For its 34th annual Shakespeare in High Park production, the Canadian Stage Company is mounting the greatest play ever put to page: Hamlet, albeit an abridged 90-minute version, in addition to this season’s comedy, All’s Well That End’s Well. Post City spoke to Frank Cox-O’Connell, who is portraying the alfresco Prince of Denmark.
What did you do to prepare for such a role?
I really just read the play a lot. I mean, it’s a pretty amazing piece of text, which is no surprise to anyone. As a performer, it’s really all there for me. And the very nature of putting the show on in a park environment with no intermission, means there is a real adaptation. We are intervening in text in a major way by virtue of time. So my prep is about understanding the text, as written by Shakespeare and how does that meet the adaption.
Why do you think the play has continued to resonate with audiences?
In part because we keep screwing up in the same ways. It’s a story about corruption and inequity and about how ego gets in the way of being a good person. These are things on which we haven’t made a tremendous amount of progress.
This is an abridged version, but we’re assuming all the big soliloquies are intact.
They are all there, which I very much appreciate. It really is the thing that makes the play so odd. It is structured so the big changes he goes through, he goes through alone. For the five big soliloquies, he has nowhere left to turn except to the audience, to the theatrical version of himself.
Have you performed in the great out of doors in the past?
I’ve performed outside once. It was a total disaster because we didn’t have any of the skills to work as street performers. We didn’t have that attack. It was a really good lesson for me on the difference between a home game and an away game. For me, thing about the park, is it is a little bit of an away game. People are there very much to have a picnic, sneak in bottle of wine and have an evening outside, and we kind of show up and put this play on for them.
What do you bring to a Hamlet in the park, wine or a nice beer?
If I was coming, I’d probably sneak in a bottle of wine.
And will the capybara get worked into the script at all?
Well, when Hamlet kills Polonius, he’s referred to as a rat. In rehearsal, I’ve been saying a capybara, but so far nobody has appreciated the proposal. I’ll keep pushing for it and see what happens opening night.
Shakespeare in High Park is pay what you can, with a suggested donation of $20. Shows start at 8 p.m. For ticket information, visit the Canadian Stage website.
