Hamlet (BBC Radio Presents)

Joseph said An Adequate Performance of a Great Play. Readers should note that this site does not distinguish between the various editions of Shakespeare, so the reviews you read may be for audiotapes, modern translations, etc. I am reviewing the Kenneth Branaugh BBC Radio recording of Hamlet. It is adequate, which I consider high praise for this challenging play. Like Branaugh's movie a few years later, it includes the entire text of the play, which is a nice way to remind. Fabulous performance A.K. This is my favorite performance. Love it.. Essential listening I listened to this version of Hamlet over and over again in preparation for a production I costumed last year. And I still listen to it on long car rides -- it's a great production. Having the full text read so well led me to new insights about the characters. Contrasting these interpretations to those of our own actors showed how flexible Shakespeare's writing is. And listening to the full text helped me understand why

Unlike the Recorded Books version (Audio Reviews, LJ 8/90), this BBC edition may be a little hard to follow by those unfamiliar with the play's text, particularly since stage directions are not provided and speakers are not clearly identified. . It is a contemporary cast from which one has come to expect superior Shakespearean acting on stage and screen: Kenneth Branagh as Hamlet; Sir John Gielgud as the Ghost; Derek Jacobi as Claudius; and Emma Thompson as the Player Queen. From Library Journal It is a tragedy that all actors seem to crave to perform, and the Renaissance Theatr

Among Shakespeare's plays, Hamlet is considered by many his masterpiece. Now Kenneth Branagh plays the leading role and co-directs a brillant ensemble performance. This clear, subtly nuanced, stunning dramatization, presented by The Renaissance Theatre Company in association with BBC Broadcasting, features such luminaries as Sir John Gielgud, Derek Jacobi, Emma Thompson and Christopher Ravenscroft. Among actors, the role of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, is considered the jewel in the crown of a triumphant theatrical career. Three generations of legendary leading actors, ma