Space Hamlet

A long time ago in a theatre far, far away… William Shakespeare’s Hamlet was created and became one of the best plays of all time. Ever since then the iconic tragedy has been performed, revised, adapted, reformed and taken in a never-ending catalogue of directions, but never in space…until now. After having its intergalactic premiere in Norwich last year, Space Hamlet has landed at The Cockpit in London for a limited run.

Written by R.C Staab and Dan Sturman, Space Hamlet takes the famed story and transforms it into a delightfully camp glam rock musical set on the planet Denmark 5. In place of traditional costumes, seafaring armies and familiar allies are sparkly robes, battles amongst the stars and aliens and droids such as the golden Guildenbot. Taking inspiration from the sci-fi series of the 80s, Staab and Sturman build a universe that is crafted out of love and results in a loving blend of tradition and future. Alongside the story is a soundtrack of songs, composed by Sturman, that are wonderfully evocative of classic glam rock artists and brought to life by brilliant orchestrations by Acer Smith, where highlights include a ridiculously silly number sung by Claudius wanting to be Hamlet’s daddy and a glamorously meta finale about arriving in Valhalla.

Bringing the production to life are a cast of eight performers whose love for the project enhances the enjoyment of the show. Aside from Nic Gordon as Hamlet, each of the performers take on a variety of roles while still getting individual chances to shine. However, I must spotlight two of the strongest performers of the night in Lucas Fox and Lauren Bryant.

As Claudius, Fox is deliciously evil, chewing the dialogue at every moment and flaunting his comedic ability at every opportunity. A true highlight of the production, Fox is able to match the campy style of the musical throughout while not ever falling into the trap of becoming too much. Beyond that, he also delivers a vocal performance that excels on its own as well as becoming a strong supporting element of ensemble tracks.

Contrastingly, Lauren Bryant’s Queen Gertrude provides a grounded element to the fantastical storyline taking place. Stoic and intelligent, Bryant’s portrayal of the queen sits right at home in the space-drama while still managing to feel Shakespearean in her depiction. Her presence is strong whenever she is on stage and is equally matched by her musical skill. Giving the strongest vocal performance of the night, Bryant particularly shines during a number towards the end of act 2 opposite Nic Gordon. To highlight these performers is not to say the rest of the cast do not deliver. Shem Jacobs has a gorgeous warmth to their voice, Amy Bevan has so much fun as Horatio and Lewis Aves’ stellar reveal as Fortinbras received the biggest reaction of the night.