RSC Hamlet - Bradford Alhambra

The RSC’s touring version of Hamlet arrives in Bradford after a 5 Star run in Stratford.

This version is set on a ship, in 1912, kinda feels like it might be based on the Titanic, and set over the course of one eventful night as the story, and the fate of the ship, hurtle to a the tragic conclusion we all know - and love.

Some people aren’t a fan of updating the setting of Shakespeare, but I like it just as long as the core story is intact - and it is here - and the changes aren’t just a gimmick - which they aren’t here.

I have to start with the staging - it is a joy!

The ship’s architecture gives every scene a sinister edge, and the rear projection adds scale without detracting from the actors. Sea, shadow, and sudden flashes of imagery arrive like thoughts erupting directly on stage.

It is bold, urgent, and dynamic.

And the cast!

The performances are clear, emotionally grounded, and truly sing. Hamlet’s grief and fury feel human rather than performed, and the court around him is vivid enough that you understand why he has to go through with his actions, rather than run - and of course he’s on a boat at sea so he wouldn’t get very far!

The humour lands when it needs to, the tenderness hurts when it should, and the famous speeches arrive fresh and whole rather than as awkward audition pieces - which is always a risk with a classic like Hamlet.

Special shout out to Ralph Davis who commands the stage and you kinda miss him when he’s not in a scene.

Of course the supporting players deserve a cheer too. You feel the pull of a mother trying to survive a dangerous room, the oily confidence of a ruler who knows he should not be there, and a young woman being crushed by everyone else’s agendas.

If I had one niggle, it is the digital clocks.

I get the idea. A countdown underlines the inevitability that haunts the play, marks it as happening over one day, and is your classic ticking clock. But the digital readouts on a period ship felt anachronistic, a modern wink that pulled me out at exactly the moments when the production is otherwise so immersive.

It is a relatively small thing, but it is repeated, and repetition is how irritations become noticeable - imho anyway.

A much more minor point was Polonius’ murder being kept off stage. There needs to be that visceral punch, the blood, the violence. Here, despite the gunshots, that beat felt a touch less immediate than what follows.

Once the story is in full flow, though, the production is gripping. The sword fight in particular is superb. It is clean, exciting, and frightening in the way real danger is frightening. The space feels tight, the ship is alive and bodies move like they mean it, and you can sense the audience collectively holding its breath.

By the end, Bradford was on its feet, and the standing O was deserved. This Hamlet takes a familiar tragedy and gives it a setting that clarifies rather than complicates. It is visually thrilling, emotionally impactful, and performed with real passion.

If you have ever thought Hamlet is too long, too famous, or too much homework, this production is your reminder that it can still hit like a tsunami.

Catch it if you can, and maybe forgive the clocks. The ship is worth boarding.

Cast

  • Rob Alexander-Adams as Voltemand

  • Richard Cant as Polonius

  • Kat Collings as Ensemble

  • Raymond Coulthard as Claudius

  • Ralph Davis as Hamlet

  • Maximus Evans as Marcellus

  • Ian Hughes as Ghost / Player King

  • CJ Johnson as Player Queen

  • Julia Kass as Guildenstern

  • Poppy Miller as Gertrude

  • Georgia-Mae Myers as Ophelia

  • Mark Oosterveen as Cornelius / Priest

  • Djibril Ramsey as Barnardo

  • Colin Ryan as Horatio

  • Jonathan Savage as Ensemble

  • Jamie Sayers as Rosencrantz

  • Leo Shak as Francisco

  • Benjamin Westerby as Laertes

Creatives

  • Rupert Goold, Director

  • Sophie Drake, Revival Director

  • Es Devlin, Set Designer

  • Evie Gurney, Costume Designer

  • Jack Knowles, Lighting Designer

  • Adam Cork, Composer and Sound Designer

  • Hannes Langolf, Movement Director

  • Akhila Krishnan, Video Designer

  • Kev McCurdy, Fight Director

  • Rebecca Latham, Dramaturg

  • Matthew Dewsbury CDG, Casting Director

  • Dan de Cruz, Music Director

  • Paula Stephens, Voice and Text

  • Zoe Diakaki, Associate Set Designer

  • Joe Hornsby, Associate Lighting Designer

  • James Melling, Associate Sound Designer

  • Liam Francis, Associate Movement Director

  • Amy Floyd, Associate Fight Director

  • Vicky Moran, Assistant Director