A pair of current Off-Broadway productions present nontraditional interpretations of two of the most iconic male protagonists in Western literature—Hamlet, the indecisive melancholy Dane, and Jay Gatsby, the mysterious millionaire and symbol of American ambition. Both shows display gimmicky staging to plumb the depths of William Shakespeare and F. Scott Fitzgerald’s observations on the human condition, but they obscure the richer insights of both works, resulting in flashy productions and incomplete renderings of the original.
This Central Park Hamlet at the Delacorte is staged by hot, Tony-winning director Kenny Leon (A Raisin in the Sun, Topdog/Underdog, etc.) and is proficiently acted by a strong ensemble led by the emotionally articulate Ato Blankson-Wood, who intensely delineates the title hero’s inner conflict between rational thought and raging revenge for his father’s murder by his uncle.
This is a scaled-down, sleek production clocking in at a little over two and a half hours which hits the major points of Hamlet’s tragic journey of self-reflection and existential angst. But what’s missing is the context of Denmark’s rotten state and by extension our corrupt world. What’s left is Hamlet’s personal trauma without the political context to give it a larger meaning.
Leon has chosen to reference his own 2019 Central Park production of Much Ado About Nothing, setting it in the same universe, but not giving meaning to that setting or even making clear where we’re supposed to be. His all-black Much Ado took place in what seems to be an Atlanta suburb where the comic hero Benedick and company had just returned from fighting a war for social and racial justice. A huge banner declaring Stacy Abrams for President in 2020 adorned a handsome red-brick residence. The same set designer Beowulf Boritt has deconstructed his original Much Ado concept for Hamlet with the same house crooked and sinking into the ground, the banner for Abrams askew and half buried in the earth, and a jeep stalled amid overgrown bushes. Is Leon saying the usurper Claudius has betrayed the progressive ideals of his brother after poisoning him and stealing his throne? That point is never made.
Leon has cut many of the scenes that would have given us this information. Gone are the opening scene where Horatio, Bernardo, and Marcellus first encounter the ghost of Hamlet’s father and decry their country’s unstable status. Plus all scenes with Fortinbras, the decisive young conqueror from Norway who acts as a counterweight to Hamlet’s political and military ambivalence, are likewise missing. The players’ scene where we witness a re-enactment of Hamlet Senior’s demise is abbreviated to a brief rap/hip-hop musical interlude with little impact.
On the plus side, Hamlet’s fateful confrontation with his father’s spirit is handled with bone-chillingly effective special effects thanks to Allen Lee Hughes’ harrowing lighting, Justin Ellington’s terrifying sound design, and Jeff Sugg’s ghostly video. The spirit’s shattering voice, provided by an uncredited Samuel L. Jackson, inhabits the expressive Blankson-Wood’s body like a demented demon.
Fortunately, the able cast provide emotional heft to their roles and deliver a rounded portrait of a family and community in crisis. Blankson-Wood is a sturdy Hamlet, vivifying the conflicted protagonist’s inner turmoil and skillfully delivering the famous soliloquies. John Douglas Thompson is a formidable Claudius, making him more than just a conniving villain. His “My offense is rank” speech is a stand-out. Lorraine Toussaint’s Gertrude is equally robust, endowing her with a sexual life and motivation to hide from the truths her son reveals.
As Ophelia, Solea Pfeiffer displays powerful pipes in several musical numbers. She doesn’t quite make the case for the maiden’s madness since her Ophelia appears too strong to succumb to insanity. Daniel Pearce’s Polonius is nicely understated, and Nick Rehnerger’s Laertes is powerful. Greg Hildreth’s Gravedigger supplies much-needed laughs. Tyrone Mitchell Henderson’s swishy Osric resorts to stereotypes.
This production is a satisfactory and fast-moving Hamlet, but misses the necessary depth for a truly memorable one.
