One of the reasons, if not the most important reason, that Shakespeare’s plays continue to dominate our theatrical landscape four centuries after they were first staged is not just that they examine universal themes and emotions. They can also seemingly cope with infinite reinterpretations, settings and approaches. But even with the myriad versions of Hamlet we’ve seen in the past, how many times does one of the Bard’s famously most dour stories end up with the entire cast and a good proportion of the audience dancing on the stage, while cheering and whooping with gay abandon?
But that’s exactly how the Peruvian company Teatro La Plaza’s unique take on the tragedy transpired. And we can’t say we weren’t warned. Early on in the piece, we were informed, loudly and clearly, ‘this is Hamlet, but it’s not that one!’
Performed in Spanish with big, easy to read surtitles on a screen at the back of the stage, this Hamlet kicked off with perhaps a slightly confronting moment – for those not expecting such images – as the same screen was filled with a film of a live birth, in glorious bloody close-up.
After that though it was swiftly on to tearing apart the play to its basic and most fundamental elements, while also deconstructing both its narrative and, most importantly, how it relates to or is understood and experienced by a group of actors who all have Down syndrome.
The eight performers had few props – mostly a crown that would be sported by different members of the cast at different times. Plus when they got to the play scene, where Hamlet directs a troupe of actors to re-enact his father’s murder by Claudius, then some helpful costume pieces were thrown into the mix.
Read: Theatre review: Legends (of the Golden Arches), RISING, The Lawler, Southbank Theatre
But it was the other additions in this scene that really brought home writer/director Chela de Ferrari’s overarching subtext… Calling for volunteers from the audience, the cast then beautifully subverted the way that people with a neurodivergence like Down syndrome have long been treated, underestimated and put in boxes by the mainstream media and neurotypical folk. And still can be…
This was a production so full of glee, so full of energy and so full of in-your-face truths and reclamations of voice that it was impossible not to get the message, love the message and cheer right along with that message. And dance.
Hamlet, Teatro La Plaza
Writer and Director: Chela de Ferrari
Associate Director and Associate Playwriting: Claudia Tangoa, Jonathan Oliveros, Luis Alberto Léon
Vocal Training: Alessandra Rodríguez
Choreography: Mirella Carbone
Visuals: Lucho Soldevilla
Lighting Design: Jesús Reyes
Lighting Director: Kevin Yupanqui
Video Technician: Andrés Nunton
Sound: Jhosimar Sullon
Stage Manager: Dennis Hilario
Cast: Octavio Bernaza, Jaime Cruz, Lucas Demarchi, Manuel García, Diana Gutierrez, Cristina León Barandiarán, Ximena Rodríguez, Álvaro Toledo
Tickets: $53-$69
Hamlet was performed at the Union Theatre, University of Melbourne from 4-8 June 2025 as part of RISING, as part of a world tour. It will next be seen at the Toronto Luminato Festival in Canada (13-15 June).
