Unit 2 Classical Theatrical Performance: October 2013

Context:

Hamlet was written by William Shakespeare an English Literature born in 1564. Around 1590 he left his family behind and travelled to London to work as an actor and playwright. Shakespeare wrote Hamlet in the seventeenth century around 1600 - 1601. And was first performed July 1602.
Hamlet is the story of a Danish prince whose uncle murders the prince’s father, marries his mother, and claims the throne.
The prince then decides to act in an unintelligent manner and throws his uncle off guard, seeks revenge and manages to kill his uncle. This was the raw material that Shakespeare had in mind for the play but later on then changed the whole story, and made Hamlet a philosophically minded prince who delays taking action because his knowledge of his uncle’s crime is so uncertain.
Whilst Shakespeare was writing this play he wanted to leave the audience feeling uncertain and confused as to what really happened in the play that's why for instance whether Hamlet’s mother, Gertrude, shares in Claudius’s guilt? or Hamlet continues to love Ophelia even as he spurns her? or in Act 3 Ophelia’s death is suicide or accident? Shakespeare wanted the audience to ask questions to make them think what is going on, he wanted to leave them wanting more that was the whole aim of the play Hamlet.

Classical Roles

Hamlet:

Hamlet is a character that really stands out in this play compared to others, there is always more to him than the other characters in the play can figure out. Hamlet actually tells other characters that there is more to him than meets the eye. Hamlet was known for having such a deep important tone and statues whenever he spoke, even when he wasn't saying something important, he was given so much respect from everyone. Hamlet is a university student, and for some reason Hamlet takes great interest in difficult questions or questions that cannot be answered. Later on in the play Hamlet finds proof that his uncle killed his father Hamlet refuses to give up until he's able to prove that his uncle (the current king) is responsible for his death. He is extremely disappointed with his mother for marrying his uncle so quickly, Hamlet then rejects Ophelia a woman he once claimed to love. In addition to this I was able to do some further research and find out that after the ghost of Hamlets late father appeared to him, Hamlet is left confused and not sure whether what he has just been told by his fathers ghost is true. A group of actors from Elsinore then arrive come up with a solution, and then decided to stage a play re enacting his fathers murder. By staging this play they will be able to see if Claudius is guilty by the way he reacts towards it.

I also done further research into Hamlets character and was able to find out abit more about his social cultural and historical background. Hamlet is seen to be indicated as a medium built character, he is seen to be gentle and always showing geniality to those that are lower than him. Hamlet is also seen to be highly intelligent Ophelia quotes :

"O what a noble mind is here o'erthrown"

Hamlet himself reminds that Haratio that :

"There are more things in heaven and earth"

We are able to see that Hamlet is a man of culture we can also see that Hamlet is a student of drama and knows his classics very well as he is able to quote freely from works he has read or studied. He also expresses himself strongly about how much he hates the evils of drinking when the new king is given over while his mother's falseness and lack of modesty forms her son to be bitter.

The deepness of Hamlets culture of intellect has an impact of how Hamlet is so quick to judge others. Further on into the play we are able to see that Hamlet is the sort of person that is forever looking into himself, for explanations of this and that and shows his most deepest thoughts in soliloquies.

We are able to see that essentially Hamlet is a victim of circumstances, and these sort of circumstances bring failure from those he would least expect. For example the young prince has been given the task to seek revenge for his fathers death. This is out of Hamlets nature, however this brings out some weak and strong traits in his character, the grief of his father has brought 'melancholy' to Hamlet who is always cheerful. On one hand these facts could suggest that Hamlet is seen to be mad however this also suggest that the people around him may the people that are going mad. Because of the grief which Hamlet feels , his mothers relationship with the brother of her deceased husband appears even more shameful to his nature. We can see changes in Hamlet as his deep thinking mind reflects on the futility of life and he contemplates suicide. He becomes cunning and cruel determine to gain revenge by playing them at their own game.

Hamlet contains many themes and elements within the play such as:

The Impossibility of Certainty - What separates Hamlet from other revenge plays is that the action we expect to see, particularly from Hamlet himself, is continually postponed while Hamlet tries to obtain more certain knowledge about what he is doing.

The Mystery of Death - In the aftermath of his father’s murder, Hamlet is obsessed with the idea of death, throughout, the idea of death is closely tied to the themes of spirituality, truth, and uncertainty in that death may bring the answers to Hamlet’s deepest questions.

The Nation as a Diseased Body - Everything is connected in Hamlet, including the welfare of the royal family and the health of the state as a whole. The play’s early scenes explore the sense of anxiety and dread that surrounds the transfer of power from one ruler to the next. At the end of the play, the rise to power of the upright Fortinbras suggests that Denmark will be strengthened once again.

Shakespeare also used a lot of devices and structures towards this play to help develop the ideas and help the audience understand the plays major themes.

Incest and Incestuous Desire - Shakespeare adds in the factor of incest in a number of his plays including Hamlet. We are aware that there is a factor of incest when Gertrude and Claudius are having a conversation, (the former brother in law and the sister in law who are now married).

We can also see another incest desire in Laertes and Ophelia's relationship, at times Laertes speaks in a sort of sexual manner towards his sister Ophelia. Laertes also jumps into Ophelia's grave and clings onto her arms at her funeral, this sort of act is not normal it makes the audience think that there is more to Laertes and Ophelia's relationship as brother and sisters. One of the biggest element of incest in Hamlet is the relationship between Hamelt himself and Gertrude. Throughout the play Hamlet is seen to always be concerned and interested in Gertrude and Claudius sex life.

Misogyny - Hamlet is really emotional and confused after finding out that his mother has decided to marry his uncle Claudius soon after his fathers death. Hamlets mind-set towards females has now changed because of this situation with his mother and uncle, its as if he no longer trusts any female. A motif of misogyny or hatred towards women is shown throughout the play but occurs mostly within the relationship between Ophelia and Gertrude. He desperately wants Ophelia to go to a nunnery, so she is not able to experience the corruption of sexuality.

Earing and Hearing - The importance of language is shown throughout the play, Hamlet uses words to communicate and suggest ideas to one another. However they are also used to disport the truth, manipulate each other and cause corruption. Claudius is a prime example, he manipulate words to gain power on the throne. The use of words also represents images of earing and hearing, Claudius murders the king by pouring poison into his ear and quoting 'I have words to speak in thine ear will make thee dumb'.

Symbols (Yorick's Skull) Shakespeare uses the skull to represent thematic ideas, hamlet discovers the skull in the graveyard in Act V Hamlet then begins to speak to the skull and focuses on the fact that death is necessary, it is irreversible he then ponders on the idea of how much loyalty has been lost because of this death.

"get you to my lady’s chamber, and tell her, let her paint an inch thick, to this favour she must come”

no one can avoid death. He traces the skull’s mouth and says,

“Here hung those lips that I have kissed I know not how oft,”

This is indicating to us the obsession he currently has with death and the consequences of it (revenge). This is a very important motif that runs throughout the play because Hamlet makes comments referring back to the point that everyone will soon meet death.

Theme of betrayal: 'The sweet bells jangled, out of time and harsh'. Hamlets trust is betrayed in the play by people who are closest to him, the theme of betrayal takes place even before the tragedy when Hamlets uncle murders Hamlets father. And then marries his mother, another element of betrayal is Hamlets mothers actions after her husband died her actions are seen to be hasty almost as if she no longer remembers the Late king which was her husband. The ghost of the old King visited Hamlet and quoted,

"The serpent that did sting thy father's life
Now wears his crown"

This quote also has a relationship and links back to the time of Adam and eve when the serpent came between them this parallels Claudius coming in between King Hamlet and Queen Gertrude. Hamlet is unsure whether to believe the information that he has just received from the ghost, but it is something that he cannot ignore. After taking some time to think Hamlet then decides to plot a plan to see whether Claudius is guilty.
Cladius then achieves his goal to becoming the new King, when he made the speech he hinted that he was involved with the death of King Hamlet.

"With mirth in funeral and with dirge in marriage"

This can be interpreted as a sly confession from Claudius that he was involved with the death of King Hamlet. The word 'Dirge' is the complete opposite to the word 'Mirth' which also suggests to us that Claudius does not really love Gertrude as she was only used to help him gain the throne.

Hamlets Frustration: Throughout the play Hamlets frustration begins to grow and grow. This is due to the situation and the events that has happened. We are able to see the growth of Hamlets frustration when he reflects about what has just happened.

"O, that this too sullied flesh would melt,/Thaw, and resolve itslef into a dew!"

If it wasn't for Hamlets knowledge about the Christian religion he would have taken his own life, this is how sad Hamlet is feeling at this point he is considering about taking his own life and contemplating whether to commit suicide.

"that the Everlasting had not fixed/His canon's'gainst self-slaughter!"

Here the audience is able to learn that Hamlet is highly committed to his religion even though he has every reason to take his life at this point. However because of the events that have been taking place Hamlets views on marriage has completely changed. He now see's marriage as corrupted and tainted. He describes his uncle as a weed in an impure world by stating

"an unweeded garden/That grows to seed. Things rank and gross in nature/posses it merely."

Hamlet tends to generalize womens weaknesses.

"frailty, thy name is woman!"

We are able to see that Hamlet thinks of his mother Gertrude and Ophelia the same way, Hamlet views his mother as impotent and unsuitable of love by saying , "Why, she would hang on him/As if an increase of appetite had grown/By what it fed on."

Costume For Hamlet: I did some research about the sort of clothing that Hamlet would have worn during that time, this helped me engage with my character more because I feel as if I have transformed into Hamlet. I got some images of Google about the sort of clothing a prince would have worn during that time.

Here is an image of how a prince would have dressed during the Shakespearian period. We can se that Hamlet is wearing a formal looking hat, along with a well fitted top and long shorts with a belt around his wait to help support the sword he has. Also he is wearing heavy boots with long white socks. This is appropriate for a prince, most men during this period always had a sword protecting them this was because, a sword was used as a form of defence but also a symbol of status. Only someone with status or known as royalty was allowed to wear swords. Swords, Armour etc. would only have been within the reach of the rich and powerful , because of the enormous cost involved. Also this image we can see that Hamlets hat includes black feathers which also gives the impression that he is rich and must come from a royal family because not many people of that time had enough money to buy such expensive things. We can also see that his shoes are shinny and well made this also shows the wealth of Hamlet because only the rich and royalty had their shoes shinned.

Speech and Tone of Hamlet: Adding on to the research I have done I decided in order for me to fully understand and connect with my character I also did some research on how my character would have spoken the sort of pitch and tone Hamlet would have had at this time. I then started going onto research and looking at the different 'To be or not to be' speeches and I came across Richard Burton and Kenneth Branagh.

I firstly watched Richard Burton perform the speech in 1964 and I was able to identify that he had this sort of presence that Hamlet defiantly would have during his time. Richard performed it in a lower tone as a man but emphasised on some words which made it clearer and easier to understand what was happening. I also observed the pace of how he was saying this speech there were some times where he sped it up and slowed it down and we as a audience could really see his thought processes. Also by watching this performance it helped me understand what I was saying abit more, I understood that Hamlet is alone whilst saying this big speech its only him in a room and a chair. Halfway through the speech Hamlet sat down and carried on what he was saying, this had a big affect because as he sat down we can see the amount of pain he is in, because it was almost as if he just slumped on his chair with no meaning as if he was fed up tired and confused. I have decided to adapt different projections and tones whilst performing to show and allow the audience understand exactly how I'm feeling for example when I'm saying 'to be or not to be' I say this in a calm confused tone this is allowing the audience that I am confused at this time in moment.

This helped me create this scene in my head. I also observed that with Richard Burton there was less movement but more emotions within the eyes he was more still whilst perform this which had a major effect because as an audience we are more engaged. As he said the word 'shuffled' he made the movement as if he was brushing off something on his body as if he is sick of the thought of death and what has happened. I also observed his movement when he first walked in after seeing his father ghost he looks shocked and confused he is fiddling around with his fingers which gives us the impression that he is either nervous or just confused and doesn't know what to do next, he then starts of his speech, 'to be or not to be' in a low uncertain tone making us as a audience wonder what is going through his head.

The next person that I did research on was Kenneth Branagh, his performance had a few similarities to Richard Burton. What I was able to observe was the movement of his eyes painted a picture every time he spoke. We could see what exactly was happening and what he was thinking of just through his eyes we could see a thought process. Unlike Richard Burton Kenneth performed the speech with much more pace, and much more emphasis on certain words this made me understand by stressing some words it gives more depth and meaning to it. I also realised when Kenneth was performing this speech he quoted 'And with a bare bodkin' and reached into his pocket and brought out a bodkin and some how it was like he was hypnotized and possessed and as if he didn't know what he was saying the words just came out as he thought. The object of the bodkin made the speech more interesting this is because as an audience we are going to react if someone brings out a weapon and it starts to make us think, whether he will use this bodkin against himself or for someone else this object just makes the speech far more interesting.

In addition to this throughout the speech Kenneth performs it facing a mirror, this gives us the sense that he has no one else to talk to apart from himself, there is so much going on at the moment that he has no one else to turn to apart from himself. Right now Hamelt is feeling alone and betrayed but also shocked at the fact that his father has come back to visit him as a ghost, and has told him the news of how his uncle was the cause of his death. The performance of this speech is much more clear and up to date unlike Richard Burton. Kenneth makes the speech more intense and emotional, we can see this through the way the pace of the words, and stresses on words.

Staging of Hamlet:

Here are some images of examples of how the stage of Hamlet would have been, unlike other Shakespeare plays Hamlet is very simple but yet very effective. As we can see these stages are very simple but have a lot of space so that the actors could create their own world. The stage lights will normally be very dim, and spotlights on different characters to create a sort of gloomy suspicious effect. The stage would also include maybe one or two chairs which also represent the throne. The setting will also include a fancy chandelier which also supports the idea of them being rich and coming from a royal background as people with a lower status than them would not be able to afford such expensive items. It may also include some stair cases that lead up to another setting of rooms or a balcony. This makes it seem more realistic this is because for example the scene when Hamlets mother is in her bedroom looking into a mirror and Hamlet walks into her room, not all scene can take place in the same environment so therefore by creating the stairs it helps create the world and makes the audience believe that she is actually in her own bedroom.

Presentation:

In class we were giving a task to gather all the background research we have completed about our play and character and create a presentation explaining the different themes and elements in our monologues, here are some screen shots of the presentation I created.

Here is the first slide of my presentation with just a plain title stating what this presentation is going to be about, also I have included images of Shakespeare himself in the middle and by the side I have attached an image Hamlet holding the Yorick's skull.

Here is the second slide of my presentation showing detailed explanation of Hamlet where he is from, what social status he belongs to, where he is currently located family background and what Hamlet does. This slide also includes some research of Shakespeare himself where he was born and how he got into the profession that he had. I also give a quick summary of what is going on in the play in order to give a brief description of how Hamlet is feeling.

This is my third slide, here I am explaining the classical role of Hamlet in this slide I include information about the characteristics Hamlet contained. I also explained that Hamlet was known for having such a deep important tone and statues this is because he came from a higher class, being that he was the son of the late king. Whenever he spoke, even when he wasn't saying something important, he was given so much respect from everyone. Hamlet is a university student.

In this slide I am explaining the different themes, motifs and symbols. I specifically talk about the impossibility of uncertainty. What separates Hamlet from other revengeful plays is that the action that we expect to see is continuously postponed while Hamlet tries to gain more knowledge about the recent events. I also talk about the mystery of death, Hamlet seems to be obsessed with the idea of death. The idea of death is closely tied to the themes of spirituality, truth, and uncertainty in that death may bring the answers to Hamlet’s deepest questions. Lastly I talk about the Nation as a body diseased Everything is connected in Hamlet, including the welfare of the royal family and the health of the state as a whole. The play’s early scenes explore the sense of anxiety and dread that surrounds the transfer of power from one ruler to the next.

This is the last slide of my presentation which is the Synopsis. Here I am explaining the summary of Hamlet, This drama is one of the great tragedy themed plays by William Shakespeare. The themes of the plot cover indecision, revenge and retribution, deception, ambition, loyalty and fate. Prince Hamlet mourns both his father's death and his mother, Queen Gertrude's remarriage to Claudius. The ghost of Hamlet's father appears to him and tells him that Claudius has poisoned him. Hamlet swears revenge.

Unit 2 Classical Theatrical Performance

Friday, 25 October 2013

Modernising Shakespeare

Modernizing Shakespeare:

Shakespeare In Love:

Theseus and Hippolyta: Shakespeare has used both Theseus and Hippolyta as a symbol of order and stability to contrast with the uncertainty, instability, and darkness of most of the play

Monday, 7 October 2013

Week 1 Rehersals

Becoming Hamlet:

Friday, 4 October 2013

Research For Hamlet

Context:

Hamlet: