EWAN CAMERON picks out two fascinating music shows, fusing the Korean, and the Celtic, with the modern
Theatre: Hamlet, Leeds Playhouse
A gender-swapping production of Shakespeare’s tragedy disappoints
Rebellious youth: Tessa Parr as Hamlet
BENJAMIN POTHIER suggests that Palaeolithic cave paintings in Spain point to the ceremonial use of hallucinogenic flora
The bard confirms that the right has a humour bypass, and replays the English Revolution on period instruments
MARIA DUARTE and ANDY HEDGECOCK review Sunny Dancer, Tony, Songs of Forgotten Trees, and The End of Oak Street
JOHN GREEN relishes a powerful and moving drama that explores the lived realities of west London’s Punjabi community
MARTIN HALL welcomes a plea for greater compassion between believer and non-believer via the framework of philosophical enquiry
WOMEN have been cast in the role of Hamlet since the late 1800s but it’s only in recent years that there’s been a trend towards them playing the role as the Princess, rather than Prince, of Denmark.
That shift is reflected in their assuming positions of authority and being open about their sexuality and so it is in this production, with director Amy Leach regendering many of the other key characters.
Tessa Parr’s Hamlet is a rebellious youth — emphasised by her non-royal leisure wear — who returns home from university to attend the king’s funeral and, in a silent prologue, spars with Horatio (Crystal Condie) before being visited by her father’s ghost.
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