THEATRE TALK: The HAMLET Obsession - Thanks, Michael Sheen

Hamlet, Hamlet, Hamlet

What is it about Hamlet that obsesses us so? Not content with David Tennant and Jude Law's starry turns in the RSC and Donmar versions in 2008 and 2009, the National brings us Rory Kinnear's portrayal while in just a few months John Simm will play it in Sheffield, and now Michael Sheen has been announced as the latest to give his version of the complex, ambiguous Dane. It's not the first time he's played the part, having done so in a full-cast dramatisation for Radio 3 back in 2008.

Directed by Jerusalem's Ian Rickson, Sheen, currently appearing in the Twilight trilogy, will star in the Young Vic production in 2011. He said: "It's the most dangerous play that exists, yet our culture has made it safe. It has become a rite of passage play for actors. But it is about the very nature of life, death and reality. What I want is to make it difficult and jagged again, unsettling and uncomfortable and disorienting for the audience."

It was his choice, Sheen revealed, to do it with Rickson, who has never before directed Shakespeare. The two call the play 'inexhaustible' as far as interpretations go - but though it will be exciting to see Sheen back on the London stage after his triumph in Frost/Nixon, please nobody else feel they simply must put Hamlet on. Theatregoers need a little breathing space - and a little variety in their Shakespeare, too.

An interesting week for politics and the arts

How things change. Politics has ushered in a new era of Lib-Con coalition - or as some would have it, a ConDemNation. Catchy. But what does this mean for the arts? Well, things are still pretty uncertain. Jeremy Hunt has been announced as Minister for everything from culture to the Olympics, leaving many within the arts community worried about how he will control such a large portfolio. He has already told the areas within his remit that £66 million of cuts will have to be made, raising the inevitable worries for the future in the always ill-funded arts community.

The Tricycle has rather opportunely programmed an entire season of work that skilfully reflects the current situation with women, power and politics. Although Margaret Thatcher is one of our best known Prime Ministers, the current cabinet contains no more than a few (some would say token) women, including Minister Without Portfolio Baroness Warsi. The season runs from 4 June until 17 July. The 'Then' part of the season includes plays by Rebecca Lenkiewicz and Moira Buffini, whose 'Handbags' takes a look at the private relationship between Margaret Thatcher and the Queen.

Meanwhile, Bola Agbaje takes a more modern look at political matters. Agbaje's work concerns the election of a new president to the Students' Union, while Sue Townsend's 'You, Me and Wii' looks at what can happen when a canvasser tries to change someone's mind and get them voting. Running alongside these productions is the Tricycle's cinema programme, which boosts their focus on women in British politics by showing films about politicized women, such as The Kidnapping Of Ingrid Betancourt. It's an interestingly timely season and one that should expose further the tokenism currently granted to women attempting entry to the higher echelons of government.

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