The timeless and existential "Hamlet" will premiere tonight under the direction of Shakespeare enthusiast Sam Plattus '12.
After directing the Masque and Gown production of "Twelfth Night" last semester, Plattus chose another Shakespeare classic for his fourth and final full-length directorial production at Bowdoin. His two other projects were Oscar Wilde's "An Ideal Husband" and David Mamet's "American Buffalo."
Plattus said he has enjoyed making his way through the immense depth and breadth of the playwright's works.
"I love the way that the stories have entered the public consciousness in such a way that they've become universal stories so that even if you haven't read 'Hamlet,' you know 'Hamlet.' Even if it's from seeing 'The Lion King,' you know 'Hamlet,'" Plattus added.
As a theater and English interdisciplinary major, Plattus has directed under the tutelage of Associate Professor of Theater Roger Bechtel and as a member of Masque and Gown. "Hamlet" is his second independent study in directing.
Alexander "Xander" Johnson '14 will be playing the title role of Hamlet.
"When you do a play like 'Hamlet,' you're dealing with not only the text itself, but you're dealing with the preconceptions that everyone has about 'Hamlet,' all of the other productions that people have seen," said Plattus. "The one thing that's different about every production of Hamlet is the actor playing Hamlet. It's such a rich complex role. Xander was a big reason I wanted to do the play in the first place."
"It's really intimidating when you're saying words that everyone knows," said Johnson. "In pretty much every scene, I have at least one line that I already knew before I even read the play."
Because of the massive amount of text Johnson has had to master, he took on the role as an independent study in acting with Assistant Professor of Theater Abbie Killeen.
Plattus' rendition will utilize a nine-person cast—notably smaller than the typical cast size for this tragedy. Although Johnson and three other cast members with particularly prominent roles will only play one character, the five remaining actors and actresses will each be playing multiple parts.
"They're doing an incredible job not only in being committed to the play, but in the way that they've created up to six distinct characters that you couldn't mistake for each other—it's really impressive," Plattus said.
Plattus' play will be performed in the round—an ambitious task—though the other technical elements have been streamlined.
"The staging is very minimalist. There are little costumes, props, lighting...all is as bare-bones as possible. It's a rawer production of Hamlet than many people have seen. I really wanted to try to make the production as rough around the edges as I could," said Plattus.
"Hamlet is someone who is deeply disturbed, but he is also someone who has a very beautiful mind and soul," he added. "He's a deep thinker. He's brilliant. He's driven to become someone that would be repellent to who he is as a person at the beginning of the play, and I find that fascinating because that is where the story becomes universal. What makes it a great play is how far that story gets taken."
"Hamlet" will be performed at 7 p.m. tonight and tomorrow in Room 108 of Memorial Hall.
Tickets are required but are available for free at the Pickard-Wish Theater box office.