What if Hamlet were transported to a distant galaxy populated by space Vikings, Norse gods and puppet aliens, with a glam rock soundtrack and a chorus of violent puppets thrown in for good measure? ‘To be or not to be’ takes to the cosmos in a proposition so gloriously daft that you just have to see the madness and mayhem that is Space Hamlet for yourself.
This musical comedy, receiving its London premiere at the Cockpit Theatre following a successful season in Norwich last year, takes Shakespeare’s tragedy and launches it into orbit. Think Star Wars meets The Muppets, with a dash of Avenue Q and Forbidden Planet, and a generous helping of Bowie-inspired glam rock. Prince Hamlet himself, with his angular features and black eyeliner, looks like he wandered in from an Adam Ant video.
Space Hamlet review – quick links
Shooting Shakespeare into space
The familiar story of murder amongst royalty survives the intergalactic makeover. In the Denmark System, ruled by space Vikings, Hamlet must avenge the murder of his father, King Ham, after his treacherous uncle Claudius seizes both the throne and his widow.
Along the way there are epic space battles, silly songs, larger-than-life characters, and a succession of gloriously silly jokes. Claudius protests that he is ‘not some bum dating your mum’, a sentiment the Bard expressed slightly differently, while Ham reflects that ‘at my age, Dad had pillaged half the galaxy’. The humour is cheerfully teenage and the delivery is all part of the fun.
Happily, Shakespeare himself hasn’t been entirely jettisoned. Towards the end of Act One, Hamlet delivers the famous words ‘to be, or not to be’, although in song not prose, but still a welcome reminder of the original tragedy amid the cosmic mayhem. The juxtaposition of Shakespeare’s existential angst with the show’s outlandish comedy is precisely the sort of irreverence that gives Space Hamlet its appeal.
A tight budget but a flamboyant spirit
This is an unabashed fringe festival-style production, driven by imagination, energy, and the conviction that a small company can achieve a great deal with limited resources and considerable ingenuity. The eight-strong cast doubles as a company of actor-musicians, while an eclectic menagerie of puppets supplies much of the production’s visual character.
The Bowie-inspired original score adds a suitably flamboyant rock sensibility, although the musical and dramatic momentum is not always consistent. The pacing occasionally falters, with the action taking time to find its rhythm, but the performers are so fun that you just want them to succeed. Played in the round here, or at least three sides of a square, the actors play well to the audience who are all seated very close to the action.
A show full of cosmic potential
The cast really throw themselves into the silliness with admirable gusto. Nic Gordon gives Hamlet a vibrant, youthful presence, finding comic possibilities in the prince’s familiar anguish without losing sight of the character at the centre of the cosmic chaos.
Lucas Fox is particularly compelling as Claudius, combining charisma with a deliciously wicked streak. His performance provides a confident foil to Gordon’s Hamlet, and he makes the most of the production’s glam rock theatricality. Shem Jacobs is impressive as King Ham with a great stage presence and commanding voice.
Ruby Bardwell-Dix brings spirit to Ophelia while Amy Beven handles the dual roles of Horatio and Polonius. The supporting company work hard across multiple roles, combining acting, music and puppetry to sustain the show’s anarchic atmosphere. The Act Two duet between Ophelia and Lauren Bryant’s Gerturde is a particularly good scene.
The production still feels more enthusiastic than polished but its ambition and sheer cheek deserve recognition. Space Hamlet is really a gleeful exercise in theatrical mischief, and it is all the better for refusing to take itself too seriously.
There are more sophisticated musicals, more consistent scripts and more emotionally penetrating Hamlets. But few are likely to feature quite so many intergalactic absurdities. For audiences willing to embrace its eccentric universe, this is an entertaining reminder that Shakespeare can still inspire invention and experimentation. And just perhaps like Six the Musical, which began as a student production at Edinburgh Fringe 10 years ago, this might have what it takes to become a seriously a big hit. See it now and one day you’ll be able to say ‘I was there’.
