Jessica Selby

Kent County Times 11/09/07

COVENTRY — Hate Hamlet? Coventry High School has just the production for you.

There’ll be sword fighting, laughter, love and an elaborate set in this weekend’s Coventry High drama class presentation of Paul Rudnick’s Broadway comedy “I Hate Hamlet,” according to drama teacher Myke Wilkinson.

Wilkinson said he selected the play because he had learned it was “listed as one of the best shows for high school students to do.”

“After I came across that list, I read the script and thought it was very funny but knew it would be difficult to do because of the set and because there are only six actors,” he said. 

Wilkinson said he thought all of that through and considered the fact that he knew he wanted to do a comedy for this show and ultimately just decided to go ahead with the production despite the hurdles.

The six student actors charged with the responsibility of bringing this play to life each had hundreds of lines to memorize, Wilkinson said.

The play tells the story of young performers living in New York and the ordeals that occur in their day-to-day lives. 

There is a television actor torn between playing the distinguished role of Hamlet in a classic theater production or taking an offer from a Hollywood producer to start his own television series with a multi-million dollar contract tied to it. There is a glamorous agent who brags about her affair with a famous stage and screen actor. There is a real estate tycoon who conducts a séance which results in the appearance of the ghost of John Barrymore, an actor known for his portrayal of Hamlet. Intertwined with all of these interesting characters is that of a young girl who is committed to saving herself for marriage.

With the chosen play in hand, Wilkinson said, he began auditioning students for the roles.  Once the cast was selected, Wilkinson said, the students were given their scripts. They had two weeks to memorize their lines act to act and then three weeks to put everything together on stage. 

And while the six performers were preparing for their parts in the production, there was still more work going on, Wilkinson said.

The elaborate set had to be designed and woodworking students at the school began building it. Walls were built out of tissue paper to resemble plaster, tall wooden doors in gothic style were constructed, a large staircase was built and positioned on the rear of the stage, a chandelier, which Wilkinson said he found on E-bay for $25, was hung from the ceiling and an list of props was gathered and brought in. There are two sofas, a desk, several small tables, many boxes and several bottles of champagne scattered about the stage.

And yes, there is a sword fight in one scene of the play. The two student actors received professional training from Trinity Rep to make this performance appear as realistic as possible, Wilkinson said.

The play will be performed at Coventry High School tonight, tomorrow and Sunday. Performances tonight and tomorrow are at 7 p.m. Sunday’s performance is at 3 p.m. Tickets are $5 apiece and can be purchased at the door.