By Sarah Minty, Arts Contributor
Most people know the immortal line “To be or not to be” and are acquainted with “Poor Yorick’s” skull. Nancy Marshall’s production at the Bus Stop Theatre, however, is definitely aware of everything that makes up this Shakespearian classic, especially the fact that it still bears resonance today. In the intimate setting, with only a black wooden stage and black curtained backdrop for scenery, Marshall effectively creates a lively and contemporary performance. With its variety of costumes, the play is not situated in any particular time period, making it still accessible without straying from the original words.
On the surface Hamlet, played by Gregory Slack, is an ordinary young man, not unlike any adolescent who has returned home from university to find out that home has changed. But many young men would not typically return home to find out their father was murdered. It would be even less likely that the culprit was his uncle, who is now married to his mother.
Still, there is something in Gregory Slack’s performance that is possible to relate to. The recent University of King’s College grad describes in the programme how he took the part “to enrich his soul.” His enthusiasm for Shakespeare’s words is tangible and he makes the part his own. Slack does not follow the usual brooding and dejected path that many of his predecessors have. Instead, his performance is energetic and lively, dynamically moving around the stage as he grapples with questions of life and death, and conveying his anger and determination to avenge his father.
It was not only Slack’s performance that was noteworthy. The cast of 17 is made up a mix of professional and amateur actors, all contributing to a brilliant performance. Many of Halifax’s best have taken part, including local filmmaker Glenn Walton as King Claudius. As a community-based production, there was a real sense of amicability on stage. Even the director took on the part of Queen Gertrude and local composer Erin Hansen played Bernardo and wrote the score.
There was a welcomed injection of comedy at times too with Bill Wood and Emily Shute, husband and wife in real life, creating a very funny double-act as Hamlet’s friends Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. Humour and Hamlet are not often associated together, and for a play littered with death it was enjoyable to have some humorous moments. This humour was juxtaposed brilliantly with Lauren Messervey’s haunting performance as Ophelia, whose display of despair and grief after her father’s death was chilling.
Despite the small space, Nancy Marshall has created a performance that displays all the levels of skill of any big theatre production. The climactic fight scene, choreographed by Robert Seale, was an especially impressive end to the play. As Fortinbras arrived at Elsinore, a moving final scene was created as an eerie choir of soldiers sung a haunting melody over the stage that was reminiscent of a battlefield. There was a sense of peace replacing the turmoil that had proceeded, and we were left with a feeling of redemption as Hamlet was recognized and raised up into the spotlight as a martyr for his cause. Marshall creates an effective conclusion to Shakespeare’s tragedy, and her contemporary and accessible production leaves the audience feeling that despite being written over 400 years ago, the play is still relevant today.
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