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OPINION, INTERVIEWS & FEATURES
Alexander Lewis (Year 13) is intrigued by two contrasting productions of Shakespeare’s tragedy
Ian McKellen and Cush Jumbo have become the latest actors of note to embody the role of Hamlet on the London theatre circuit, following in the footsteps of Benedict Cumberbatch, Andrew Scott and David Tennant. For McKellen, it’s a return to the role he played 50 years ago. Jumbo, meanwhile, is far from unfamiliar with the stage, and both actors’ experience and skill are evident in these two very different productions, finding impressive nuance in different areas of Hamlet’s depiction. Jumbo excels at conveying Hamlet’s capricious character, whilst constantly retaining the audience’s focus. Her Hamlet bathes in energetic self-obsession and a love of deliberate performance, emerging as one of the most sinister portrayals of the Danish prince in years. McKellen’s ability to draw out new meanings from even the most familiar of lines in some scenes heightens Hamlet’s contemplative and depressive aspects. The age-blind casting, this production’s central innovation, fundamentally changes the character, more so even than the cross-cast, androgynous figure cut by a close-cropped Cush Jumbo in black sweatpants. Hamlet’s world-weariness and cautious inaction feel, unsurprisingly, less than striking in an 82-year-old, despite McKellen’s valiant attempts to convince otherwise. Both productions unfold on stages with a cramped and private atmosphere, an approach that works far better for Hersov’s production, starring Jumbo, which focuses on family drama, cutting the Fortinbras subplot from the play entirely. The most poignant family tragedy conveyed in this production is not that of the royal family, led by Adrian Dunbar’s stagnant, estate agent-like Claudius, but that of Joseph Marcell’s caring and genuine Polonius and his children. Hersov’s focus on family dynamics is reflected in Anna Fleischle’s minimalist set design, with three rotating monolithic metal pillars resting on a flagstone floor. The tenderness established between Polonius and his children seems to have little pay-off though, as Hersov, oddly,
underplays Polonius’ death, which happens entirely offstage. The production suffers from pacing issues, especially when Jumbo is offstage (which is rare fortunately), perhaps exacerbated by the removal of Fortinbras’ impending arrival. In Sean Mathias’ McKellen-led production, Lee Newby’s set, with onstage seating and metal walkways above, feels underutilised, making the production seem small and displaced (granted, this was not aided by our seats’ distance from the stage). Equally, the powerful start of the play is neutered by some odd decisions: the opening scene on the battlements is cut completely, and Hamlet’s first soliloquy (‘that this too, too solid flesh would melt’), in which he contemplates suicide, is separated into two scenes, ending with McKellen peddling furiously on a Peloton bike. Not all of Mathias’ choices are unsuccessful, though: the production features an endearing if unlikely friendship between Ben Allen’s excellent Horatio and McKellen’s philosophising Hamlet. Mathias does spend less time exploring Hamlet’s relationship with Ophelia, perhaps mercifully, given she’s less than half his age. In the light of McKellen’s comment on Hamlet’s ‘bisexuality’, perhaps there is a suggestion that Hamlet and Horatio may have something more. Overall though, Mathias’ production feels thoroughly confused, from Loren Elstein’s eclectic wardrobe (McKellen changes from an almost Victorian or steampunk aesthetic at the start to hoodies and jackets later) to Gertrude’s accent, which seems to switch between German, Dutch and Danish from scene to scene.
Ultimately, Hersov’s production feels far more cohesive, and it supports Jumbo’s performance far better than Mathias’ does McKellen – although who wouldn’t want to see Gandalf as Hamlet?
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