Lean 'Hamlet' gets facelift -
Rubicon gives new shine to perhaps history's
most-produced drama
Tom Jacobs, NEWS-PRESS CORRESPONDENT
April 27, 2007 9:28 AM
On a recent evening, Jenny Sullivan was having dinner with
two of the actors she is directing in "Hamlet." Not surprisingly, their
conversation focused on the timeless text and the countless questions it
raises.
"There was a moment when we thought, 'People have been
having this discussion for centuries,' " she said. "It's a fantastic feeling."
"Hamlet" is arguably the most-produced, most-read and
most-quoted drama in history. But the creative team behind the Rubicon Theatre
Company's production, which opens Saturday, is feeling far more exhilarated
than intimidated.
"I'm hearing old teachers in my head, telling me, 'Let the
words to the work,' " said Joseph Fuqua, who is playing the title role. "The
words are so great! You just ride that wave."
"I'm terrified, but I'm excited," Sullivan said. "For us --
this combination of actors, designers and myself -- this is a new play. I just
want to dig into the story, the drama, the relationships."
That story, of course, focuses on a young Danish prince who
is mourning the death of his father, the king. Returning home from university,
he is shocked and appalled to find that his mother, Gertrude (Stephanie
Zimbalist), has married his uncle Claudius (James O'Neil).
Late one night, Hamlet is visited by his father's ghost,
who claims Claudius is his killer. The ghost implores his son to avenge the
murder. Hamlet faces an enormous dilemma: Should he believe the apparition,
who could be from either heaven or hell? If his father was indeed murdered by
Claudius, how should he proceed?
O'Neil, the Rubicon's artistic director, calls it an
"existential" play that contains the insight and richness of the great works
of mythology. (Although the play was written and first performed in 1600, the
legend it is based on can be traced back another 400 years, and it is likely
even older than that.)
"In 'Hamlet,' all of the characters are inside all of us,"
he said. "Hamlet is in you. Gertrude is in you. Claudius is in you. How are
you going to integrate them? How are you going to shape these forces for
yourself and create a life in the world?"
Aside from a 90-minute "Romeo and Juliet" that toured to
schools, "Hamlet" is the Rubicon's first-ever Shakespeare production. To
accommodate it, a thrust stage has been constructed, extending out into the
auditorium.
"We've gotten rid of eight seats in the front row and four
in the second row," O'Neil said.
And why is a big, open playing space essential for
Shakespeare?
"I think because the language is the thing," he said. "As
an actor, you basically speak your subtext. You're saying what you are
thinking and feeling, right in the moment.
"We do have some special effects, because the (ghost scene)
calls for that kind of thing. But by and large, the set is a platform for the
language."
Sullivan has moved the action from the Renaissance to the
first years of the 19th century. "We wanted to make it accessible to our
audience, but also give them a big costume drama," she said.
Fuqua believes the juxtaposition of the play's raw, primal
emotions and a setting of "Jane Austen prettiness" will give the staging
"weight, power and punch."
Also to that end, this will be a lean "Hamlet." Nearly
one-quarter of the very long play has been cut; the production is expected to
clock in at two-and-a-half hours.
"I'm sure 'Hamlet' scholars will miss things," Sullivan
said. "But the top-40 hits are there."
In any event, she said, there is no such thing as a
definitive "Hamlet." The prince's story is both universal and highly personal;
every actor and director will inevitably interpret it through the prism of
their own experiences.
"I have found it comforting to know that I am part of a
continuum," O'Neil said. "So many actors, over the centuries, have played the
role I am playing.
"When you've had that many actors, there is no such thing
as 'the best' performance of such a role. I find that really empowering."
Joseph Fuqua delivers a star turn as the emotionally torn
Danish prince.
By David C. Nichols
Special to The Times
May 3, 2007
WHAT a piece of work is "Hamlet"; how noble in reason and infinite in
faculties is actor Joseph Fuqua. If the ambitious revival of William
Shakespeare's evergreen tragedy at the Rubicon has its malefactions, Fuqua
delivers the royal goods in a performance as expressive as it is spontaneous.
Note the brooding hush at "O, that this too, too solid flesh would melt,"
which Fuqua murmurs with a clipped melancholy. Now, reconcile that with the
galvanic rage ignited by his father's ghost (Leonard Kelly Young), the many
valid laughs in unexpected places or the hairpin turns between feigned and
real madness. Although his tangled curls and designer Marcy Froehlich's
smashing Empire costumes rather suggest Jane Austen's Mr. Darcy, the dynamic
Fuqua seems born for Hamlet, almost Byronic in the confrontations, tellingly
confidential in the soliloquies.
These, delivered from the apron of Thomas S. Giamario's semi-thrust setting,
are worth the admission. Using the First Folio edition of the text, with
interstitial cuts, director Jenny Sullivan lets her star sculpt his
interpretation from inside the lines, and, barring the odd too-stentorian
attack, Fuqua doesn't disappoint.
Nor do James O'Neil, his lucid, guilt-ridden Claudius almost sympathetic, or
Remi Sandri, a Laertes both restrained and roiling. Ophelia is one of
Shakespeare's shakiest ingénues, but the unaffected Alison Brie manages a
riveting mad scene, and Rudolph Willrich makes a casually wry Polonius,
hindered only by the edits.
That is a recurrent liability, for the narrative, placed in the Napoleonic
era, produces a lopsided structure and some stylistic variables. Though the
opening recalls a Carol Reed film, with potent contributions by lighting
designer Jeremy Pivnick and sound designer David Beaudry, the assembled court
hovers between respectable public television and dutiful academia.
For example, the agreeably old-fashioned declamation of Efrem Zimbalist Jr. as
the Player King comes from another Elsinor entirely than the grim vulgarity of
Young's First Clown at the graveyard. Perhaps most taxed among the game cast
is Stephanie Zimbalist, her still-gelling Gertrude lacking specifics; Joshua
Wolf Coleman's beautifully spoken but underused Horatio; and Jamie Torcellini
and Chris Maslen, a Rosencrantz and Guildenstern without a through-line.
Giamario's revolving panels are functional but peculiar, distracting against
the stone staircases. Word pointing sometimes jars, as when Claudius' "Madness
in great ones must not unwatched go," which ends the first half, seems aimed
at current leaders. The final return of the ghost, complete with maniacal
laughter, is wildly misjudged. Yet, if the play's occasionally less the thing
than usual, there is a special providence to Fuqua's memorable prince.
Hamlet at the Rubicon Theatre
The Enigma of Hamlet Lives On
Thursday,
May 3, 2007
Hamlet has been performed many times since
Shakespeare wrote his famous tragedy in 1600. Now the Rubicon Theatre joins
the ranks of companies that have produced the world’s most famous play with a
stellar production directed by Jenny Sullivan, and with Joseph Fuqua as
Hamlet.
Instead of the original medieval historical setting, this
production unfolds in an early-19th-century setting. Exquisite period costumes
reflect the grandeur of the Danish royal court in the era of the Napoleonic
wars. At the center of the stage, tall panels adorned with chess figures
accentuate the craftiness of Claudius and the play’s theme of moral
corruption. The staging of the ghost of Hamlet’s father is handled
practically, with a metallic voice suggesting something modern from outer
space. During his appearance, thunderous sounds fill the intimate theatre
space, leaving a feeling of awe in its wake that continues throughout the
production.
Joseph Fuqua is superb in the complex role of Hamlet.
Initially stone-faced as a grief-stricken son, he pounces on Claudius and his
mother with sarcastic puns that reveal his anger. Hamlet accuses Gertrude of
being common, and he reviles his uncle Claudius, who has not only remarried
his mother in haste, but has also usurped Hamlet’s right to the Danish crown.
In Fuqua’s interpretation, Hamlet is a witty, absurd hero whose ability to see
through false appearances and pretenses receives more emphasis than his
melancholy indecision. This production’s finest scenes include Hamlet’s lucid
mockeries of the sycophants Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, and the quick
repartee he makes with a bewildered Polonius (Rudolph Willrich). In the
nunnery scene, Hamlet rages at Ophelia (Alison Brie), who is equally lost in a
vortex of lies and treachery. Brie delivers a deeply moving performance as
Ophelia, an innocent girl “divided against self and her own judgment.”
The second act is a tour de force. Efrem Zimbalist Jr.
plays the dignified Player King with great pathos, and Remi Sandri expresses
Laertes’ hot tempered, vengeful spirit precisely. James O’Neill’s nuanced
portrayal of Claudius presents a villain with a remorseful, penitent side.
Leonard Kelly Young (also the Ghost) evidently cherishes the role of the
gravedigger in a lighter, comedic scene. The quick pace observed in the
soliloquies and dialogues ensures the audience’s complete absorption in this
three-hour modern performance of a drama that continues to stir our minds and
hearts now, some 400 years after its composition.
What a gorgeous weekend huh? Summer is near...
This epic tragedy, the most famous English play ever
written, is also the most often produced play of Shakespeare’s 38 beloved
masterpieces. Hamlet rises once again, just up the coast in Ventura (an hours
drive). Abundant with the Bard’s most well known quotes, and as always,
deliciously decadent and full of betrayal, revenge, madness and passion, this
is a stunningly masterful production! Under the excitingly inventive direction
of the always innovative Jenny Sullivan, characters dash & dart about,
surprising us from every corner of the sweeping stage. Majestic set design by
Thomas S. Giamario and impressive 1800s period costumes by Marcy Froehlich
creatively take us there. Fine behind the scenes efforts all around! Joe Fuqua
as Hamlet is triumphantly titillating! A highly skilled, constantly revered
actor, with rock star good looks, and a boyishly playful nature, he gives the
mad Prince of Denmark a sassy and devilish twinkle. Bravo! Also impressively
illuminating is James O’Neil as Claudius, Hamlet’s evil, murderous stepfather.
Admittedly, I often struggle to absorb the meaning of Shakespeare’s poetic
writing style, but the crisp phrasing and delivery of O’Neil’s performance
here, made it crystal clear. Stephanie Zimbalist elegantly captures the role
of Queen Gertrude, Hamlet’s mother, and it was a thrill to see her handsome
father Efrem Zimbalist Jr. (at 88) as the Player King. Alison Brie was
hypnotic as the femininely fragile Ophelia, Remi Sandri was chilling as her
brother, Laertes, and Rudolph Willrich powerfully depicted her father,
Polonius. Appearing from the heavens, Leonard Kelly Young was effectively
eerie as the ghost of Hamlet’s father. I could go on and on about this
incredible, large cast, but space won’t allow. Kudos to all. Only running thru
May 20 (Wednesday thru Sunday), take this special chance to get to know this
fabulous theatre company in their gorgeous theatre! They always deliver!
Rubicon's 'Hamlet' enjoys the benefits of
exemplary actors
By
Rita Moran (Contact)
Thursday, May 3, 2007
One of the advantages of being a respected professional
theater company is the ability to attract actors with exceptional abilities,
and to maintain their interest through programming that might daunt less
experienced troupes.
A prime example is Rubicon Theatre Company's "Hamlet," one
of the world's most complex and intense tragedies by one of its most revered
playwrights, William Shakespeare.
Selecting "Hamlet" for presentation is bold programming,
but not the leap of faith it might be if an actor willing and able to play the
title role weren't already in Rubicon's midst.
Joseph Fuqua, who has demonstrated at the Rubicon that he
can be very funny ("The Rainmaker," "The Little Foxes"), keenly sensitive
("The Boys Next Door," "Tuesdays with Morrie") and chillingly serious ("Man of
La Mancha," "All My Sons"), is ripe for the role.
Radiating intelligence and a singeing wit, the actor enters
Hamlet's disjointed world well-equipped.
Bolstering Fuqua's adventure, and making it less
precarious, are more of the skilled cadre Rubicon has attracted and sustained,
starting with director Jenny Sullivan and players in leading roles: Stephanie
Zimbalist as Queen Gertrude, Hamlet's mother; James O'Neil, Rubicon's artistic
director, as King Claudius, Hamlet's uncle; and Efrem Zimbalist Jr. as Player
King.
Other returning actors to the Rubicon stage include Jamie
Torcellini, Rudolph Willrich and Nancy Nufer.
With all that talent on stage there is little worry about
poorly spoken or muffed lines, inept movement or shallow interpretations.
Newer to the Rubicon, but adding substantially to the
fabric of the play, is Alison Brie as Ophelia, a charming innocent at first, a
frenzied fallout from Hamlet's single-minded pursuit of revenge as the plot
constricts.
Brie has what few other Ophelias can summon as they
disintegrate. She can actually sing well, adding to the force of the
distraught young woman's fragmented songs of delusion.
Stephanie Zimbalist exudes warmth and maternal love, while
O'Neil, whose Claudius has won the throne and queen through nefarious means,
is severely controlled until his machinations are revealed.
Leonard Kelly Young shines in the featured roles of the
ghost of Hamlet's father, solemnly urging revenge, and a wily gravedigger
who's quick with the earthy humor.
The complex set with multiple revolving panels manipulated
by the actors with some backstage assists serves very well for quick exits and
entries and supports a certain sense of mystery.
High, steep stairways on either side of the stage lead up
to a second playing level, one put to good use as Hamlet flings himself onto
the edge of the balcony for his "To be or not to be" soliloquy.
That quintessential set piece, weighing the impact of
acting out his father's vengeance against the festering angst of not doing so,
embraces the audience in its delivery rather than being conveyed as interior
brooding.
Connection with the audience is enhanced, too, by the
thrust conformation of the stage designed for "Hamlet."
To accommodate it, a few seats had to be temporarily
removed, but the trade-off for intimate involvement in the action is worth the
sacrifice.
Using the First Folio text for "Hamlet," printed in 1623,
which is considerably shorter than the Second Quarto in 1604, Rubicon
dramaturg William Keeler explains in program notes that additional judicious
cuts have been made. "Hamlet" is presented in two acts, the first 70 minutes,
the second around 90. But most will find the words and actions on stage
riveting.
Time may not fly, but neither is it wasted.
