letswalkintheroad replied to your post:I would love to see a (modern?) Hamlet in which...
yes yes yes YES
like, you could do so much with Ophelia, and explore her relationship with her surroundings and play on the power of words and appearance and reality. like Claudius' opening speech is full of manipulation and cleverly coded lines to paint this picture of himself of the kingdom and KEEP DOING THAT, show how language is powerful and can be used to both give and take power. Perform the play as though what we're told about Ophelia, what we assume she's like, is what Claudius (and Polonius and Hamlet and us, to some extent) want her to be. because otherwise we have to listen to her, to dissect why we have to silence and de-thorn her
you could even turn the flower scene into a political performance, depending on how play-accurate you wanted to be. Ophelia storming the stage and holding fucking Court, in front of ambassadors and nobles and common people. Leveling these barbs at her monarchy, her rulers, that she knows the people will understand. Her acts of defiance. Only those same rulers wrap it up in madness and hysteria and heartbreak and a women's weak constitution
but show the audience it's not, make the audience question what they do when they call something - especially a women's voice - madness and what it allows to continue unchallenged
