Hamlet is playing as part of “Free Shakespeare in the Park” through August 6 at the Delacorte Theater in Central Park.
The 61st season of this NYC gem features the classic drama Hamlet. The production is directed by Tony Award winner Kenny Leon and features Tony Award nominee Ato Blankson-Wood who starred in last summer’s Public Works’ As You Like It in the lead role of Orlando. This successful adaptation places the story in modern day Atlanta and tells the story of a black military family. While the core script remains, Leon has added in some musical numbers, both as a prologue and as the play that the characters come to watch that launches the final act.
By changing the setting (and therefore the costumes and the stage sets) Leon demonstrates that Shakespeare’s story remains relevant in 2023. Power still corrupts and evil persists. From the start of the play we know that something is awry – the grand home of this “royal family” is ruined. The house is tilted, their S.U.V. is stuck in a puddle, the Stacey Abrams for President banner (left from Leon’s last play at the Delacorte – Much Ado About Nothing) is torn. Hamlet is a tragic play – the plotline does not have any elements that provide the audience a chance for hope or any twists where you think things might turn around. It’s a play that weighs heavily on you. At times, it felt like Leon’s additions took away from the somber mood of the play.
As is often the case, what made the evening was the performances. Blankson-Wood did an excellent job carrying the show for close to three hours. In Leon’s version, the play is clearly focused on Hamlet’s inner turmoil and Blankson-Wood is up to the task of displaying all of Hamlet’s emotions. The lead is supported by an excellent cast, in particular Lorraine Toussaint as his mother, Gertrude and John Douglas Thompson as Claudius, as the new “king.”
One cast member has been kept a secret in the press before opening night. Samuel L. Jackson provides the voice of the late King Hamlet (“Ghost”) in a performance recorded for this production. While that’s cool and could be a draw for people to attend, we didn’t recognize his voice while we watched the play. And there’s video playing while the ghost speaks but it’s of a possessed Hamlet. I’m not sure using Jackson in this way added value to the play.
As I said last year, summer performances at the Delacorte are a gift to New Yorkers. To sit in the middle of Central Park as the sun sets, watching free theater, is like no other experience in the city. Although in this production the set blocks Belvedere Castle behind the stage, the natural surroundings are still very much a part of the setting. Watching the cast perform in the rain on the night we went only added to the experience.
Find more information and tickets HERE.
TV and City 