The only reason I even knew anything about Hamlet was because of the Simpsons. But while Bart plays a mean Hamlet, Moe excels in his role as Claudius and Chief Wiggam dazzles as Polonius, I just don't feel like they do it justice. So it's safe to say I went into Hold Thy Peace's performance of Tom Stoppard's Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead a little bit confused. I came out laughing, but even more confused than when I went in.
Directed by Sage Shepperd '06, produced by Rebecca Kotlicky '06, and with Matt Sachs '06 as Stage Manager, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead was performed Friday and Saturday in the Shapiro Theater. The play takes Hamlet and shows it from the point of view of two minor characters. Throughout the entire play, Rosencrantz (Erik Potter '07) and Guildenstern (Alex Levine '08) have no control over their destiny. This play examines fate, luck and chance (and whether the three are the same or totally different) and asks if we can ever really know what's going on. Are the answers really as important as the questions? Will Rosencrantz and Guildenstern manage to discover the source of Hamlet's malaise as requested by the new king? Will the mysterious players who are strolling around the castle reveal the secrets they evidently know?
Confused? So was I. But I had a jolly good time being confused. The last time I was this confused, I learned that babies don't come from storks. But regardless, I was left saying "what," "huh" and "come again" a lot, and I looked around to find out I wasn't the only one. This is not to say the acting was bad or even the performance was bad, but I just didn't seem to get it. Again, call me uneducated -- I know you're itching to.
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern have no clue where they are going but everyone seems to be able to find them. The most hysterical encounter occurs when they are discovered by the Players, especiallly funny was the head Player (Joanna Lazar '07) who seems to be the only one who has a clue what's going on. Hamlet (Naftali Ejdelman '07) is constantly running around in a mad state that would comparable to that of Gollum from The Lord of the Rings-it was a little scary. Act I is on the road to Elsinore, Act II is in the castle at Elsinore, and Act III is on a boat. The constant in these three acts are that Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are always going to be searching for answers that never seem to be forthcoming. The dynamic between these two in their search-especially when they start playing "tennis" with questions and answers- added the humor to the performance.
I can't say I knew what was going on all the time. If I caught half of the jokes, that would have been good. But it was a fun time and a good performance put on by Hold Thy Peace. As the program says, "This play is about death; it is a tragedy." But that didn't stop the cast from having a good time while they were still alive and bringing Hamlet to life again (or for me the first time) in a whole different light than good 'ole Shakespeare had intended. Although I was lost a lot, this performance was certainly funny. That being said, they left something to be desired, and consequently I cannot wait until their next performance to see how they improve.