The Heart of My Mystery: The Hamlet Project

“I am far from justifying the tragedy of Hamlet,” wrote Voltaire in 1749,
“It is a gross and barbarous piece, and would never be borne by the lowest
of the rabble in France or Italy.” Two hundred years later, Sir Laurence
Olivier said, “I could see it and read it forever. Yes, the best play in
the world.” Why does Hamlet provoke such varied responses over the
centuries? The Heart of My Mystery places Shakespeare’s play in dialogue with the critical response it has inspired. Shakespeare’s tragedy finds itself in dialogue with Samuel Johnson, Voltaire, Goethe, Harold Bloom, and others. Ideas about the mystery of the central character take on the nature of theatre itself. The result is a scholarly and irreverent study of the classic drama. Directed by Barbara Bosch.

Performances are August 7th, 9th, 12th & 16th at 8 PM; August 10th and 17th at 3 PM