Review of Hamlet, performed in the lowry, salford quays Essay Example for Free

Review of differentiatetlement, performed in the lowry, salford quays EssayOn Wednesday 3rd of November, the A-level drama groups from Queens Park extravagantly School went to see a version of Hamlet performed in the Salford Quays Lowry theatre. Directed by Japanese Yukio Ninagawa, he has added Japanese influences into the traditional Shakespe atomic number 18an tragedy. The design of the set use artistic impressionism The barbed wire delineated the conflict present within his mind. As well as this it was a useful medium to cordon trustworthy areas of the stage.The light bulbs also representing conflict, which are regularly used in Shakespearean loosenesss in this case used (as with the barbed wire) to evince the conflict beginning in Hamlets mind. The light bulbs would alight and sway to signify a monologue, and were also a type of imagery demonstrating the mind- the light bulb is commonly used to curb an idea. The doors virtually the edge of stage were used to replicat e the idea of an open space, and gave the stage an incredible sense of vastness.By using these doors and certain lighting, the music director was able to indicate different times of day during the scene with Hamlet and the ghost, the light gradually moved around all of the doors and successfully created the tanging of a rising sun. The costumes wasted by some char displaceers appeared unusual the ghost king (although written to be Norwegian) wore a Samurai costume, and the entertainers wore costumes relating to the native kabuki or no theatre of Japan. Shakespeare would probably break used clowns or a similar type of act to demonstrate the murder of Hamlets father.The reason for this stems from the Japanese director, Ninagawa, who used his own culture to influence some aspects of the play. This was elicit when it came to the background signal of the play, as it did not tie with the written adaptation which -as mentioned earlier- was supposed to be based in Norway, and on that point were no references to this. Other costumes were used well to represent different circles within the play- royalty and those associated were milled in red a royal colour.Ophelia and her family originally dressed in white, possibly symbolising worthiness and truth, until Polonius joins the King and Queen and also dresses in red. Horatio dresses in similar plain black c portion outhing to Hamlet, scarcely wore a blue scarf that could have been used to differentiate him from the royal family. The two scholars that appear at the Kings request both wear grey, high-class outfits and look real much like scholars. The final groups of mountain to explore are the Polish army, the leader of which wore a very modern leather coat- a mark of high status and power.The major costume changes that occur are when Gertrude asks to speak to Hamlet- at which point she wears a light blue, flowing gown, representing her purity and innocence, and the underwear worn by Ophelia, masking her in a tousled and unkempt state. The main sound effects occurred at the beginning of for each one act rolling thunder, which go with the swaying lights. Music was used namely in the performance by the Kabuki theatre. During Ophelias madness, she vocalises some sonnets written by Shakespeare. Songs are also sung by the gravediggers, although they feature only for a short while and do not contribute much to the play as a whole.Overall, the design of the play was well thought out, and the director was able to use the space, lighting, sound and costume to create a well-devised and creative atmosphere. In comparison the setting and design of the play, the acting did not contribute in such an involving way. All addresss were able to project their voices, which do the audition able to competently hear what the characters where saying. But emotion and expression were lacking in legion(predicate) of the characters e. g. one of the most well known lines of the play dear Jochum, I knew him wel l -spoken by Hamlet- was locomote and miscued.In a similar way, the characters of the King and Gertrude were greatly over-acted. The actors who demonstrated the best character development and naturalism were Polonius and Horatio. During the scene where Polonius forgets what he was going to say, many members of the audience believed that he had forgotten his lines, inducing laughter and amusement exactly the reaction that Shakespeare intended. Horatio gave an excellent performance at the end of the play, producing real tears and a very convincing sadness at the death of his best friend Hamlet.The performances of both of these characters were consistent throughout the play. due(p) to the barbed wire on the stage, some of the movement seemed restricted, such as the sword fight amongst Hamlet and Laertes, where it appeared that they accidentally knocked the wire causing it to shake and distract the attention of the audience. The body language of each character was questionable Gert rude and the King both had over-exaggerated arm movements, whereas Hamlet appeared not to over-use large movements such as pointing and flailing arms.Polonius had an interesting twitch in his right arm, which at first appeared to be nervousness of the actor, but on further investigation, was an intentional manoeuvre used to depict his slightly psychotic character. Ophelia created madness in her character after the death of her father by moving in a lyrical fashion, as though not really aware of her motion a successful tactic. Directors will use the versatility of the Hamlet handwriting to create different relationships mingled with characters, either successfully or unsuccessfully. Ninagawa made the following choicesThe relationship between Polonius and Ophelia was interesting, because although at the beginning of the play Polonius chose to treat his daughter with disdain, Ophelia was quite obviously very disturbed and downcast almost his death. This was perhaps conveying the t rue to life concept that one will love family no matter what the situation. An separate relationship including Ophelia is the intimacy between herself and her brother without knowing the characters, the audience may have been fooled into thinking that Ophelia and Laertes are lovers, as they candy kiss.The kiss appears to have a romantic nature rather than the kiss the audience would expect within a family kiss. This could result in the audience being ambivalent about the relationship between Ophelia and Laertes. Ninagawa does not pursue the romantic relationship between Ophelia and Hamlet or Claudius and Gertrude, which the audience would expect to see some evidence of- at one point, the actor of Gertrude tried to embrace Claudius who pushed her away, and there was very little contact between Hamlet and Ophelia.Hamlet is an interesting character within himself, showing signs of contempt towards other characters, being indecisive and uncaring. It is within the monologues that the a udience is exposed to the real Hamlet, which Ninagawa has chosen to personate as acting madness, as opposed to becoming crazed. The final relationship being considered is that of Hamlet and Gertrude. At the beginning of the play, the actors did not express sort of bond, and the first contact they appear to have is in Gertrudes closet, where she is reasonably sexually harassed by Hamlet.This could have been executed in a much more intractable way, which fortunately the director did not choose to do. The acting in this version of Hamlet leaves a lot to be desired as lines were forgotten, words were misused and the some actors seemed lacking in direction. I feel that having heard the story of Hamlet after having seen the play, there was much that I misunderstood from watching and audition to the characters.Although true to the text, some of the words were spoken without expression and misinterpretation became easy attention lapsed. Having spoken to other audience members, certain k ey characters became easy to listen to despite the difficult context and even enjoy. The set and costume was admired for the provocative nature and was a success in almost all aspects. Overall, the play captured most moments that were significant either with the use of design or the skill of the able and talented actors.