‘Hamlet’ – Sport for Jove

HAMLET – BY WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE
DIRECTED BY DAMIEN RYAN
SPORT FOR JOVE – YORK THEATRE, SEYMOUR CENTRE
16 – 29 JUNE 2012

Lea: Well, I love Shakespeare. If it’s well done – and this was! I’ve seen quite a bit thanks to a stint with Bell Shakespeare, backed up by some exceptional productions over the years including SA Theatre Company’s inspiring production of Julius Caesar back in 1989.

Visually this was an evocative production with captivating, grand statements. Some excellent choices were made thanks to good direction, and wonderful choices by the actors, which made me appreciate Hamlet anew with a fresh, yet truthful perspective.

Sybil: I knew this was a production designed for schools so I was cautiously optimistic. My father – a Shakespeare nut – used to read me Hamlet as a bedtime story. Didn’t really appreciate it so much at the age of 5 – but it’s ingrained in my DNA.

I knew Sport for Jove’s aim would be to have an accessible production – and they certainly achieved this admirably. Although not all performances were to the same standard, the direction and edits made the epic nature of the story shine. Totally out-performed my expectations – really enjoyed the show.

IN SUMMARY

PRE-SHOW EATS: Yep. Acknowledge that this would have been a good idea, given the amount of wine we drank at The Rose. Oops.
POST-SHOW DRINKS: The Rose. And then when that closed, Baxter’s Inn.
HANGOVER STATUS: Epic