For hundreds of years, Shakespeare's Hamlet has been considered and is, of course, one of greatest works world literature. And Hamlet himself became a household name, embodying, first of all, the ideals of humanism. Hamlet is equally a humanist. Hamletism equals humanism. One of the mysteries of this great history the fact that the great humanist kills, drives him crazy in the course of the action, and by the end “dead” almost all the main characters and himself along with them. True, he does this by constantly thinking: is it possible to kill, is it necessary to kill, is it possible to take revenge, is it necessary to take revenge, how to take revenge in such a way that it is truly vengeful; just kill or kill in such a way - since the prince is a believer - so that the person killed will definitely go to Hell, and not to Heaven. Since Hamlet does what he does, the result of all his thoughts is a justification for hatred, revenge, murder, and at the heart of all this (as the prince himself suddenly blurts out) is the desire for power.
Perhaps, in our historical optimism, we misunderstood something and overestimated the humanism of the Renaissance, just as we overestimated the humanism of Antiquity - which, in fact, was revived by the Renaissance. Maybe the Renaissance itself is so infectiously beautiful, glorifying the power of the person who created the examples the highest art, the highest culture (all this hand in hand with the most brutal territorial conquests, robberies and continuous bloodshed) - perhaps the great Renaissance is, among other things, one of the heights of intellectual and spiritual enrichment of the ancient barbaric principles of revenge, hatred, murder, destruction. Perhaps the entire development of humanity, of which we are all so proud, is also barbarism; continuously intellectually enriched, intellectually and spiritually justified barbarism. And perhaps all the progress that we admire so much is the intellectualization of the lower human instincts, which has led us today to where we all, Humanity, are.
The arrow turned into a rocket, the dart turned into a supersonic fighter, the iron shield of a medieval warrior turned into an impregnable armored vehicle, now acting at will, but without the participation of the person himself. By destroying thousands, man acquired the ability not to take personal risks, although personal risk continues to be sung in the same way as it was sung in ancient barbarian legends.
The desire to restore so-called justice at any cost - freedom-loving, liberation, selfless - turned into personal terrorism against individual bad people, then into collective terrorism against individual bad groups, human groups, nations - and, finally, it became mass terrorism against entire masses of humanity not delineated by any national, ideological, religious boundaries.
Yesterday, future heroes dreamed of enemy fortresses destroyed to ashes; Now future heroes dream of nuclear ash, into which entire countries, continents, and - ultimately, if necessary - the whole world can and should be turned. But the next world will be much better, it will be much more fair and humane.
Sometimes in despair you ask yourself: were all the greatest crimes in history really committed in the name of the greatest, highest goals of goodness and justice? And willy-nilly you ask the following question: do those who do evil know that they are doing evil? Are they healthy or insane? Can a madman be aware of his madness? What drives our actions - the desire to act this way or the tragic impossibility of doing otherwise? This question is also obviously insoluble. In a word, today the mystery of the great humanism of the great Hamlet again requires, if not a solution - it is apparently impossible - then at least another attempt at comprehension. This story poses more and more new questions to us.
The Russian director offers a completely unfamiliar Hamlet. His vision differs from other colorless and so useless melancholic-rationalistic views on Danish prince. He reveals in his performance the organic violence that accompanied, treacherously and inexplicably, the evolution human race, dissolved in a chain of endless conversations, a game of madness and false doubts. This is a crude Hamlet, whose primitivism coexists with the flute and the book, those complex and disturbing signs that accompany disease and culture. The killer gently playing the flute is the new personality of himself famous character in general history theater It seems that Dodin is telling Shakespeare: “This is what happened to him, to your Hamlet! Perhaps he has finally become exactly who he really was all these centuries.”
"7 iasi"
("7 days")
Romania, Sibiu
Hamlet Dodin, my Hamlet, your Hamlet...
Calin Chobotari
Obviously, we are talking about life, lived righteously or not, and about death, which inevitably comes, about fate, crime and punishment, about convenient lies, and ultimately about the great mission of the theater - to hold up a mirror to us and help us get rid of from our delusions. All this passes through the prism of philosophical perception and skillful implementation by a master who, with the greatness of his talent and fame, has earned the right to write “Dodin’s Hamlet” on the playbill.
"Revista 22"
Romania, Sibiu
Hamlet or about eternity and instant
Doina Papp
This "new" Hamlet does not actually deviate from the letter of the play, but is outside the standard models of interpretation of this character. In Dodin’s version, what is important is not the conflict, but the emphasis on the absurdity of the stupid tendency to see the world from the point of view of the principles of Good and Evil, to divide everyone into little blacks and whites. The way we really sympathize negative character, how we succumb to his charisma and apply double or multiple standards when judging his actions is truly alarming. History is replete with examples of leaders possessed by a similar obsession with revenge or the idea of justice sweeping away everything in its path. And Dodin’s Hamlet is a wake-up call about the increasing threat of such forms of government today.
"Observer Cultural"
Romania, Sibiu
Dictatorship of revenge
Silvia Dumitrache
The script is the main character of the play. Superb dramatic, intelligent, composition, rich in detail that perfectly characterizes the characters and reinforces their motivations, a subtle crescendo rhythm, a structure seamless to the last comma, does not require many directorial fireworks to impress with its clarity. Dodin wanted to remove Hamlet from his pedestal and did it with elegance.
Theatrical online magazine"Yorik"
Romania, Sibiu
"Dodin's Hamlet": theater for me
Alina Epinjak
The purest example of an acting ensemble with amazing voice acting creates a special musical score that emphasizes the idea of the performance: “...to hold a mirror to nature” and show “every century of history its unvarnished appearance.”
In St. Petersburg Maly drama theater- the theater of Europe is making final preparations for tomorrow's premiere. Lev Dodin has a new Hamlet. He is dressed in jeans, inside there is a Schwartz dragon, and revenge is the meaning of life for him. This is how one of the most significant theater directors of our time presented the Shakespearean hero. The main roles are stars known to both theatergoers and fans of big commercial cinema.
If you want your performance to be considered modern, dress Hamlet in jeans. This director's recipe is already half a century old. But the main innovations are not in clothes, but in the search for new or well-forgotten meanings. Lev Dodin's Hamlet is not “weakness of will with a sense of duty” and not the desire for justice, but revenge embodied.
“The further you move away from it, the more bold you are in this sense, the more liberated, freer and more honest you are in relation to what you do with this work, the more respect and seriousness, it seems to me, for this text and all these issues.” , notes actor Danila Kozlovsky, who plays Hamlet.
Perhaps this is why Danila Kozlovsky pronounces Hamlet’s famous monologues with an ironic tongue twister. Why repeat the textbook “to be or not to be” when life demands something else - “to hit or not to hit”? And how can you make the blow hurt more? He kills Polonius somewhere off stage and doesn't seem to feel any remorse. The idea of revenge turns Hamlet into an obsessed killer who also pursues a practical goal - to regain his crown. Just 30 years ago, such a hero would have been considered negative.
“Every time he answers questions about who is Hamlet today, what is Hamlet today. Therefore, all Hamlets are different. The questions are not a volitional interpretation, but simply because today it is heard that way, that’s how it sounds,” explains artistic director and director of the Maly Drama Theater - Theater of Europe Lev Dodin.
Lev Dodin considers Shakespeare only one of the interpreters ancient legend about Hamlet and gives the heroes new features. Thus, Gertrude is involved in the poisoning of her first husband and hates her son, who is trying to destroy the happiness built on blood.
The director brings the relationship between Gertrude and Claudius out of the alcove and onto the proscenium. The artist Alexander Borovsky dressed the royal couple in red shoes, showing that they are connected not only by passion, but also by crime. Gertrude, performed by Ksenia Rappoport, is more reminiscent of another Shakespearean character - Lady Macbeth.
“If Gertrude had been involved in politics, she would have destroyed the world. This is what we are talking about in the play. There is a wonderful phrase there that violence always leads to violent ends. Everything that begins with violence leads to it,” says People’s Artist of Russia Ksenia Rappoport, who plays the role of Gertrude.
The entire space of the stage is actually a cemetery, where the heroes of this tragedy end up one after another. Oddly enough, there is no Laertes in the play and there is no final duel that the audience is waiting for. But Ophelia is still the same - a thin ray of light in gloomy Elsinore.
“The feeling of the abyss under your feet only increases. She seems to be trying to pull Hamlet out of this abyss, but there is no way back. We meet Hamlet and Ophelia at the point of no return, when their love ceases to be pure, real, reverent, when he is dragged too deeply into this abyss,” says actress Elizaveta Boyarskaya, who plays Ophelia.
By the end of the play, almost all participants in the drama go to the grave. Moreover, Claudius voluntarily drinks poison, answering Hamlet’s question with this act: “To be or not to be?” And the victorious Hamlet turns into a smug ruler. The winner of a dragon becomes a dragon himself.
Moscow theater lovers are horrified by the prices for the play “Hamlet” by the St. Petersburg Maly Drama Theater starring Danila Kozlovsky and Elizaveta Boyarskaya, which will be shown as part of the festival “ Golden mask": ticket prices vary from 15 to 20 thousand rubles. At the same time, in St. Petersburg, tickets for the same performance cost from 3 to 12 thousand. Bloggers note that tickets in London to see Hamlet with Benedict Cumberbatch are cheaper.
On February 17, the Golden Mask Theater Festival announced the cost of tickets for the play “Hamlet” of the St. Petersburg Maly Drama Theater - Theater of Europe, which will be shown in Moscow at the Pyotr Fomenko Workshop theater as part of the festival. Ticket prices vary from 15 to 20 thousand rubles.
Production of "Hamlet" on new way In the interpretation of director Lev Dodin, it received many rave reviews from critics. According to the plot, the action is transferred to modern Russia. The role of Hamlet is played by Danila Kozlovsky, and Ophelia is played by Elizaveta Boyarskaya.
The high price of tickets outraged theater lovers who were planning to attend the performance; they wrote indignant reviews on social networks.
Many people note that tickets for this performance at the Maly Drama Theater in St. Petersburg cost from 3 thousand rubles and even with a trip, going to the theater will cost less.
The theater's website lists the price of tickets for Hamlet from 3 to 12 thousand rubles, but there are no more tickets for two performances that will take place in April. Bloggers also write that it’s impossible to get tickets for the performance - it’s so popular.
But you can’t get tickets from us, but it’s cheaper this way, of course :)
Interview with the director and artists
Interviewed by Katerina Pavlyuchenko
Lev Dodin, director:
I have been reading the play “Hamlet” since I was 18 years old... I read and re-read, preparing for the production all my life. I started rehearsing and put it off, and so on several times. They say that once in a lifetime a director must stage Hamlet. In this sense, our new production is a fulfillment of directorial duties. But jokes aside, “Hamlet” is a play that makes no sense to stage just for show... And it’s impossible: it’s too famous.
“Hamlet” for any director is a serious reason to reflect on what seems to him to be one of the main problems today, when suddenly it becomes clear what this character might mean today. Each time answers the question: “Who is Hamlet today?” That is why all Hamlets are different. This is the whole point, and not at all a matter of volitional interpretation, as many mistakenly believe.
So I felt that the time had come. We have known the story of the Prince of Denmark for a long time, it was not even composed by Shakespeare: it was born much earlier - it was retold this way and that, also depending on the time. William Shakespeare retold it in relation to his age, filling it with poetry, which became dominant in his version. Boris Pasternak, in translating Shakespeare, essentially composed his own text. It is curious that in the preface to the first edition of 1940, he wrote that he understood one important pattern: the further the translation is from the original, the closer it is to the original. It was a completely revolutionary translation in relation to all the classic ones, including the great translation by Mikhail Lozinsky. It’s not that I’m joining this talented ranks (although who wouldn’t want to), but it seems to me that today the story of Hamlet, responding to the times, should change somewhat, be completed, and thought out. That is why, in addition to Shakespeare, the names of English chroniclers and Pasternak appeared in our stage text, and a little was added from me. Our goal was not to make a revolution. But there was a goal to preserve the poetry of the play.
The space for the performance was created by Alexander Borovsky. We looked for a solution for a long time, because we needed to create a space of tragedy in which all the horror of the events that happened in Elsinore could be even more concentrated.
As for the role of Hamlet and Danila Kozlovsky... Nowadays it’s unfashionable to quote Lenin, I understand, but he said very correctly: “Today is early, tomorrow is late.” Hamlet is a role that is always too early to play, but at some point it becomes too late. Therefore, we must try to get into right time. Danila as an actor is developing very seriously, like all the artists next to him in this performance. We have a very good company. If it weren't for this company, I would never have decided to start all this.
Our “Hamlet” is a play not about the fear of revolution, but about the eternal tragedy when it is impossible not to fight, and the struggle leads to the next round of struggle. And each new round is more terrible than the previous one. Although it seems that a lot of powerful humanistic forces have been given, it is still necessary to kill. And today, when we talk about, say, terror, we are talking not only about mass Hamletism, but about a kind of struggle in which people are convinced that they are dealing with something impossible for the sake of something necessary. This is scary to understand, but we are obliged to delve into the psychology of everyone and understand that contradictions are connected. Perhaps it once seemed normal that Hamlet would kill to return to the throne. It didn't matter because in Shakespeare's time such behavior was normal. He seemed to have the right to kill, because it seemed like it was his throne. But today we know that they kill both for the sake of their throne, and for the sake of something other than theirs... And in general, they kill, supposedly restoring justice, under the guise of “returning” their throne...
Here is the range of our thoughts during rehearsals. I've been thinking about this since I was 18. I'm not sure we were able to answer all the questions, but at least we asked them. And this is already a lot.
Danila Kozlovsky, performer of the role of Hamlet:
Shakespeare's texts, of course, shocked me as an actor. And, you know, it’s different to read them and pronounce them. Saying them is a separate sensation. As for the production of the play “Hamlet” itself, for me it is, first of all, an opportunity for a serious conversation about what is happening around us and with us in today’s circumstances, with the country, with the world. Journalists recently told me: “You are older than Shakespeare’s Hamlet”... I think if I played my Danish prince at 50-60 years old, as was often done before, then these words would make sense. I am now 30 years old. How many years older am I than the prince? For 5-10 years? Yes, of course, 20 and 30 are two different ages. But today's 20 years are not the same 20 years as in Shakespeare's time, when people lived an average of 45 years. 20 years was already half of my life. In this context, I am even younger than Hamlet, who at 20 pronounces texts that I do not pronounce at 30. It turns out that 20-year-old Hamlet is smarter than 30-year-old Danila Kozlovsky. (Smiles)
To the question “To be or not to be?” we try to respond in the performance based on what is happening around us. Answering it without a modern context is pointless and uninteresting. We come to some answer.
Lev Abramovich Dodin, thank God, did not set me the task of creating a Hamlet that would be different from all the previous ones. It’s clear why: this is a utopian task, a road to nowhere. Before the start of rehearsals and during them, I did not review any “Hamlets”, even when “Hamlet” with a famous English artist in leading role, I didn't go see this movie. I tried not to go on YouTube and type “Laurence Olivier “To be or not to be””, “Vysotsky, monologue with a skull” and so on... I didn’t do this so that, firstly, I wouldn’t fall into some kind of addiction and even , maybe don't be jealous. (Smiles) In a word, to be absolutely pure in your work. Because I only wanted to make my own Hamlet. What is he like? But no one knows. Everyone has their own, although it would seem that he is the most famous character in the world. I was recently riding in a taxi, and the driver asked me: “What are you working on now?” - “I’m rehearsing Hamlet.” - “Oooh, Hamlet! This is so serious!” Although I understand that this person is not very interested in world drama and theater. But Hamlet has long been more of a brand than just a play. And a certain halo has formed around this brand. The further you move away from it, the more brazen, liberated, free and honest you treat this work, the sooner you will find answers to all your questions. Hamlet is the most great play, now I understand it. Although I never understood before, I was always perplexed: “Why does everyone want to play Hamlet so much?” Only when I started playing this role did I realize that it was probably my most cherished dream as an actor.
The range of thoughts about the play during rehearsals was very wide: both the political situation and some terrible, terrifying details of life somewhere in the provinces and somewhere else... in one or another part of the world. It turned out that everything is somehow connected. What is happening in Syria is similar to what happened in Pskov or Rostov some time ago, and so on. We thought about this, and we would like to invite the audience to think about it. And not just show them the performance so that in the finale they say: “What a scoundrel and scoundrel Hamlet is.” I really want the viewer, coming to our theater, to be freed from some stereotypes. It will be great if people come to the theater absolutely clean and try to think, watch, get high and hear what bothered us all those days when we were rehearsing.
Elizaveta Boyarskaya, performer of the role of Ophelia:
My Ophelia in this story is the only creature with human face. But because she was in love with Hamlet, because he certainly had an influence on her, she is also partly wormy from the inside. But one way or another she is (after Polonius) the first pure victim of Hamlet, which makes her tragic heroine. We tried to come up with an unexpected move in relation to Ophelia, to go towards rebellion, to make her the same as Hamlet: ready to go to the end, to be up to her elbows in blood, to be essentially a revolutionary... But no matter how hard we tried, she still remained and remains that very pure drop that should be in that darkness and horror that envelops every character in the play and sucks him into the grave.
Our “Hamlet” is a concentrate of human nightmares, an abyss into which everyone without exception falls. But everything that happens to the heroes is their own fault. They live and die with this feeling of tragic guilt before life and the circumstances with which life confronts them.
Ksenia Rappoport, performer of the role of Gertrude:
If Gertrude had been involved in politics, she would have destroyed the world. This is also what our play is about, which has a wonderful phrase: “Violence always leads to violent ends.” An incredibly relevant topic today. Unfortunately.
“Hamlet” is such a complex play that I simply cannot imagine how Lev Abramovich built it all, came up with it, and conveyed it to us, the actors. This is a play that provides opportunities for endless productions, for endless searches and a brutal professional appetite - both as an actor and as a director.
My Gertrude does not have a specific prototype. I don’t know women like her - thank God. There is a little bit of Joan of Arc in my Gertrude, and that’s important to me. Outwardly she is a passionate and aggressive person, but inside she is a failed Zhanna. She's just a little confused...
We really have a wonderful company in this performance. Dodin gave us all the opportunity to express ourselves and reveal ourselves in a completely new way. I’m sure no one has ever seen a Hamlet like Kozlovsky. My wonderful partner Igor Chernevich (with whom we have managed to meet only once on the MDT stage, when I was urgently introduced to the role of Masha in “Three Sisters”, and he played Vershinin in this performance) plays Claudius incredibly subtly, smartly and unexpectedly for everyone. Liza Boyarskaya is wonderful - no one expected such an Ophelia. Stanislav Nikolsky - Polonius - is wonderful. We were happy in rehearsals and happy when we produced this performance.
Who is more present in this performance - Pasternak or English historians? Most of all, Lev Abramovich Dodin is in him.
