“Hamlet” roars back to life at the Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey

The story of Shakespeare’s Hamlet is well-known by now, but the production at the Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey, helmed by Artistic Director Brian B. Crowe and performed on the brutalistic set designed by Brian J. Ruggaber, has been given fresh life by a talented cast of Shakespeare Theatre regulars and promising newcomers. 

In a luminous, harrowing portrayal of a descent into true madness, Billie Wyatt shines. You follow each step hoping the outcome might be different. But Wyatt’s Ophelia starts out from private loss of Hamlet’s affections to public humiliation by him. Her father’s murder by her former lover is the final straw causing her fragile mind to break. Her appearance becomes more unkempt, her clothing appears more like rags, her responses to others veer from distracted childishness to fruitlessly venomous. You are watching the unnecessary destruction of an innocent, and Wyatt’s performance does not let you look away.

In contrast is the Hamlet of Isaac Hickox-Young. While the play’s story hinges on revenge for a murdered father, in this production Hamlet is as full of flaws as many in the Danish court. He is petty and paranoid, suspicious of everyone who does not fully back him. He is full of himself and his university education. He is needlessly cruel while all the time feigning madness.

This is a Hamlet who is definitely unfit to claim the throne, and who at times makes you see him as a narcissistic villain. This is a bold interpretation of Hamlet, and Hickox-Young, under Crowe’s direction, is unafraid to explore this.

Outstanding performances are also given by Marion Adler as the emotionally-driven Queen Gertrude; Joe Mucciolo as Horatio, Hamlet’s staunchest friend; Anthony Marble, turning in two distinctive performances as the Ghost and the Gravedigger; and Scott Wentworth as King Claudius, especially in a small scene where, praying God for forgiveness, he reveals that if given the chance he would do it all over again. 

This is a Hamlet that, unlike some that have transplanted the story to modern times or corporate kingdoms, skillfully utilizes the unique crafts of the theatre. It works its wiles on audiences, transporting them into a morally ambiguous medieval power struggle in which everyone’s actions come in shades of gray. I cannot more strongly recommend seeing this limited engagement of Hamlet before it ends.

Hamlet is presented by the Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey in the F.M. Kirby Theatre on the campus of Drew University in Madison through Nov. 15. For more information, or to purchase tickets, go to shakespearenj.org.

SAVE now through Oct. 31, use code DENMARKBOGO to get two tickets for the price of one to select weekday performances, Nov. 3 – 6, 2026.