●●●●○

“When I say GANG, you say BANG!”

Yes. This really is a line from Hamlet.

Thomas Ostermeier’s postmodern interpretation of Hamlet is daring, hilarious, and at times even uncomfortable. In the space of 2 hours and 45 minutes, Ostermeier deconstructs our conceptions of theatre and of Hamlet itself, while still remaining loyal to the play’s central anxieties.

The production is a discordant mix of tragedy and comedy. The six actors, who between themselves play all of the roles, stumble about a stage formed of the funeral mud of Hamlet’s father like children in a sandpit. A constant source of tension is the open grave of King Hamlet, and later of Ophelia, which dominates the foreground of the stage. It is the only constant in a set that is formed anew each scene by the shifting banquet table and dreamlike camera projections that form a backdrop to the action.

A sense of instability and fluidity is created by the on-scene costume changes, which often occur without notice. The audience is forced to experience Hamlet’s psychological decline along with him, through the strange video diary that he makes and projects: a psychological fourth-dimension to the action.

It is hard to decide whether the play is intended as a tragedy or comedy: it is almost a Frankenstein-esque creature born of both traditions. While intended as a serious contribution to postmodernism, it is also a self-conscious parody of itself. At one point, Hamlet orders the other actors to leave the stage, as the time has come for him to deliver an important soliloquy. Any popular conception of Shakespeare’s work as inaccessible is deconstructed as the audience are made an integral part of the action, for example when the cast froze the play and waited while an audience member took a toilet break.

The thrilling pace of Shakespeare’s words is not diminished by the frequent comedic interruptions. Somehow these slapstick, deadpan and sarcastic interruptions add to the tension bolstered by a seriously impressive soundtrack.

Audience participation rips away the fourth wall of the production in a manner of which Shakespeare would probably have approved. The script (which at times feels improvised on the spot) makes frequent references to itself as an art form. Hamlet says: “it is all just theatre and also reality.” However, the play fails to go beyond simple acknowledgement of its artificiality, and therefore stops short of innovation in this respect. The relation of theatricality to human personality, and broadly of theatre to society, remains an abstract which playwrights and directors will continue to attempt to conceptualise.

This production, however, thoroughly deserves its position at the forefront of the Dublin Theatre Festival. Its jarring blend of farce and tragedy successfully uproots the status quo of modern theatrical parameters. Perhaps more importantly, it was a thoroughly enjoyable evening’s entertainment.