Hamlet - Eagle's Nest Theatre, Montsalvat (2006) |
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Trades Hall New Ballroom (Melbourne); Eagles Nest Theatre Wednesday, July 26, 2006. Review by ROWENA SCANLON . Jasper Bagg writes in his Directors' notes that he had his actors go through the process of creating a ‘back story' for each and every character and that this process held utmost importance ‘before blocking can even be considered'. It seems an admirable task to try to bring something new or fresh to such a well known and much performed Shakespeare play. This is an ambitious production of Hamlet for the newly founded Eagle's Nest Theatre company, playing in three venues and launching the 2006 debut season of ‘Great Tragedies' which also includes Oedipus directed by Robert Reid. Billed as a ‘text based' production aimed at creating greater access for schools and communities, its heart is in the right place and real passion and commitment is felt in each of the performances. For a production that focuses on Shakespeare's text and with a broad intended audience that covers school students (who have presumably dissected the text in great detail) and people without great access to the theatre (and perhaps little experience with Shakespeare) the meaning of the lines themselves can be lost in quick or hesitant delivery, and certainly gave no extra insight to this much performed tragedy. Hamlet is a difficult play to stage. Shakespeare has created a cast of mutable characters; ghosts that can be seen by some and not by others, many characters lie, some begin and others end as murderers, and the stunning descent into madness is confused as others feign the same condition. To keep track of these changeable characters requires decisive staging and direction. As you enter the theatre the King's ghost is at first set high upon a stylized throne, immobile. When he moves we understand that he is showing himself to the living and this works well, until he moves outside these established rules. He and Hamlet embrace, those who first saw the ghost seem not to when he later returns and it becomes confusing when he wanders around behind the throne; are we still meant to be looking? James Adler begins as a restrained and mourning Hamlet. He is withdrawn and delivers his lines to the audience avoiding other characters' gaze; he finds spotlights to stand in, creating an austere image of a grief stricken son. However, with an extreme and passionate performance he gets louder and more boisterous as the play progresses. Whilst the rest of the cast move with control and only begin to raise their voices in the mayhem of the final scenes, Adler really enjoys his descent into madness by racing back and forth and working up a sweat. He convinces as someone in the grip of insanity, but this leaves him with no where to go dramatically, barely half way through the play. It is hard to discern whether this Hamlet's madness is real, from witnessing the ghost of his murdered father, the King, or feigned for his own purpose. There are no clues and little distinction in how the protagonist is portrayed from that point on. There seemed to be a lot of humour in this production, spearheaded by a camp Polonious, played by the confident Gerard Cogley. Many serious passages have been given a lighthearted turn. In the knowing asides of Old Polonious and the bawdy humour surrounding Ophelia's virtue this works well and really got the audience on side, even after many must have been stealing themselves for tragedy and despair. However, to reinvent Hamlet's soliloquies on death, with humour, seems to be a pointless exercise. At just over two and a half hours, with an added 15 minutes for intermission, this is also a lengthy production. Although the attention of the audience was renewed, nearing the denouement, with an impressive and well choreographed sword fight. Eagle's Nest has aimed high with this first offering, and whilst there were moments of good theatre, on the whole I felt it failed to deliver. Maybe concentrating on understanding the text first; before devising the new ‘back stories' for every character and fabulous sword fights, would reap a better experience overall. Hamlet plays at the Trades Hall New Ballroom until July 29 before moving to the Williamstown Mechanics Institute on August 1. |
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