ED2016 5/5 Reviews ED2016 Theatre Reviews

Hamlet In Bed (Richard Jordan Productions and Brian Long Productions)

By Penelope Hervouet | Published on Tuesday 16 August 2016

Abandoned by his mother at birth, Michael is desperately looking for her and for a way to fill the void left by her absence. A frail and anguished actor, he is obsessed with the character of Hamlet. Convinced that he has found his birth mother, a once famous actress, Michael attempts some sort of twisted catharsis: inviting her into a production of ‘Hamlet’, centred around the bed scene between Hamlet and Gertrude. Numerous parallels are cleverly established between the ‘real’ story and the Shakespearian one, and the actors brilliantly develop and embody both. Annette O’Toole’s performance is dark, sensual and magnetic. The Oedipal confrontation between these two drastically different yet so similar characters is electric. A phenomenal take on Shakespeare’s play.

Pleasance Courtyard, until 29 Aug.
tw rating 5/5 | [Pénélope Hervouet]