Hamlet: Blood in the Brain

Written by Naomi Iizuka and directed by Jonathan Moscone, Hamlet: Blood in the Brain relocates Shakespeare’s kingdom of Elsinore to the drug-ravaged world of Oakland, California in the late 1980s. Focusing on the intense sociological pressures that occur in a community following an extreme act of violence, the play tells the story of one man confronted by sudden loss who must uphold the status of his community and his own corrupted lineage. As reflected in the title, the piece brings audiences inside his mind and body to feel his blood boiling, his heart racing, and the inevitability of his encroaching madness. It also captures the tensions within families and between territorialized, shattered communities – tensions that result from unbearable secrets, blood oaths, corrupted ideals, glorified notions of honor, and sudden, mythic shifts in power.

Blood in the Brain has been developed over the past three years as a partnership between the classic company, California Shakespeare Theater, Intersection’s award-winning resident ensemble Campo Santo, and Oakland community-based organizations and residents. This project is supported in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts.

All Thursday Night performances are Pay-What-You-Can.