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Swordplay, wordplay, romance, grief, vengeance, existential musings and blurred lines between sanity and madness. These are all themes audience members will encounter at Loyalist City Shakespeare’s production of Hamlet, beginning its run July 17 at Place Fort La Tour.

This production breathes new life and imbues new meaning into the Bard’s greatest tragedy.

Hamlet is directed by Dr. Sandra Bell, professor of literature at the University of New Brunswick (UNB) and longstanding Saint John theatre community member. This is her second time directing Hamlet.

“A question I am always asking myself as a director is ‘how do you keep it relevant?’” Bell said.

“What you don’t want to do with Shakespeare is make it into a museum piece. That’s what’s so great about Shakespeare’s plays — they always have something to say in the now, about our own time. We need to keep people relating to it.”

The titular character is being played by a woman, as a woman, with Emily Bartlett taking on the role.

Though a female Hamlet is not an entirely new concept.

“When I was starting to think about a female Hamlet, I thought of Sarah Bernhardt playing the role in the late 19th century. But you know, Hamlet has been played by females since 1741 — but often they played Hamlet as male.”

“But of course, the female actor shaped the way that Hamlet looked and moved and talked and related and understood lines. The role has always had a kind of blend of what might traditionally be gendered as masculine and feminine.”

Similarly, Polonius, played by Beth Pollock, is now Ophelia and Laertes’ scheming mother, rather than the imposing patriarchal figure. The comedic characters of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, played by Helena Silveira and Kendra Murray, are female as well.

“It really re-shapes the way some of those relationships work,” said Bell. “The relationship between Hamlet and Ophelia is now a lesbian relationship… so when Polonius is reading Hamlet’s love letters aloud, it’s not only a revelation of a love story, but an outing.”

A cast and crew backed by UNB students and alumni

Kiefer Sullivan is a bachelor of education student on the university's Saint John campus and is playing Bernardo, Osric and the Player Queen. He reflected on Bell’s lively approach to gender-swapping.

“These changes are not made blithely,” Sullivan said. “There is a more distinct layer to the scorn and anguish in Hamlet’s voice as she cries out, ‘Frailty, thy name is woman!” as there is lament in seeing the fate her mother has consigned herself to. New meanings are wrought from this Shakespearean classic by acting some of its most iconic scenes through a different perspective.”

Sullivan found his way back to acting in the 2023 production of Macbeth, also directed by Bell.

“I was familiar with Sandra from taking her classes at UNB and I had a long dormant passion for acting… One morning I woke up and said to myself, ‘I need to return to theatre.’ Lo and behold, auditions for Macbeth were a week away, and over a year and two productions later, I can safely say I made my return,” Sullivan said.

Amelia Warren (BA’13), who is the assistant stage manager for the production, found her place in the Saint John theatre community through Dr. Bell’s Drama Production course, where she assisted backstage on a show titled Black Comedy.

“The following year, I joined Sandra’s Script into Performance class, where we studied and rehearsed portions of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. From there I’ve been hooked!” she said.

“I really love working with Sandra,” Warren said. “She brings so much knowledge and creativity to every project. She always has a vision, but she lets the actors experiment with their roles, while guiding them to put on the best show possible.”

“We have a cast made up of all sorts of experience levels, from newbies to professionally trained performers. It’s been a joy watching them work together,” Warren said.

Narissa Rodgerson (BA’23), who is currently pursuing her master’s degree at UNB, is the stage manager for Hamlet.

“I have a hand in a bit of everything,” she said. She became involved with the Saint John Theatre Company in 2019, after reaching out to executive and artistic director, Stephen Tobias to see how she could get involved.

“The Saint John campus doesn’t have a full theatre program like Fredericton, so it really forced me to step outside of my comfort zone to become more involved in the community. I would encourage more students to do the same,” she said.

Rodgerson is fascinated with the “raw talent that folks in the community have,” and the way these productions make Shakespeare more accessible.

“Seeing the actors working to understand and portray the nuances of their relationships and emotions, it makes it easy to understand the plot and intention. I can’t think of a better way to learn Shakespeare,” she said.

Hamlet also includes UNB alumni Ian McGill (BA/Bed’23) who plays Laertes, and Scott Connelly (BA’19, Bed’20) who plays the Ghost, Gravedigger and Player King.

A haunting setting

The outdoor setting, Place Fort La Tour, brings an exciting array of opportunities to the production. “It provides a sense of openness and freedom that you just don’t get in a small indoor space,” said Bell.

This year, they are experimenting with a thrust stage setting to provide a more intimate and interactive experience.

“The audience is a part of the play. Looking at the audience, talking to them and involving them to some degree is important,” said Bell.

Actors will be microphoned, so they don’t have to worry about their voices carrying over “the highway, or the tugboat, or the foghorn,” laughed Bell. “That way we can capture even the small quiet moments in a larger space.”

“If we’re lucky we’ll get the chill in the air and the fog rolling in to heighten the atmosphere,” she said.

Bell says ticketholders can expect a two-hour event, plus intermission.

“Hamlet uncut is over four hours. Nobody is going to buy that ticket,” she laughed.

It is set in a quasi-Shakespeare period but feels modernized.

“I like the modern adaptations because it’s easier for the audience to connect with,” said Bell. “We’re holding the mirror up to nature, as Hamlet would say and reflecting the audience back to itself.”

Last year was the inaugural Loyalist City Shakespeare and Fort La Tour collaboration with the production of Macbeth. The event was an extraordinary success, having sold out, even with additional shows added.

“So we’ve come into this year with a little more pressure and heightened expectations,” said Bell.

Hamlet runs from July 17 to 20 and 24 to 27, with some shows already sold out. Purchase your tickets from the Saint John Theatre Company.