Crooked Path Theatre will debut their production of “Hamlet” at the James Theatre for one weekend only on Sept. 21 at 7:30 p.m. This four-show run is fueled by passionate local theatre artists and explores themes of religion and identity in an intimate theatre house.
“Hamlet” looks at the themes and language of the past and discusses why these are still relevant. Director Patrick Du Laney says there has never been a better time to do the show.
“It’s about all of our lives because, especially post-COVID-19, we’re looking at climate change, and we’re looking at uncertain financial futures and uncertain careers, jobs and livelihoods,” Du Laney said. “Now’s the time to do ‘Hamlet’ because it asks the questions of: ‘What is all this for?’ and ‘Why am I working so hard?’”
“Hamlet” follows the story of the prince of Denmark’s return home from university due to the death of his father and the subsequent crowning of his uncle as king.
Costume designer Emily Ganfield, an adjunct professor of costume design at Kirkwood Community College, noted that she had the pleasure of working with Du Laney years ago and anticipated the day they would be creative together again.
When Du Laney brought up the idea of doing “Hamlet,” Ganfield gladly took the opportunity, eager to study the costumes’ history.
“It had never occurred to me that [the character of] Hamlet is from Wittenberg, Germany, where Martin Luther was working,” Ganfield noted, “So there was probably a Protestant tie in there as [the character of] the ghost speaks about being in Purgatory.”
The costume designs take classical, Elizabethan era silhouettes with modern fabrics and textures to heighten the themes present in the text to a modern audience with the goal of making Shakespeare accessible to Iowa City.
“‘Hamlet’ gets a bad rap. And, because it’s Hamlet, and it’s automatically in our heads as sort of difficult and unapproachable,” Du Laney said. “While it is difficult, but it’s not unapproachable.”
The character of Hamlet is played by Ray Vanek, who has been rehearsing for this role since January 2023. Although he has done stage crew work for many years, this is one of the first times he said he has felt confident enough in his gender identity to take the lead on this show.
“I have learned so many different ways to think about the character and to think about myself,” Vanek shared. “I have been the luckiest person to have an incredible cast. Everybody else in this show is amazing.”
Crooked Path’s production of “Hamlet” will run at The James from Sept. 21-23 at 7:30 p.m. and Sept 24 at 2 p.m. with limited seating.