“Trapped between duty and doubt, surrounded by power and privilege, young Prince Hamlet dares to ask the ultimate question – you know the one. National Theatre Deputy Artistic Director Robert Hastie (Standing at the Sky’s Edge, Operation Mincemeat) directs this sharp, stylish and darkly funny reimagining.” -National Theatre Live
“This Shakespearean classic marks the maiden voyage for Robert Hastie as the venue’s new deputy artistic director. His production is elegant, fluid and full of clever ideas and updates. Hamlet (Hiran Abeysekera) wears a cool black suit or leisure wear, addressing the audience directly in his soliloquies, sometimes sitting at the edge of the stage to implore and make eye contact.
But the most unusual twist to this modern-dress version is its comedy. The usually morose Dane is anything but in Abeysekera’s hands. He draws out the physical humour of his part, seeming already antic before he assumes that disposition. It is as if he has been ascribed the job of Shakespeare’s universal wise fool, complete with ruff collar when the Players arrive. Abeysekera is no stranger to this stage (he performed at the National in Rubasingham’s The Father and the Assassin in 2023) and he has a sure, limber presence, making for a cocky young prince.
It is Francesca Mills who steals the show with her astonishing portrayal of Ophelia, which is a feat given her dearth of lines. Mills maximises their effect, bringing strength, sarcasm and her own intelligent brand of comedy to one of the play’s most emotionally fragile characters and the scene in which Ophelia unravels with grief feels truly dangerous in her hands.
Most of the action takes place on a single set designed by Ben Stones – an opulent room which gestures towards the past with a backdrop of Renaissance-era angels and cherubim, but marking the present, too. It is ingenious and ravishing, as is Jessica Hung Han Yun’s lighting design.” – Arifa Akbar, The Guardian
Through a partnership with OKC Repertory Theater, OKC Rep Members receive discounted admission to National Theatre Live screenings at OKCMOA.
Visit the box office for tickets, and learn more about OKC Rep at: https://www.okcrep.org/
