Joseph Hajâ??s chooses the option of having Ophelia, when mad, be pregnantâ??a mangled reading of the lines concerned. However, I give him due credit for resisting the common Oediphal trick of having Hamlet half-seduce his mother Gertrude in the famous scene in her closet. Directorial pacing was strong, though I found the cuts in the text unsettling. However, Graham Michael Hamilton as an ardent and believable Hamlet especially when most torn: between acting and not acting, between love for Gertrude and despising her, between lust for and distrust of Ophelia. Otherwise: Laertes, Ghost, Gertrude outstanding, Claudius good except in remorse scene, Ophelia like a pre-teen on a bad hair day. Highly recommended. ASTMcVeigh
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