Phew! well, here we are, on the other side of 5 phenomenal performances. We had some challenges to adapt Elsinore to the intimate venue of the Lamp in Digbeth but we worked hard, concentrated and turned a pub back room into battlements and castle for the night. Each night we played, our audiences watched and listened. We made them work,and for two and a half hours their imagination and concentration transformed the space and by the end of the evening they were fellow Danes.....we have plans to schedule more dates in after a short break, not least because the audience members we spoke to urged us to ensure more people saw us. I owe the cast and audience a little space to show their responses but before I do, I am going to risk sounding a little fey and pretentious...(what's new, I hear you ask!)....I can honestly say it has been a fabulous honour to serve that magnificent text
and to approach, from however far and misty a distance, the mind of one of the
world’s greatest human beings, to share, over the reach of 400 years, his thoughts and observations so beautifully and seemingly effortlessly expressed.
What people have said...
What a privilege it was to be in the
audience last night for the performance of Hamlet.
A really excellent production for all sorts of
reasons. The pace was perfect allowing real understanding of the language &
subtleties of the plot, mixed with moments of thoughtful calm & absolutely
manic outpourings. The light & shade in the production & the
performances was superb, and the time flew by. I can honestly say it was the
first time I really got what this play is all about (that includes performances
by Brannagh & Anton Lesser) & it was truly riveting, perhaps partly due
to the intimacy of the setting which created an intimacy & involvement that
drew in the audience and which combined with the power & honesty of the
performances. I must congratulate Mat in particular for his willingness
to look the audience in the eye & involve us in his thought processes...(..)...If ever there was an actor & a part
that were made for each other this was it. I loved the quiet, reflective &
resigned periods, moving through self doubt & meditative passages, mixed
with those utterly electrifying moments of frantic, desperate, mad & wild
rants. A tour de force.
A great ensemble
& some super individual performances.
Many congratulations to all – you deserve
great praise for putting together such a superb production which will live long
in the memory of those lucky enough to see it.
I hope you get the chance to perform it again!
and...(excerpt from Behind The Arras review by Gary Longden) please visit his page to see his very detailed review..
Therefore the challenge is either to
produce the greatest performance of Hamlet of all time, or to reinvent the
staging. The smart choice is to go for the latter, which is what Melting Pot
wisely decided to do. And if ever there was a play which Behind the Arras
should be reviewing, it is Hamlet!
So, what was the
twist? The full dramatis personae tops twenty players, Melting Pot managed with
seven, comprising five women and two men. All male characters other than
Hamlet and King Claudius (and the ghost) were played by women. As in the
setting, this was a device which echoed the practicalities of theatre in
Elizabethan times.Companies, through economy, used men and women to play the
opposite gender. Plays in which actors were playing the opposite sex, and whose
roles were playing parts of the opposite sex, was a common theatrical device
used to comic effect.
Scenery was nil,
props minimal and costumes functional, but all very effective. Lighting was
just two white light spots. It worked. No distractions, just the players and
the play. The overall costuming was unisex black,boots, trousers and shirts for
all. It is to the company’s enormous credit that the women who were playing
male and female roles did not seek to establish gender by slipping on/ taking
off a skirt or shift dress. Instead they acted their gender, and did it
very well.
I'm sorry it's too late to recommend this
production to others. Excellent. Thank you very much. If and when you can,
revive it and tour - audience member on last night.
Massive congrats and
thanks to Amanda Bonnick, Jenny Stokes, Janet Bright, Philip Ward, Susan Doran , Matthew Brockington & the
lovely Holly Jeffery of
the Melting Pot Theatre Company for a superb performance of 'Hamlet' last night
at the Lamp. I'm no critic or expert on Shakespeare but I know exhilarating
theatre when I see it:)
General audience reaction –
Very understandable, very accessible, saw David Tennant,
saw Kenneth Branagh, yours was better!
pacy, interesting, wholly absorbing, great to be so up close, everyone
involved so focussed, incredibly convincing, first experience of Shakespeare
for my 12 year old son – he was totally captivated.
Enough of the luvvie-dom! You get the point! I have to admit, I am still going over my lines every day..I have left a part of my heart in Elsinore and will have to go back to get it...
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