“Hamlet”: A Foot-Stomping Marvel–OTP@MarinShakes
Dean Linnard. Photos by Ben Krantz Studio.
Spectacular Hamlet Links Personal Grief to Political Nightmare
by Jenyth Jo
Oakland Theater Project has a viral hit on its hands. Director Michael Socrates Moran has crafted a “Hamlet” that everyone can enjoy, and most will never forget.
As Hamlet, Dean Linnard uses his elastic face and vocal dexterity to take us to new heights. Linnard runs the scales, from shocking sounds that channel his dead father to the pitch of a doomed man who fears for the safety of his beloved. Linnard’s comic timing and physical genius reveal an actor in control of detail and technique. Linnard delivers Hamlet’s beloved soliloquies with precision and passion. Clarity, thy name is Linnard.
Dov Hassan and Lisa Ramirez
As usurping Uncle Claudius, Dov Hassan channels Tony Soprano’s thick gold chain and violent impulses. Wearing shaggy 70s fur jackets, Claudius fingers his rosary beads and orders his black-masked military to assault members of the court. Claudius uses torture and beating of his imagined “enemies” to instill fear and obedience.
As Polonius, Robert Parsons wears long white priest robes, using religion to bless the new king’s power. Rather than a “good old man,” this Polonius is a “good ol’ boy.”
But the corrupt court cannot corral Hamlet. Linnard is so attuned to hidden truths that he continually exposes his oily uncle-politician and his prime minister yes-man.
Myles Bell and A’Nia Ferguson with dancers
Live music and dance keep the play hopping. When Hamlet sings an ancient Viking poem, he turns it into a creepy, F-minor song: “My father told me / someday I will die.” Linnard’s voice excels as a Goth rocker boy.
Outstanding choreography by Bear Graham includes pre-show dancers as Gregorian monks, as stagehands, and as percussionists. They use staves and feet to syncopate with the rhythms, adding intensity to the action.
As Claudius and Hamlet conspire against each other, we are treated to new takes on corruption, betrayal, and death. Instead of the roving Players’ traditional “mousetrap” play to “catch the conscience of the King,” Horatio (James Mercer II) sings Lady Gaga’s “Bad Romance.” Our laughter fuels the King’s fury, as Dear Leader is publicly exposed.
Erik Wagner
At center stage, Erik Wagner portrays the Ghost of Hamlet’s father writhing in purgatory. His beautiful contortions mesmerize us, and his red-rimmed eyes never blink.
The stagehands bring on live video cameras, artful cinema projections, and a startling montage of revolutionary voices. James Baldwin, Toni Morrison, Angela Davis, Malcolm X, and Allen Ginsberg call for action, in contrast to Hamlet’s “Conscience doth make cowards of us all.” Can Hamlet circumvent the security cameras and rid Denmark of its corrupt fear-mongering?
But Queen Gertrude (Lisa Ramirez) is not afraid. She’s straight out of the Real Housewives of New Jersey, teetering on white high heels as she continually tipples the cocktails. Ramirez’s Xanax-fueled mom drugs her grief. In her altered state, Gertrude slaps her new husband instead of obeying him.
Oakland Theater Project’s thrilling show challenges Laertes’ claim that “best safety lies in fear.” We cheer Hamlet’s decision to confront his “sea of troubles” and “by opposing, end them.” Moran inspires excitement with OTP’s intense, new “Hamlet.”
Regina Morones and Lisa Ramirez
“Hamlet” by William Shakespeare, directed by Michael Socrates Moran, set by Mark Thomas, props by Heidi Button, choreography by Bear Graham, costumes by Alexia Dominique Rodriguez, by Oakland Theater Project, at Marin Shakes, San Raphael, California.
Info: oaklandtheaterproject.org – to September 21, 2025.
Cast: Dean Linnard, Dov Hassan, Robert Parsons, Nathaniel Andalis, Lisa Ramirez, Erik Wagner, James Mercer II, Regina Morones, William Oliver III, David Djemal Rukin, Zhang Bai Han, Nikki Lee, Myles Bell, A’Nia Ferguson, Anisa Barney, Alexander Cole, and Kaitlyn Wichterman.
Dancers: Kayla Chang, Tindra Olsson-Hoffman, Xujia Wei, Cate Flowers, Emilee Lou Brown, and Alula Dreicer.
