially in a story that is inherently a tragedy? Should a show for young audiences be judged based solely on how they respond, or is there a need for a more critical look at the kind of work being presented to those yet to fully grasp the working of the stage?

Hamlet has toured schools in the UK and runs at the Dorfman Theatre, National Theatre until 28th March 2023. Tickets can be found at https://www.nationaltheatre.org.uk/productions/hamlet/

Reviewer: Aditi Dalal

Reviewed: 20th March 2023

North West End UK Rating: ★★★