"Good night, Sweet Prince"

I have been waiting for 20 years to see my own vision of Hamlet actually performed. I have had a literary crush on the character of Hamlet, since I first read him when I was in high school. I have seen 2 stage productions and several film Hamlets and have never been satisfied. (Please don't get me started on what Olivier did to my man: "This is a story about a man who cannot make up his mind..."! What is he talking about?! I don't care if he IS Olivier and has numerous theatres named after him; he's got it all wrong! Grrr. Grrr.).


Tonight I have seen my Hamlet and was left in tears. Happy tears. I have just left Stratford's Royal Shakespeare Company's production of Hamlet, starring David Tennant, of the BBC television's "Dr. Who" fame, in the title role, with Patrick Stewart as his uncle, step-father, king, and nemesis Claudius. Just because these are recognizable stars in the acting world did not mean to me that they were a shoo-in for interpreting this transcendant, and most wonderful, of all literary texts (see angst over Olivier above!). I was filled with a lot of trepidation and anticipation beforehand, believe me. But they did it! They blew my mind. Not only was the acting superb, and in the case of the title role, flawless, but everything else was brilliant. The modern costuming, the lighting, the incredible minimalist mirrored stage, even the cuts worked.

I was mesmerized. I was thrilled. And even though we all knew what was coming, I just did. not. want. Hamlet. to. die. Ahhhh.

I guess I can now die happy, myself. Because, as Hamlet says, "There's a divinity that shapes our ends, rough-hew them how we will." I'm still in tears and just had to share my excitement over one of the most memorable experiences of my life. That is all.


Here's a link to The Guardian newspaper about the performance: http://www.guardian.co.uk/stage/gallery/2008/jul/31/david.tennant.theatre.shakespeare?picture=336095864

Sigh.