Production Language English
Country of Origin Ireland
Description In 1596, an 11-year-old boy named Hamnet died in Stratford-upon-Avon. In 1602, a record showed that a tragedy named Hamlet had been performed in London. Their connection? William Shakespeare, the father of the boy and the author of the tragedy. Scholars have long debated the significance of the similarity of the names; and as most efforts to connect Shakespeare’s works and his skimpy biography, the answer remains elusive. No matter. The two founders of the Irish theater group Dead Centre have fashioned a play out of precious few historical facts that explores common themes from a child’s point of view: the absentee father, mortality and legacy, coming-of-age, and artistic imagination. Aran Murphy, an 11-year-old actor embodies both Hamnet and Hamlet, but also a contemporary tween addicted to his hoodies and iPhone. Like Hamlet, he is haunted by his father’s ghost.
Identifier 2019f.01030
