Denmark High

In my version of Hamlet, Hamlet, son of ex-principal Hamlet I, is having trouble dealing with his father's recent death, and has been rather depressed lately.  To make matters worse, his horrible uncle is taking over as the new principal and his new father.  Not even his girlfriend Ophelia or best friends Horatio and Marcellus seem to understand.  Poor Hamlet has absolutely no one to talk to-- not even the guidance counselor, Polonius, would be able to offer any advice even remotely helpful to Hamlet's situation.

Act 1 Scene 2 would open on Principal Claudius droning on and on over the intercom about how tragic Principal Hamlet's sudden death is, but that the school must continue to move forward.  However, because of the sad state the school is in, he's calling off the big game against Denmark High's rival school, Norway High.

Afterward, he's allows the guidance counselor's son, Laertes, to participate in a foreign-exchange program in France.  Not that he'd ever let Hamlet do anything like that-- with Claudius as his stepfather, Hamlet has little to no freedom.

In the middle of class, Hamlet is called to Principal Claudius' office, in which he finds Principal Claudius and his mother, who lecture him on why he needs to get over his father's death for the good of his studies.

After school, Hamlet is approached by his best friends, Horatio and Marcellus, who deliver some interesting news about Hamlet's father. . .

H a m l e t - "To Be Or Not To Be"

"To be or not to be"-- the most famous line from the most famous soliloquy of Shakespeare's Hamlet.  The following videos are two different portrayals of the legendary speech-- one by David Tennant, and the other by William Belchambers.

     David Tennant:

In this scene, David Tennant does an excellent job conveying Hamlet's temptation to commit suicide.  He then seems deterred after realizing that to sleep is to dream, and that he's too afraid to sacrifice the suffering he endures now only to find that the dreams in death are far worse.  He then lets this fear drive his anger, as he realizes it's this fear of the unknown that makes us all cowards.

     William Belchambers:

One of the main differences between this scene and the prior is that in the first, David Tennant was talking to himself, and in this one, William Belchambers is recording himself.  In my opinion, this subtle difference completely changes the purpose behind the speech.  Most versions feature Hamlet coming to these revelations by himself and for himself.  However in William Belchamber's version, the fact that he's recording himself makes it feel more like a suicide note, and therefore makes the possibility of him killing himself seem much more likely than in the first.

I am very impressed by both versions.  In my opinion, David Tennant's version is more accurate, because he sticks to the proper time period and better tries to embody Shakespeare's intentions for the scene.  However, William Belchambers' version is my favorite because the bold choices the director makes the scene even more powerful.