HAMLET (NO FEAR SHAKESPEARE)

Every other line of HAMLET seems to be the title of a book or an advertisement. All the names, Horatio, Ophelia, Rosencrantz, and Guildenstern, sound so familiar. But what does the average listener really know or remember about the play? Along comes SparkNotes with a few beneficial comments and some welcome clarity to help us along. Offering two ensemble annotated performances--one in Shakespeare's original language, the other slightly modernized--the actors use American accents to bring the action and motivations forward. A young man's father dies. His mother immediately marries his uncle. Love, grief, ghostly visions, madness, and revenge follow. HAMLET is truly a once-in-a-thousand-years-creation, and hearing a few tips on how to enjoy the play even more can't be a bad thing. B.P. © AudioFile 2021, Portland, Maine [Published: OCTOBER 2021]