After a long and thorough process of auditions, Bearden’s theatre department is excited to announce the cast for this year’s production of William Shakespeare’s Hamlet.
The last time Bearden did a play by Shakespeare was A Midsummer Night’s Dream in 2021. This means this is all of the actors’ first time being in a Shakespeare show at Bearden.
Hamlet is one of the most celebrated pieces of literature in human history, and director Mrs. Katie Alley said she is excited to bring it to the Bearden stage.
“I love this play so much,” Mrs. Alley said. “My goal is to introduce these students to this beautiful piece of theater.”
The character Hamlet (senior Eli Solomon) may be the most well-known in all of theatre, but there would be no Hamlet – neither the play, nor the character – without the unique, dynamic characters who create the complex web around him.
The production needs the complete cast to make it work.
“In this play, there are the people who are allies, the people who are outsiders, and the people who are working against each other,” Mrs. Alley said.
Seniors Reagan Smith (Guildenstern) and Justin Lattimore Jr. (Rosencrantz) are two characters in Hamlet who are different from the rest. In a play full of serious and dramatic characters, their almost absurd subservience to King Claudius (Gavin Cowden) provides the play with a few moments of comic relief.
“I love her,” Smith said. “We have had the freedom to do whatever we want to do. We have a lot of physical comedy bits that we can just come up with.”
Lattimore said he’s excited about pairing up with Smith to bring a lighter tone to a show with heavier themes.
“Our characters are a lot less tense than the others,” he said. “We were talking about tech week how everyone is going to be down, and we are going to be jiving.”
As a tragedy, Hamlet incorporates elements of sadness and sorrow.
Characters like Hamlet’s mother Gertrude (junior Nora Johnson) are the complete opposite from Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. Their inner turmoil drives the tragic nature of the show.
“In general, Gertrude is a mother figure, and very complex,” Johnson said.
The show opens on April 24. Tickets will be available at beardentheatre.com as opening night approaches.
Complete Cast
- Hamlet: Eli Solomon
- Claudius: Gavin Cowden
- Gertrude: Nora Johnson
- Horatio: Bradley Witzel
- Polonius: Aiden Vihn
- Laertes: Luke Anderson
- Ophelia: Caroline Alley
- The Ghost: Taylor Haun
- Fortinbras: Spencer Hayman
- Rosencrantz: Justin Lattimore, Jr.
- Guildenstern: Reagan Smith
- Voltemand: Elijah Clemes
- Cornelius: Trailin Edwards
- Maid: Eliana Ghally
- Barnardo / Butler: Finn Gilbert
- Marcellus & others: Isaac Blankenship
- Player King & others: Braden Galli
- Player Queen & others: Katie Nichols
- Osric & others: Roman Vance
- 1st Gravedigger & others: Cordelia Nelson
- 2nd Gravedigger & others: McKenna Webb