October 2, 2012 | Theatre,

Hamlet Through the Ages

By Corrie Glanville

Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, has graced both screen and stage countless times. With 1,495 lines, the gloomy Dane is Shakespeare’s most verbose and some might say his greatest role. So actors (both male and female) naturally want to tackle this iconic hero. From classically trained Brits to American movie stars, here is a (very) brief survey of some of the more popular Hamlets brought to life in recent years.

Though Lawrence Olivier directed and starred in the 1948 film version for which he won the Oscar for Best Actor, his colleague John Gielgud played the role over 500 times. He appeared on stage in six different productions from age 26 to 44, and was considered by many to be the definitive Hamlet of his generation. Fortunately, you can hear Gielgud’s glorious diction on a 1948 live BBC recording that The Times pronounced “utterly compelling, crystal clear, totally absorbing, with a classic quality that reflects the utter rightness of the interpretation.”

Gielgud’s involvement with Hamlet wasn’t limited to being an actor; he also directed Richard Burton in the hugely successful 1964 Broadway production. Utilizing a minimalistic approach, in part because Burton apparently disliked period costumes, Gielgud staged Hamlet in a rehearsal setting with the actors in simple street clothes. Without visual distractions, the emphasis was entirely on the mesmerizing Burton.  While there was a black and white film version of Burton’s Hamlet released in movie theatres, the initial reception was tepid. Now available on DVD, the picture quality is far from pristine, but thankfully the sound is excellent so we can hear every consonant of Burton’s unmistakable voice.

Long before Ethan Hawke would bring his hipster irony to Hamlet in 2000, David Warner was the youngest known actor to play the Prince of Denmark for the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1965 at age 24. Donning a corduroy jacket and a long red scarf, he was a hit with teenage girls who responded to his scruffy, sensitive rebel. Warner spoke his lines in a more natural, conversational style, which might have put off traditionalists, but attracted younger audiences who related to Hamlet’s disillusionment with the adults around him.

Of course, actresses have gravitated toward the role of Hamlet as well, from Sarah Bernhardt to Diane Venora, who was the first woman to play the lead in the 1982 Public Theatre production directed by Joseph Papp. The Julliard-trained Venora has had a long, fascinating relationship with the play; in 1986, she played Ophelia opposite Kevin Kline’s Prince of Denmark and then in 1999, Venora played Gertrude as mother to Liev Schreiber’s Hamlet, making her the only actress to have played Hamlet, Ophelia and Gertrude at the Public.

Meanwhile, action hero Mel Gibson initially seemed like an odd choice for the moody Dane, but the actor brought a naturalism and energy to Franco Zeffirelli’s 1990 film of Hamlet. Like Olivier, Director Zeffirelli made quite a few cuts to the original script in order to keep the length more manageable for film, but the result is an affecting, quickly paced version that gives us an Elsinore that is dark, earthy and sensual. With a wonderful supporting cast, the regal Glenn Close portrayed Queen Gertrude while a young Helena Bonham Carter was extremely poignant as the tormented Ophelia.

In the only unabridged version made for film, celebrated Shakespearean actor Kenneth Branagh’s Hamlet runs a little over four hours; like his predecessor Olivier, Branagh both directed and starred in the title role. Updated to the 19th century, this is a departure from previous versions with its richly colorful interiors and the addition of flashback scenes only implied in the play’s text. With an all-star cast that includes Derek Jacobi, Julie Christie and Kate Winslet, this is the most ambitious Hamlet ever attempted on film.

No doubt some found Michael Almereyda’s 2000 version of Hamlet too clever for its own good with New York City as the stand in for Denmark, Hotel Elsinore as the headquarters for the Denmark Corporation and Fortinbras’ troops as an army of lawyers. Yes, Ethan Hawke was the slacker Hamlet slouching through a Blockbuster Video while intoning the “To be or not to be” soliloquy speech. But it was refreshing to see an actor who was actually the right age play the tortured young prince on screen; his angst was all the more convincing and empathetic. And once again, Diane Venora popped up as Gertrude.

Since Ethan Hawke, we have had both David Tennant and Jude Law bring even more young audiences to see familiar movie actors take on the Bard. The Scottish actor David Tennant is beloved by many as the tenth incarnation of Dr. Who (as well as Barty Crouch Jr. to Harry Potter fans!) Set in a sleek, mirrored, seemingly modern Elsinore, Tennant played opposite the marvelous Patrick Stewart as his icily contemptuous Uncle Claudius. Lean and lithe, Tennant’s Hamlet was unstable, vigorous and dangerously funny. You can watch the performance The Guardian named as one of the ten best stage Hamlets on PBS’ Great Performances here.

In 2009, film star Jude Law opened at the Donmar Warehouse in Hamlet to largely positive reviews and huge ticket sales prompting an eventual move to Broadway, which garnered a Tony nomination for Law as Best Actor.  In an interview with The New York Times, Law confessed that there is the natural hesitation of playing perhaps the greatest stage role of all time, but that that one has to shake off the ghosts of Hamlets past: “Of course there are times when you think, ‘I’m putting myself up there with these fine actors.’ But there is no definitive ‘Hamlet,’ because you don’t play Hamlet, Hamlet plays you.”