It’s been three years in the making, but today the curtain opens again on the stage version of John Updike’s Hamlet prequel, Gertrude and Claudius.
As Jeffrey Borak of The Berkshire Eagle, dateline Pittsfield, Mass., writes, “Based on a novel by John Updike, Mark St. Germain’s ‘Gertrude and Claudius’ was commissioned by Orlando Shakespeare Theatre in 2016. It took three years and a grant from the Edgerton Foundation for the play to have its world premiere earlier this year in Orlando, Fla., in a production that ran from late February to late March.
“‘The rights were held up. Updike’s son, David, was helpful in getting the rights released,’ St. Germain said, explaining the delay, during a recent pre-rehearsal interview in a conference room at Barrington Stage Company’s Wolfson Center on North Street, where he was joined by BSC artistic director Julianne Boyd and Elijah Alexander and Kate MacCluggage who are playing the title couple in the Boyd-directed production of ‘Gertrude and Claudius’ which . . . officially opens Sunday afternoon at BSC’s Boyd-Quinson Mainstage, where it is scheduled to run through Aug. 3.”
“‘The relationship between Gertrude and her son is beautifully drawn’ Alexander said. ‘Claudius is a childless man, wanting to be a father.'”
“‘The stakes are high here,’ Boyd said. ‘Gertrude and Claudius are willing to risk all for sex and love.'”
“‘I think one of the questions Mark raises in the play is ‘What is love? Is it just how people feel?'” MacCluggage said.
Read the full article.
In “Barrington Stage Company Presents Mark St. Germain’s ‘Gertrude And Claudius,'” Joe Donahue, or The Roundtable (19 July 2019) writes, “‘Gertrude and Claudius’ is based on John Updike’s 2000 novel of the same title. The story shows Queen Gertrude’s relationship with Hamlet’s father, who appears only as a ghost in the Shakespeare play, and how she conspires with his brother Claudius to commit the murder that sets in motion the events of the classic drama.
“St. Germain has a long history with Barrington Stage, this being his 13th play produced by the company.”
YouTube Behind-the-scenes clips and interviews from the Barrington Stage production