Hamlet at The Almeida

Comparisons between theatrical productions are, for the most part, unhelpful. But I was interested in seeing Andrew Scott’s interpretation of Hamlet, having watched Benedict Cumberbatch in the role at the Barbican in 2015 ….. Sherlock versus Moriarty!

As usual, Andrew Scott does not disappoint.  He is magnetic. His palpable misery at losing his father brought tears to my eyes as much as to his.  At times his voice breaks with grief, at others it almost becomes a whisper, so we lean in to make sure we miss nothing and then, out of the blue he produces a show of rage before adding a dose of self-mockery and wit to the proceedings.  In short, Mr.Scott highlights a range of emotions that would follow anyone on discovering the murder of their father by an uncle newly married to their mother.
This Hamlet sees the ghost of his father via a bank of security cameras and this is one of several clever devices the director Robert Icke uses in this modern day production.  This isn’t the first time we’ve witnessed hand held cameras and video screens in the theatre of late, but for once they’re not gimmicks for the sake of it, and enhance rather than diminish the tragedy that is unfolding.  There are also plenty of pauses, some of them extraordinarily prolonged but it allows us to inhale everything that’s happening, ensuring that we understand all that’s going on.

Hildegard Bechtler’s sleek modern set also helps Icke’s decision to give more clarity to his Hamlet.  A huge, up-stage, sliding glass door allows us access to various scenes that are spoken about but not seen.  We are in no doubt that Gertrude is in complete love (or possibly lust) with Claudius, for through this door we witness the pair of them dancing the wedding night away.  The poor lovesick pair can’t keep their eyes or hands off one another.  This modern of modern directors doesn’t go in for gestures and declarative acting.  His cast have the ability to make us hear lines we appear not to have heard before, so measured and considered is their delivery.  He has also hit on various ingenious ways to make this production up to the minute.  The player’s scene is staged so that the royal party are filmed, sitting in the front row of the theatre and watching the enactment of Claudius’s crime.  We see his squirming reaction in close-up on a screen before he quietly exits up-stage and the play pauses.  Is there a technical hitch?  No…. just the second interval!

The entire cast, for the most part are exemplary.  Juliet Stephenson’s Gertrude leaves us in no doubt that she is a mother, who truly loves her son, whilst being petrified of him during the bedroom scene.  There is a genuine tenderness between her and Hamlet.  Likewise the always excellent Peter Wight as Polonius is a totally believable father and his scenes with Ophelia (Jessica Brown Findlay) are beautifully touching.  She, likewise, makes a very believable Ophelia, apart from being a little too quiet at times.  We can forgive her, however as she is very credible in the mad scene, which can often be forced and clichéd.

There has been much criticism about the length of this Hamlet, which I don’t altogether understand.  Hamlet is a long play; we all know that.  And the only time that length is a problem is when the production is so dire that leaving the theatre is the best and only option.  The Almeida’s latest offering is anything but dire and I, for one, didn’t even notice that it lasts three and three-quarter hours.  Instead, I just feel that I witnessed something very special.  And, please take note Sherlock, that your nemesis, Moriarty, didn’t resort to political speeches at the finish.  Instead we trooped out of the auditorium to the strains of Bob Dylan, who had added his own wonder at various intervals during this marvellous production.