In spectacular polyphonic voice, Polish experimental theatre company Song of the Goat presents Hamlet but not as you know him. The Danish prince is rendered a near-catatonic, grief-stricken presence, while the players around him sing paeans to the dead and the King’s ghost stalks the stage, all accompanied by the haunting strains of a nyckelharpa (essentially a complicated violin). At least a passing familiarity with Hamlet is required I think, but even if you’re so armed, the language mix and oblique storytelling mean you have to just surrender to the atmosphere. You feel like you’ve stumbled into a pagan ritual, where wild-eyed singers are weaving some kind of primal magic. Appropriately, it all comes to a head just before midnight.

Summerhall, until 15 Aug.
tw rating 4/5 | [Jon Stapley]