Hamlet on the Rocks

When most people think about theater, they think about Shakespeare Why? Because for most

people, when they hear the word “play” think of the worlds most prolific, popular playwright. They

recall time spent in classes in high school, milling through dense texts they can barely understand and

the feeling... that feeling... the aura one gets when one simply 'gets it.' Most people get this

extraordinary feeling when they first learn to decode their first Shakespeare play and see it for the

brilliant, timeless story that it truly is.

Over this last week, I had the pleasure of bringing such feelings back into my ephemeral soul. I

thought 'Hey, Mark, it's been quite a while since you've done anything tasteful and complex, why don't

you go to the theater?' Yes, this is what I did. In this blog post, I'll be detailing my experience

attending Hamlet and why you might want to enrich your life with it, as well.

As soon as I stepped into the Irish Classical Theatre on Main Street, I knew I was in for a treat.

The logo of Irish Classical graced the doorway, a Celtic knot symbolizing union and plenty of other

spacey-wacey gorgeous things. The image of a gigantic beast of a man taming a dragon on the Scottish

highlands graced my mind as I entered. The bar took up a large majority of the space in the first room –

but imbibing alcohol would simply numb my experience. So after grabbing my program, I set my

sights down the dark hallway leading to the theatre, and what I saw almost made my jaw drop.

Walking into the space of the Irish Classical is always a treat – but this time it was absolutely

splendid. My eyes could not fathom what I saw – a beautiful set in their square and unique theatre

space. Great actors have used this space over the many years this delightful theatre has been a
landmark on the Buffalo theater scene. It is quite unique, indeed. A square in the center of this unique

theatre is the stage for many unique productions – this one a spectacle of imagination.

Taking a seat I began to take in the majesty of what was before me. Outside of the square stage,

rows of chairs on every side. Yet, it was what was within the square that intrigued me. On each of the

four corners, a triangle of pearly opalescent white gravel – stones that were perhaps marble, set into the

floor. Questions flashed throughout my mind – how did they transport this here? How deep are these

gravel pits? Why are they there besides aesthetics? My eyes drew inwards, closer to the center of the

stage where on three sides lay piles. Piles of what, ask you? Piles of furniture. Chairs, footrests, of all

sorts adorned the corners of a tall wooden frame – it itself, also square. Sheets were draped over much

of it, and it gave the theatre a creepy ambiance The music certainly helped – as they were playing the

instrumentals of a Nine Inch Nails song from their epic album 'Further Down the Spiral.'

From here, the theatre was mostly empty as I had arrived quite early, I noticed the audience.

They were friends of the actors attending the free preview night – only those who had heard about it

attended. There were several older people in the crowd, along with many students from various

schools. I had wondered thus – do these people also enjoy the cunning works of Shakespeare as I do,

or are they simply here due to frugality? These questions running through my busy mind would have

to take a back seat, as the play soon started.

Ahh, the cast. Hamlet as played by Anthony Alcocer. Claudius as played by Matt Witten.

Gertrude as played by the gorgeous and kind Kristen Tripp Kelley. Ophelia by Anna Krempholtz. Yet

one surprised me – as Horatio strode out onto the floor, lamps alight, I saw my old friend Adam Yellen.

We had worked with eachother during our production of Judgement at Nuremberg years earlier, and I

was always surprised by his incredibly authentic acting. He neither over nor under-acts, he is truthful
to the source material, and he is simply a darling to work with. Chris Kelly lit up the stage as Polonius,

among other fine actors of the Buffalo theatre scene.

Back to Adam Yellen – his portrayal of Horatio was simply astonishing. When he entered the

stage, I knew I was in for a treat. The chemistry between Hamlet and Horatio was impressive. As

Hamlets trusted and loved friend, Horatio truly portrayed the great bond between the two. Their

gestures showed how close the pair was – unquestionably incredibly close friends, bonded throughout

the rigors of time.

Many scenes struck out to me throughout this production. Kate LoConti Alcocer made very

good choices in placing features and spectacles throughout the gorgeous set – the gravel pits were a

genius idea as they created incredible ambiance and made the entire space sound full and outdoors

when stepped on. The placement of the wooden frame led to many great moments, and the furniture as

well. Working within a square theatre space must have been a challenge in itself, and to see it so well

used warmed my heart and soul – and it made the sword play incredible! The boundaries of this space,

the wooden frame, all impacted the showdown between Hamlet and Laertes. By the time both of them

was reduced to one blade each, I was struck aghast, my eyes transfixed on the beauty of the fight

choreography being so excellently displayed before me.

I must digress for a moment and speak about a script analysis term that I have learned through a

class I have been taking. This term is Theme. A theme in a production is the overarching and under-

toning of a story. It could be said that the theme is what a production is truly about. There are many

themes in Hamlet, and one could be said to be madness. Anthony Alcocer showed this theme

excellently when he manically makes his comrades swear upon his dagger towards the beginning of the

show – this was our first taste of an actor that I did not know, but grew to love. Hamlet displayed many
sides of his personality throughout this production, from a philosopher, to a sage, to a deeply disturbed

man. His pain transformed him and this was readily apparent through his acting.

All in all, the Irish Classical Theatre's production of Hamlet was exciting, exhilarating,

beautifully renditioned and a pleasure to experience. I would see it again in a heartbeat, and I

recommend everyone get a chance to view such a timeless piece of classic theatre at Buffalo's own

Irish Classical Theatre.