CEDAR CITY — Summer is the perfect time for a campfire ghost story, and since fires in areas surrounding Cedar City provided plenty of smoke in the air on Tuesday evening, the Utah Shakespeare Festival’s opening night of Hamlet, under the direction of Beth Lopes, was the perfect fit.
Stewart Shelley, education director for the festival, joked in the pre-show orientation that one particular line from the play itself was appropriate: “What is this pestilent congregation of vapors?” The small crowd chuckled in response, with several nodding in agreement.
In truth, there was some question as to whether or not the air quality would allow for an outdoor production in the Engelstad Shakespeare Theatre that night, particularly after the decision was made to cancel the Greenshow. Fortunately, the smoky conditions improved as the evening wore on, and the show opened on schedule, giving audiences the opportunity to witness this fantastic iteration of one of the Bard’s most well-known plays.
Serving as both an homage to the past and a celebration of the Utah Shakespeare Festival’s 65th season, this is the 10th time the festival has included Hamlet in its lineup, the first of which took place in its inaugural season. The play is filled with countless lines familiar to Shakespeare novices and aficionados alike, including “To be or not to be?” “To thine own self be true,” and “Brevity is the soul of wit,” just to name a few. But in this case, it was some of the differences in the execution of the dialogue and the story itself that makes this version of Hamlet one that festival go-ers should definitely see.
Visually, the stage is arranged with minimal set dressings, featuring only a few large windows that are noticeably askew. Scenic Designer Apollo Mark Weaver’s vision, which unfolded as the show went on, allowed the set itself to echo the turmoil happening within the plot — an indication even from the outset, that all is not well in Denmark, especially in the castle.
Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, (played admirably by Walter Kmiec), is grieving the recent loss of his father, the king. Compounding Hamlet’s anguish is the fact that his widowed mother, Queen Gertrude (Mare Trevathan) married his father’s brother, King Claudius (John Keabler) so quickly after the wedding, and he is left to mourn alone. In his fragile state, Hamlet is informed by his good friend Horatio (portrayed in this production as a female character by Kayland Jordan) of the appearance of a ghostly apparition — a ghost that later visits Hamlet and reveals himself to be the late king. Hamlet learns his father’s death was neither accidental nor natural, rather he was murdered by his brother Claudius. Vowing to avenge his father’s death, the stage is set for Hamlet’s journey into feigned madness, and ultimately genuine destruction as revenge takes its ugly toll.
Although Hamlet is clearly a tragedy overall, there were more than a few elements of mirth sprinkled throughout the night. Interactions between Hamlet’s love interest Ophelia (played by Kathryn Tkel) and her brother Laertes (Blake Henri), for example, were punctuated by a few suggestive gestures and some vocal cues that made their dialogue feel a touch more modern, and very accessible. Likewise, Hamlet’s descent into manufactured madness was riddled with humorous throw away lines, side glances toward the audience and he seemed to channel a sort of Robert-Downey-Jr.-as-Tony-Stark energy that made him a remarkably likable, if not a bit perplexing, version of the role.
However, as the balance of the plot shifted into the ultimately catastrophic outcome, Kmiec poured his passion into Hamlet’s demise, and the audience was rewarded by the effort. One particularly poignant moment was enhanced by the strategic lighting design by Michael Gilliam when Hamlet outlined his desire to “catch the conscience of the king” and it was clear there was no going back.
Kmiec’s strong performance in the title role set a standard for the cast that many followed extremely well.
Stepping into what is usually the male role of Horatio, Jordan made a strong case for the decision to cast her instead. Her banter with Hamlet, her earnest desire to help, and her confident on-stage presence served as an excellent through-line of the show.
Showcasing similar strength in his own role, Henri’s version of Laertes gave the audience many reasons to love him in the first act, and plenty to fear when he returned near the end of the tale. His dead-pan reactions as his father, Polonius (John Harrell), droned on with an abundance of parental wisdom, and his playful interactions with Ophelia, were later swapped for a depth of sorrow and desire for revenge that seemed to shake him physically to the core.
The contrast was beautiful.
As for the other-worldly elements in this performance, there are a few things of note. King Hamlet’s ghost could have been a little more ethereal, particularly in the earliest scenes. His costume, some translucent grey fabric swathed over his formerly kingly clothes, wasn’t very compelling, especially without proper lighting in the opening scene (due to the fact that the natural sky was still light during his first appearance). Additionally, the absence of any sort of microphone distortion when he first spoke to his son made it hard to imagine actor Thom Rivera as anyone other than a man wandering around. This microphone problem may have been a technical glitch as there was some vocal distortion later in the show. Either way, the ghostly aspect of the story improved as the play went on, thanks to the darker sky, and the director’s decision to include the ghostly forms of each person killed, culminating in a deliciously chilling conclusion to the show.
SHOW INFO: Festival fans and newcomers alike will not want to miss this haunting, and thought-provoking version of Shakespeare’s Hamlet, playing through Sept. 4 in the outdoor Engelstad Shakespeare Theatre in Cedar City (200 Shakespeare Ln, Cedar City, UT 84720). For more information and tickets, go online to www.bard.org or call 800-PLAYTIX.