Hamlet

Hamlet
Foothills Theatre Company
Clement Park
Littleton, CO
July 19 - 27, 2019

Summertime is the season for Shakespeare. In Colorado, at least five companies regularly present the Bard’s works in an outdoor setting. The smallest of these companies is Foothills Theatre Company who performs their shows for free in Clement Park. This season’s play was Hamlet.

Hamlet is a huge undertaking. Presenting it outdoors with a limited set and a small cast was a challenge, but this group did not shy away from it.

Hamlet himself was a young man. He played the feigned madness of the character effectively, but the transitions between his crazy antics and lucid thoughts were not believable. His feelings for Ophelia were also unclear. In the early scenes he seemed to dislike her. It wasn’t until after her death he admitted he cared for her.

The performance of King Claudius was mesmerizing. He was a narcissistic character who only displayed remorse when he was caught. The role was played with passion and depth, giving the show a complex villain.

For the role of Polonius, the directed opted to cast a woman. The gender switch worked well within the script, creating Polonius as a confidant of the queen rather than a lord with an over friendly relationship with her. Unfortunately the performance was stiff and the audience was unable to bond with the character.

The set looked basic but it was surprisingly versatile. The main backdrop hid a small scaffold which was used as the ramparts where the ghost of Hamlet’s father was seen and a balcony where the ghosts of slain characters eerily watched the actions after their deaths.

Hamlet was not an easy choice of show, but the cast and crew pulled it off. It was never too ambitious, rather the goal was to simply tell the story, which it did successfully.