Shakespeare's Hamlet Performed By the Hudson Shakespeare Company in Kinnelon Library: June 23, 2022

Hamlet was the first Shakespeare play that I remember ever getting familiar with back in my old high school days. I had obtained a Shakespeare book by then, I think. It was a big and classy looking collection of all of his works, although if memory serves correctly, I never actually read anything from the book itself. The print is very small, and today, it would strain my eyes trying to read it. Besides, when I took Shakespeare courses years later at Rutgers, we had the much larger Riverside Edition collections of all of Shakespeare's works. There are illustrations and some narrative about the backgrounds of the plays, as well as some pertinent history relating to matters in England or elsewhere at the time, as well as some tidbits about Shakespeare's life. 

Yet, specifically when it comes to Hamlet, I still recall those high school days, and particularly that movie, which left a lasting impression. We read the play, and then saw the movie, which at the time, was still not all that old. It featured a young Mel Gibson in the title role. It was also a very good movie version of Hamlet, one that I still want to see right to this day. 

Also, this was the first time that my son was exposed to a Shakespeare play. He had tried to read one Shakespeare play in the past, as well. But this was the first time that he had seen and gotten acclimated with  a full work by Shakespeare. 

He was very impressed. We talked about it during the almost hour long trip down to Hillsborough immediately after the play. There was agreement that the actors were quite good, and that it had been well done. Admittedly, it would have likely been better if the weather had cooperated, as the play was originally supposed to take place outside on the lawn, I believe. It was a little strange watching a play that is supposed to take place hundreds of years ago in a modern room illuminated by neon lights. Still, overall, a job well done, both by the Hudson Shakespeare Company for bringing this classic play to people, as well as by Kinnelon Library. Bravo!