{"id":2027613,"date":"2025-09-17T00:48:04","date_gmt":"2025-09-17T00:48:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/?p=2027613"},"modified":"2025-09-17T00:48:04","modified_gmt":"2025-09-17T00:48:04","slug":"hamiltons-giles-terera-is-a-compelling-hamlet","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/hamiltons-giles-terera-is-a-compelling-hamlet\/","title":{"rendered":"Hamilton\u2019s Giles Terera is a compelling Hamlet"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<div data-article-body=\"true\">\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Giles Terera made a name for himself \u2013 and won an Olivier \u2013 playing Aaron Burr in the 2017 West End premiere run of <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"link \" href=\"https:\/\/www.telegraph.co.uk\/hamilton-musical\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Hamilton;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\"><em>Hamilton<\/em><\/a>. On stage, he\u2019s prolific and versatile, as capable in \u201cstraight\u201d theatre as musicals and, as we saw with his superb 2022 slave drama <em>The Meaning of Zong<\/em>, a budding playwright too. His intelligence, charisma, mellifluous handling of words \u2013 oh, and deft way with a sword \u2013 are manifest in this compelling \u201cchamber\u201d <em>Hamlet<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Director Justin Audibert brings Shakespeare\u2019s heftiest tragedy \u2013 of grief, hesitant revenge, madness feigned and real, and death \u2013 to Chichester for the first time (a remarkable fact, given that the first in his post as artistic director was Laurence Olivier). At three hours, it\u2019s a long night. But it\u2019s rewardingly unshowy.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"relative mb-4\">\n<div class=\"relative\"><button aria-label=\"View larger image\" class=\"group absolute bottom-3 right-3 size-10 md:size-[50px] lg:inset-0 lg:size-full lg:bg-transparent\" data-ylk=\"elm:expand;itc:1;sec:image-lightbox;slk:lightbox-open;\"><span class=\"absolute bottom-0 right-0 rounded-full bg-white p-3 opacity-100 shadow-elevation-3 transition-opacity duration-300 group-hover:block group-hover:opacity-100 md:p-[17px] lg:bottom-6 lg:right-6 lg:bg-white\/90 lg:p-5 lg:opacity-0 lg:shadow-none\"><svg viewbox=\"0 0 22 22\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"size-4 lg:size-6\" width=\"22\" height=\"22\"><path d=\"M12.372.92c0-.506.41-.916.915-.916L21 0l-.004 7.712a.917.917 0 0 1-1.832 0V3.183l-6.827 6.828-1.349-1.348 6.828-6.828h-4.529a.915.915 0 0 1-.915-.915M1.835 17.816l6.828-6.828 1.349 1.349-6.829 6.827h4.529a.915.915 0 0 1 0 1.831L0 21l.004-7.713a.916.916 0 0 1 1.831 0z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/button><dialog aria-label=\"Modal Dialog\" aria-modal=\"true\" class=\"fixed inset-0 z-4 size-full max-h-none max-w-none bg-white hidden\"\/><\/div><figcaption class=\"relative text-sm mt-1 pr-2.5\">\n<p>On stage with Ryan Hutton, who starred in Only Fools and Horses The Musical, as Laertes &#8211; Ellie Kurttz<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Trevor Nunn\u2019s legendarily dark, intense Macbeth at the RSC (1976) starring Judi Dench and Ian McKellen lastingly proved the malignant power of small spaces. This shadowy, close-up production valuably strives for a similar nightmarish quality.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">It even has shades of the later work. Lily Arnold\u2019s set unsettles: a tiled floor turns into a high mound of earth above which perches a weird claustrophobic interior, serving variously as battlement, meeting-place and bedroom. Alcoves and side-corridors assist the sense of Denmark as prison and purgatory; conversations falter as figures steal past and an eerie sound of foot-steps abounds.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">There\u2019s something almost <em>Macbeth<\/em>-like about the paranoic behaviour of Sara Powell\u2019s Gertrude and Ariyon Bakare\u2019s newly enthroned Claudius (Hamlet\u2019s regicidal uncle). And, as with the Scottish play\u2019s Banquo, Terera\u2019s Prince resembles a spectre at the feast during an opening candle-lit gathering, skulking in a door-way.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"relative mb-4\">\n<div class=\"relative\"><img alt=\"Giles Terera on stage with Eve Ponsonby\" loading=\"lazy\" width=\"960\" height=\"600\" decoding=\"async\" data-nimg=\"1\" class=\"rounded-lg\" style=\"color:transparent\" src=\"https:\/\/s.yimg.com\/ny\/api\/res\/1.2\/ujCjVS4mPlQMY2dnfSutPQ--\/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTk2MDtoPTYwMDtjZj13ZWJw\/https:\/\/media.zenfs.com\/en\/the_telegraph_258\/a637579853ffd9bab16a64630cecbebc\"\/><button aria-label=\"View larger image\" class=\"group absolute bottom-3 right-3 size-10 md:size-[50px] lg:inset-0 lg:size-full lg:bg-transparent\" data-ylk=\"elm:expand;itc:1;sec:image-lightbox;slk:lightbox-open;\"><span class=\"absolute bottom-0 right-0 rounded-full bg-white p-3 opacity-100 shadow-elevation-3 transition-opacity duration-300 group-hover:block group-hover:opacity-100 md:p-[17px] lg:bottom-6 lg:right-6 lg:bg-white\/90 lg:p-5 lg:opacity-0 lg:shadow-none\"><svg viewbox=\"0 0 22 22\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"size-4 lg:size-6\" width=\"22\" height=\"22\"><path d=\"M12.372.92c0-.506.41-.916.915-.916L21 0l-.004 7.712a.917.917 0 0 1-1.832 0V3.183l-6.827 6.828-1.349-1.348 6.828-6.828h-4.529a.915.915 0 0 1-.915-.915M1.835 17.816l6.828-6.828 1.349 1.349-6.829 6.827h4.529a.915.915 0 0 1 0 1.831L0 21l.004-7.713a.916.916 0 0 1 1.831 0z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/button><dialog aria-label=\"Modal Dialog\" aria-modal=\"true\" class=\"fixed inset-0 z-4 size-full max-h-none max-w-none bg-white hidden\"\/><\/div><figcaption class=\"relative text-sm mt-1 pr-2.5\">\n<p>Eve Ponsonby stars as the twitchily vulnerable Ophelia &#8211; Ellie Kurttz<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Not every supporting player displays the requisite finesse with the verse but overall there\u2019s a welcome clarity and respect for the poetry. Terera shines in his soliloquies \u2013 abetting the ruminative thrust of \u201cTo be or not to be\u2026\u201d, for instance, by lending subtle emphasis to words like \u201cwhips\u201d and \u201cpangs\u201d. His melancholy confab with Yorick\u2019s skull is a spine-tingling face-off with mortality.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">I\u2019d love more of the wildness that seizes him when he turns on Eve Ponsonby\u2019s twitchily vulnerable Ophelia, and the giggling mania with which he confronts Keir Charles\u2019s unusually sharp-edged Polonius. Even so, this feels like \u201chis\u201d Hamlet \u2013 not attention-hogging, or a heavy-handed, meddling director\u2019s cut. No-frills, despite stylish 17<sup>th <\/sup>century costumes. To quote the play: \u201cFor this relief, much thanks.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\"><em>Running until Oct 4; book tickets <\/em><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"link \" href=\"https:\/\/www.cft.org.uk\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:here;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\"><em>here<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\"><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.telegraph.co.uk\/customer\/subscribe\/01doysa\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \"><b>Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><em> \u2018 The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n<p><em> \u2018 Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.yahoo.com \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Giles Terera made a name for himself \u2013 and won an Olivier \u2013 playing Aaron Burr in the 2017 West End premiere run of Hamilton. On stage, he\u2019s prolific and versatile, as capable in \u201cstraight\u201d theatre as musicals and, as we saw with his superb 2022 slave drama The Meaning of Zong, a budding playwright [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2027614,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[25172],"tags":[362829,373558,346680,348136,338060,373560,373559],"class_list":["post-2027613","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-entertainment","tag-aaron-burr","tag-giles-terera","tag-hamlet","tag-ian-mckellen","tag-judi-dench","tag-olivier","tag-yoricks-skull"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Hamiltons-Giles-Terera-is-a-compelling-Hamlet.jpeg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2027613","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2027613"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2027613\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2027614"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2027613"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2027613"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2027613"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}