Hamlet | Class 1: Introduction to Hamlet

Pre-Reading Improvisations

Student level: remedial and higher

Break your students into groups of three or four. Present each group with one of the scenes below. (It is not necessary that each group have a unique prompt. The improvisational format will enable different interpretations.)

Give each group about fifteen minutes to share ideas. They need not write down lines or try to memorize lines. Also, they should be encouraged to speak in their natural voices rather than affecting a Shakespearean tone. Have each group perform their improvisation before the class. (Allot some time for nervous giggling!)

  • Improvisation 1

    Scene: A funeral party.

    Characters: Mother, stepfather, student.

    Improv: A student comes home from college to attend the funeral of his father, who has died unexpectedly. Instead of finding his mother grieving, the student discovers that his mother has married his uncle, whom he has never much liked. The mother and stepfather must explain themselves and react to their son’s anger and objections.

  • Improvisation 2

    Scene: Psychic hotline.

    Characters: A “psychic,” two friends (one who believes he has seen a ghost and one who does not believe in ghosts), a ghost.

    Improv: Believing that he or she has seen a ghost, one friend urges the other to call a psychic hotline. The friend making the claims has been levelheaded in the past, but no one believes him or her…until the ghost appears.

  • Improvisation 3

    Scene: Oh brother….

    Characters: A sister and an older brother.

    Improv: An older brother is about to leave for college. What advice will he give his younger sister about life? The sister idolizes her big brother. How will she react to his counsel?

Discussion Questions/Writing Prompts for Background Material

A play in Shakespeare’s day was not considered a “preservable” art form. The playwright concerned himself with the popularity of the performance, not on the strict adherence to the text.

Life of Shakespeare (1564-1616)

1. Does it surprise you that Shakespeare’s plays were more about popularity than reverence? How might that knowledge change your approach to Hamlet?

Possible responses: Yes, it will help to view the play as a popular work, like a modern movie. No, it is still intimidating. If the latter, assure students that they will later in the course learn about accessibility and clarity in Shakespeare’s work, which will help them appreciate Hamlet on its own terms.

2. Shakespeare’s theater company did not attempt to be historically correct in costuming. Today, some theater companies like to set his plays in places as diverse as Vietnam and Hollywood. Hamlet has even been set in twenty-first century Manhattan! Other Shakespeare companies are “purists” and try to re-create the look of the plays as closely as possible to what Shakespeare’s portrayal might have been.

What do you think are the strengths and weakness of both styles of staging?

Possible responses: The strengths of using diverse staging may include the ability to attract new audiences. The main weakness of diverse staging is that a production becomes so removed from the original story line that it is impossible to maintain "trueness" to the author's work. The main strength of a traditional representation is that the viewer gets a feel for the era and the play as may have been intended by the author. The weakness of a traditional representation is that the production becomes too distanced from the modern era to attract new audiences. Situations in the play may also be too archaic to be easily identified.

Homework: Writing Prompts for Pre-Reading

1. Shakespeare reportedly was forced to leave school at age 15. Likewise, his character Hamlet also had to leave school under difficult conditions. How would you feel if you were not allowed to return to high school or college?

Possible responses: Some students may feel angry and resentful; others may be accepting but disappointed because they would miss their friends and feel that their options were limited.

2. Shakespeare’s son, Hamnet, died at age 11. In the play, Hamlet is dealing with a death, and not doing so particularly well. Do you think writing is cathartic? In what ways have you, or someone you have known, coped with an unexpected death?

Possible responses: Yes, it helps people accept the finality of death. No, it does not help to obsess on death. People should move on. Coping: varies.