Hamlet – Sir Ken Dodd Performance Garden, Shakespeare North Playhouse

Director Steve Purcell is to be praised for his heavily abridged adaptation which, coming in at less than half the length of the full text, focuses on the family drama at the heart of the play, bringing a humanity to its protagonist that is rarely seen.

Prince Hamlet (Richard Lessen), accompanied by his good friend Horatio (Laura Cooper-Jones), is consumed by grief and anger following the death of his father and his mother Gertrude’s (Tamsin Lynes) hasty marriage to his uncle, Claudius (Martin Gibbons), who then becomes king. He encounters the ghost of his father who reveals he was murdered by Claudius and demands revenge. Hamlet feigns madness to investigate the claim and plan his revenge which causes consternation at the court, whilst his relationship with Ophelia (Lynes), daughter of the royal advisor Polonius (Gibbons), deteriorates as his inner turmoil comes to the fore. With one chaotic event leading to another, and Laertes (Cooper-Jones) seeking his own revenge following the deaths of his sister, Ophelia, and father, Polonius, there is an inevitable tragic ending.

A tragedy encompassing themes of revenge, betrayal, grief, corruption, morality, and the nature of madness and sanity is not typical Pantaloons fare, and whilst opportunities to pluck at humorous elements are naturally seized upon and performed with relish, the darker undertones require deeper, straighter performances which this talented cast deliver with aplomb, enthralling the audience throughout.

The staging is kept to a minimum with the inspired use of boxes to create a variety of scenes from private rooms to a freshly excavated grave. There is some excellent mime as one has come to expect from this company and some superb sound effects with the swordplay particularly inspired. With the cast dressed alike in dark hose pants and white shirts, the simplest addition and use of colour enables them to segue effortlessly between character portrayals as, with the exception of Lessen as the lead, the cast all perform multiple roles.

Gibbons is a founding member of The Pantaloons, and this is a welcome return for him after a nine-year hiatus, and he has retained all his old magic and more as he matches the regal demands of Claudius and Polonius with the macabre merriment of the gravedigger.

Coooper-Jones and Lynes are both debutants to the company, not that you would guess given their own accomplished performances, with Cooper-Jones’ comic timing perfectly reflected in both Horatio and Guildenstern, whilst equally matching the brooding intensity necessary for Laertes. Lynes moves effortlessly between the ages of Gertrude and Ophelia capturing their inimitable femininity, whilst also demonstrating her comic skills with her portrayals of Rosencrantz and Marcellus.

This is Lessen’s fourth outing with The Pantaloons and this powerful, emotional and human portrayal of a tortured soul adds yet another string to his bow, with his repeated bursts through the fourth wall revealing his thoughts to the audience and making us confidantes to his plotting, in a believable and strong performance.

Cooper-Jones is alternating the lead role with Lessen and based on her performance tonight, I am keen to see her interpretation. Hamlet may have lost all his mirth, but the quality of tonight’s performance took The Pantaloons to another level altogether.

The Pantaloons were established at the University of Kent in 2004 by Mark Hayward, Caitlin Storey and Stephen Purcell. They are a bright and vibrant theatre company whose style draws from a wide variety of popular theatre traditions. There is a strong element of collaboration, both within the group and with their audience, that is clearly evident with an emphasis on physicality and sensitive interaction. Further details and booking information for Hamlet and their other touring productions – Sense & Sensibility; A Midsummer Night’s Dream; and Robin Hood – can be found at www.thepantaloons.co.uk

Reviewer: Mark Davoren

Reviewed: 2^nd August 2025

North West End UK Rating: