What happened to Hamlet before ‘Hamlet'?

Boston Globe

12-03-2025

'Our challenge was to write a play with less of the improvisational, vaudevillian aspect of our 'complete' works,' says Tichenor, who spoke on a zoom call from Chicago, with Martin calling in from California. The company is technically based in New York, but the creators make their homes across the country, gathering for their tours.
The result is a story that imagines what happened earlier in the Prince of Denmark's life, offering opportunities to get to know some characters who are only mentioned in passing in William Shakespeare's tragedy of 'Hamlet.'
'We meet Ophelia's mom,' says Martin, 'and Yorick [whose skull Hamlet memorably holds] is very much alive, so Hamlet gets to spend a lot of time with him.'
Of course, the focus on the court jester offered Tichenor another opportunity to reference award-winning performer
Martin and Tichenor say they've recontextualized their prequel to Shakespeare's story 'to make it equally about Hamlet and Ophelia, as well as to make it funny.'
The story hinges on Hamlet's friendship with Yorick and his decision to stage a play.
'We wondered where Hamlet got his extensive knowledge of the theater,' Tichenor says. 'So we used that, and the plot culminates in a production that serves as a fundraiser for the nunnery.'
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Martin and Tichenor, who've been writing together and sometimes performing as part of the RSC since 1992, tweaked their collaboration for 'The Comedy of Hamlet,' although they know each other's styles so well they were already thinking along the same lines. Tichenor says he shared the idea with Martin and Martin took the first pass at a draft.
'The play is an original story,' says Tichenor, 'lovingly ripped off from 'Hamlet.''
'The Comedy of Hamlet' opens with the appearance of a ghost, and includes lots of references to Shakespeare's 'Hamlet,' some of which are fleshed out while others are just tossed in, including Claudius saying he's off to take a nap in the orchard.
The choice of 'Hamlet' was easy, both men agree.
Left to Right: Doug Harvey as Hamlet, Geoffrey Barnes as Yorick, and Austin Tichenor as The King.
Meg Moore/megpix.com
'It's Shakespeare's most influential play, and everyone gets the references,' Martin says. 'But we follow in the tradition of the classic
Adds Tichenor: 'Kids especially get all the jokes. We like to rate it, 'PG-13: pretty good if you're 13.'
At the same time, the choice of telling Hamlet's story just before he goes off to school reflects the writers' own experiences as parents of college-age children considering careers as artists. 'Like every parent, we were anxious they choose more financially secure careers,' Tichenor says.
In keeping with the RSC's condensed approach, three actors – Doug Harvey, Jeff Barnes, and Tichenor – play more than a dozen characters, and because it's an homage to Shakespeare, all of the lines are written in iambic pentameter, and the writers endeavored to preserve references and stylistic flourishes that will sound familiar to audiences.
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While Harvey and Barnes are newer to RSC, Tichenor says they are both experienced Shakespearean actors.
'But honestly,' says Martin, 'when we hold auditions, we ask people to tell us a joke.'
'We're really looking for actors who can play silly material straight and with urgency,' says Tichenor.
'The Comedy of Hamlet,' says Tichenor, guarantees a lot of laughter, 'but also has a lot of poignancy and power that will take audiences by surprise.'
From screen to stage: My Dinner with André
For the first time since achieving cult status with the film release in 1981,
THE REDUCED SHAKESPEARE COMPANY: THE COMEDY OF HAMLET! (A PREQUEL)
Written and directed by Martin Martin & Austin Tichenor. Presented by Merrimack Repertory Company in Liberty Hall, 50 E. Merrimack St., Lowell. March 12-30. Tickets: $15-$80. 978-654-4678,