Undead Shenanigans Afoot with BYU’s HAMLET AND ZOMBIES

PROVO —  So much of what makes Shakespeare Timeless is the many creative ways it can be approached. The 1990s were filled with Shakespeare adaptations of all forms from 10 Things I Hate About You to The Lion King. Musicals are inspired by his works both directly such as those by Shaina Taub and those more derivative such as West Side Story and Kiss Me Kate. BYU’s most recent touring production of Hamlet and Zombies by Will Arvell is another such adaptation, and while it was funny and a creatively performed, solid abridgement of the Dane’s story, this production was bizarre. 

At a baseline, I believe zombies and Shakespeare can mesh. The 2013 Zom-Rom-Com Warm Bodies blended Romeo and Juliet with the dystopian feel of many modern zombie stories by using modern design and making contemporary zombies essential to the world of the film. This script was a little more true to it’s name. It was Hamlet. And also Zombies. They appeared in ways that didn’t totally matter to the story telling, and while they were quirky and broke the fourth wall in amusing ways, it was odd. 

I also felt like this play was, at times, doing too much for a show aimed mostly to young audiences. David Morgan’s concept used commedia masks for everyone, except for Hamlet, presumably to focus on the language. Great! There were Shadow puppets to show the grim deaths of both Hamlet’s father as well as Polonius and Ophelia drowning. Fun! Rosencrantz and Guildenstern – from Denmark, at war with Norway and Traveling to England – are Italian and speak with over the top accents and a few “Mama Mia” lines. Ok! There were slide whistle sound effects, over the top fight scenes, actors assigned to many characters, and actors would sometimes just go sit in the audience. Not to interact – just to be. Occasionally the song Zombie by the Cranberries would play, because, why not? 

Were these moments funny? They usually were! But nothing felt unified and these one-off moments felt like side shows distracting from a Shakespearean language, condensed Hamlet. I know Hamlet like he knew Yorick, and I would have been lost if not. The show just never gelled and often felt like throwing creative spaghetti at the wall to see what stuck. At the end, the floor was strewn and not just with zombie disease infected corpses. 

Design

That said, there were some solid acting and strong design elements that elevated the production. Dennis Wright’s mentorship of the costume design was excellent. The pieces were period and well pulled together, and they blended well with the masks. Touring productions need to quick change and those were largely seamless in the production. I loved the simple design set up with pipe and drape surrounding a white scrim that allowed for the creatively gruesome shadow puppet work. The sound mix from students Amber Sibbett and Harley Crabb was excellent and overall elevated Morgan’s treatment of the script. Touring shows, by their nature, are tech light, but this show still has interesting, high quality designs that are visually appealing. 

Performances

The performances were highly physical and engaging in that way. With so much death and attacking in the show, playful physicality from the cast allowed for it to never feel overly serious or violent. At times, even knowing the source material, the language was difficult to understand as the pace was so high that things never really got to settle or land. My fourth grader attended and while he was amused, he didn’t track the story’s beats. 

Sarah Bennet was one of the most easily identifiable of the masked actors as her Ophelia was delightfully delusional even up to her demise. Bennet gave Ophelia a well defined character shape and her high pitched vocals were clear and distinctive. I appreciated Ella Henderson’s gruff Claudius contrasted with a more goofy portrayal of Horatio, the scholar. I had very mixed feelings about Atticus Pixton’s portrayal of the titular Dane. His unmasked face allowed for much more expression and facial subtext which was appreciated and interesting. As he spoke, he added to the silliness of the production by being, again, a bizarre portrayal of Hamlet. Instead of being brooding, sullen, or even unhinged, Pixton’s Hamlet came across like a macabre mashup of Anthony Hopkins’ Hannibal and the Simpson’s Troy McClure. I laughed often, and it was also unsettling the longer it went on. 

Recommendation

Overall, my impression of the show was that it made me laugh and spend an hour taking in Shakespeare in a novel way. I don’t know that I was profoundly moved, but I don’t know that it was the point. As an educator, I was thrilled by what the students got to experience in the process of creating this play. High level language, physical performing, quirky humor, and a host of techniques that were overall skillful and independently fine. I love to imagine what transpired for these actors in the process of making this play. As an audience member, I think I’m glad I know the play or I’d have been confused – though entertained – about what had just happened for the hour lead in. Reviews can end up being just words, words, words, but this Hamlet may be most interesting if you’re looking for something to entertain and eat your brain. 

Ticketing and More