Word: poloniuses
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...always a difficult role to play, is handled deftly by Nicholas Farrell, who conveys the emotion of his part without over-emphasizing his relationship with Hamlet. Laertes, a role often overlooked in modern productions, is carefully played by Michael Maloney, who shows the dichotomy between being the puppet of Polonius and a man sucked into Claudius' rage and ambition. Charlton Heston turns in a wonderful performance as the Player King...
Campbell Scott's Hamlet is a microcosm of the production itself, as his desire to avenge his father's death is tamed by the play's genteel environment. Delivering lines with playful refinement, Scott's performance works best when he banters with Polonius (David Cromwell) or soundly rejects the love of Ophelia (Natacha Roi). But his passionate soliloquies fall flat, failing to tear the polite veneer from his countenance. His only way of communicating unbridled passion is with a hollow scream, which sounds insincere and empty...
Cromwell's Polonius is equally successful because comedy functions best within society's confines, and his is an unreservedly comic role. As the long-winded Lord Chamberlain and father of Ophelia, Cromwell never fails to get a laugh, as he constantly finds longer ways to say things. Particularly memorable is the scene where he takes at least a hundred lines merely to say that Ophelia is the cause of Hamlet's insanity, prompting Queen Gertrude (Mary Beth Peil) to utter the famous lines, "More matter, less...
...credit, this Hamlet has beautifully integrated production elements, as Robert Brill's inspired sets lead the actors into a maze of inner and outer spaces, anticipating their every move. Brill accomplishes a minor coup when Hamlet kills Polonius behind a curtain that runs from floor to ceiling of the theatre. The enormous curtain drops to the ground, burying Polonius under...
Foley takes liberties with the usual portrayals of Shakespeare's characters, creating a new sense of politics in the Danish court. David Bottorf as Polonius is anything but a doddering old fool -- he's an overbearing and controlling father and courtier. When Polonius sells the king and queen he knows the cause of Hamlet's lunacy, it's more a command to listen than a plea for audience...