JAMES CADY'S HAMLET Plays Musical Theatre Southwest Center for Theatre, Now thru 8/24

"Denmark's a prison." Those words spoken by Hamlet in William Shakespeare's play, written more than 400 years ago, inspired veteran director James Cady to set his production of Hamlet in a state penitentiary. "I don't know if I'm the first director to stage the play this way, but actual prisoners have been producing the play as part of their rehabilitation for several years. The play seems to speak, on a deeply emotional and redemptive level, to inmates whose crimes parallel the characters in Hamlet, primarily murder and revenge."

Cady has assembled an all-male cast of Albuquerque's finest actors to play out his vision: Ed Chavez, Brennan Foster, Bradd Howard, Peter Shea Kierst, Micah Linford, Marc Lynch, Tim MacAlpine, Ray Orley, Ned Record, Philip J. Shortell, Tyler Alan Strand, Matthew Van Wettering and Michael Weppler.

"The challenge for the actor," Cady states, "is to portray the characters in Shakespeare's play (using Shakespeare's language), but to do so through the prison characters they have created."

With the play cut to a mere ninety (90) minutes and performed without intermission, Cady believes that once the audience signs on for the ride, even though they think they know how the story ends, they will constantly be asking themselves "What happens next?" And, according to Cady, "that is the essence of great theatre."

Hamlet is presented by Champion Productions LLC's Donna M. Barra, who previously produced Cady's one-man show, THE UNAUTHORIZED AFTERLIFE OF EUGENE O'NEILL. Cady's recent directorial successes in Albuquerque include Moon For the Misbegotten and All My Sons at The Adobe Theater, Death of a Salesman and The Front Page at The Vortex Theatre.

Ten (10) Performances run today, August 14-17, 21-24, Thursday, Friday, Saturday evenings at 7.30 pm, Saturday and Sunday matinees at 2:00 pm at Musical Theatre Southwest Center for Theatre, 6320 Domingo Rd NE, Ste B, Albuquerque, NM 87108.

Tickets are $20 general, $18.00 seniors (62+) ATG/TLC members, $15.00 for students. Group rates available for 10 or more. Reservations can be made online by going to http://jlchamlet.bpt.me or by phone at Brown Paper Tickets (800) 838.3006.

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