Though this be madness, yet there is method in't

Act V plays out in around thirty two minutes (if you exclude the well-deserved applause at the end of the production). The music announcing the infamous gravediggers scene has a Calypso feel which sets an appropriately lighthearted, joyful even, and certainly irreverent tone - reinforced by the Gravedigger's ad lib of 'ya bastard' directed towards Yorick's skull. Hamlet's more measured response in contrast demonstrates his fascination with the physical processes of death and beyond. Ophelia's body, wrapped in a shroud, is carried in by Laertes. He lays her down tenderly by the grave and weeps over her form - echoing Ophelia's own lament for her father in the previous act. To the evident distress of all around, Laertes leaps right down into the grave as though he cannot bear to be physically separated from her. His action provokes what turns into an unseemly graveside brawl with Hamlet. Claudius hatches his plan for Hamlet's end with Laertes after...

Ophelia makes Polonius 'present' in the absence of a body This is the shortest act of the production at just 28 minutes, but is full of pace and action. The stage is filled with ever-changing movement. Increasingly sinister and ominous music between scenes contributes to the building sense of threat, and the movement to different locations seems almost seamless; as though we are running through the castle with the characters. There are instructions, letters, machinations, plotting. Hamlet's arrest by a guard is very physical: he is thrown to the floor in a half-nelson submission hold. His insolent foot tapping and movement, and loose-limbed rebellious mocking of Claudius get the audience on side and there is much laughter - but his reactions seem those of a man who has run out of options and has nothing left to lose. Everything about Essiedu's appearance and manner is subversive; down to his shabby clothing and turned-up trousers - in such contrast to the costume...

Act two is slightly shorter than the opening act, at 31 minutes. Might we add 'stingy' to our ideas of Polonius as he has to be persuaded to give more to his emissary? Ophelia's evident distress as she explains Hamlet's behaviour towards her greatly contrasts with her composure of the previous scene. She seems to emphasise the physical: that he 'held me hard' (II.1.87), and makes reference to the transformation that we are about to witness for ourselves, 'He falls to such perusal of my face/As a would draw it' (II.i.90-91). Now Polonius switches his own shoes, and bends down for Ophelia - reversing the dynamic of the previous scene. He seems a loving, if misguided, father attempting to do the best for his daughter. The embrace at the end of this exchange emphasises their closeness. The representation of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern as bumbling, white, camera and luggage-laden tourists makes them as conspicuously out of joint with their enviro...

One of the unexpected benefits of lockdown has been the proliferation of free-to-air theatrical performances. The RSC's 2016 production with Paapa Essiedu as Hamlet has been shown on BBC iPlayer as part of their Culture in Quarantine access, and now forms part of our study. Act One runs for 41 minutes. The glimpse of Wittenberg student life emphasises the kind of world that Hamlet has 'lost', in addition to the loss of his father, as he arrives home. It also reminds the audience of his youth, and the celebratory moment of having a diploma conferred contrasts effectively with the grief later in Act One; the snapshot effect is also a signifier of change: a moment lost forever. Beyond this, the production has been described as the ' most traditional of interpretations '. For the first 'ghost' scene (though no ghost appears), the low, blue-black lighting means the actors are almost imperceptible at times - certainly difficult to pick out in the stage gloo...