Hamlet - Great River Shakespeare Festival

To sleep, perchance to dream

As the sound designer of Great River Shakespeare Festival’s 2014 production of Hamlet, there were several goals I had in mind. I wanted to instill the dramatic action with drive and intrigue. We follow our protagonist closely, and I desired the music to mirror that, placing us with Hamlet—and at times in Hamlet’s mind—throughout the show. I also wanted to differentiate the Ghost King’s presence in a way that was sensitive to the action on stage and not hokey.

The production designers largely responded to the concept of the action taking place in a void, with a nod by the costume designer to 20th century dress. The director and I spoke about cello being an appropriate instrument for the world we were setting. We began looking at spare cello music that was moody, layered, and at times unconventional.  We decided to define the Ghost King’s entrance into Elsinore sonically as well as with lights. Strobe effects and otherworldly sound effects and music underscored his presence. The director had specific ideas about the “rules” of the supernatural presence, as nodded to by the Ghost King’s departure with the cock crow.

The music, which was conceived by me and a couple cellists, served the production well. The tone was spare. Driving, simple percussion laid under many of the cello pieces. I developed a framework with percussion and some cello ideas, and then allowed the cellists to improvise in the recording room. I believe the music was emotionally correct and balanced, not skewing into melodrama or sentimentality.

CREDITS

Hamlet
by William Shakespeare
Great River Shakespeare Festival
Winona, MN
June 28 - August 3, 2014

Director: Jim Edmonson
Scenic Designer: R. Eric Stone
Lighting Designer: Lonnie Alcaraz
Costume Designer: Lou Bird
Sound Designer: Matthew Tibbs

Hamlet: Andrew Carlson
Claudius: Michael Fitzpatrick
Ghost King: Benjamin Boucvalt
Gertrude: Leslie Brott
Polonius: Steve Hendrickson
Laertes: John Maltese
Ophelia: Sigrid Sutter
Horatio: Brian White
Rosencrantz: Christopher Gerson
Guildenstern: Doug Scholz-Carlson
Fortinbras: Benjamin Boucvalt
Voltemand: Christopher Gerson
Cornelius: Doug Scholz-Carlson
Marcellus: Gerrad Alex Taylor
Barnardo: Robert Montgomery
Francisco: John Steele Jr.
Gentlewoman: Jenni McCarthy
Osric: John Steele Jr.
Reynaldo: Robert Montgomery
Player Queen: Tarah Flanagan
Player King: Jonathan Gillard Daly

Players:
Benjamin Boucvalt
John Maltese
Jenni McCarthy
Robert Montgomery
Gerrad Alex Taylor
Gentleman: Chris Mixon
Priest: Robert Montgomery
Grave Digger: Chris Mixon
Grave Digger's Companion:
Gerrad Alex Taylor
Captain in Fortinbras' Army:
Robert Montgomery