HAMLET
Recommended for Grades 6 - 2025 GRADS *
Join us as the young Prince of Denmark navigates the treacherous aftermath of his father’s death - and his uncle’s swift, suspicious rise to the throne. This summer’s adaptation of Hamlet invites a new generation of performers to wrestle with questions of revenge, madness, identity, grief, and moral reckoning. With its haunting poetry, flawed characters, and thrilling stakes, this classic drama illuminates the heart of a young man - and a kingdom - truly on the brink.
* Performers must be 18 or younger at the time of auditions, and not yet begun secondary education of any kind.
STEP 1) NOTE IMPORTANT DATES!
AUDITIONS
Fri, June 6 (5:00 - 7:00 PM) & Sat, June 7 (1:00 - 3:00 PM)
Auditions held at Christ Church (43 Pine Street in Exeter, NH) by appointment only - please register below!
CALLBACKS
Sun, June 8 (12:00 - 1:00 PM)
Callbacks, if necessary, will be held at Christ Church (43 Pine Street in Exeter, NH) by invitation only.
REHEARSALS
Tuesdays (4:00 - 6:30 PM)
Wednesdays (4:00 - 6:30 PM)
Sundays (1:00 - 5:00 PM)
Rehearsals are held at Christ Church (43 Pine Street in Exeter, NH), beginning JUNE 17. Not all performers are called to all rehearsals, and those who are called may not be needed for the entire timeframe; a detailed rehearsal schedule will be distributed following casting.
Tech Week
Mon, JULY 21 - FRIDAY, JULY 24 (4:00 - 8:00 PM)
Tech Week will take place at Christ Church (43 Pine Street in Exeter, NH) and all rehearsals are mandatory.
PERFORMANCES
Friday, July 25 (6:00 PM)
Saturday, July 26 (6:00 PM)
Sunday, July 27 (2:00 PM)
Performances will take place at Christ Church (43 Pine Street in Exeter, NH) and all shows are mandatory.
STEP 2) Explore the Characters!
All roles are open to all gender identities, races, and body types.
HAMLET (he/him) is part-poet, part-prince, and wholly haunted by the murder of his father. His thoughts spiral, his words cut, his grief is bottomless, and somewhere in the wreckage is a kid who just wants the world to make sense again.
CLAUDIUS (he/him) is a king with blood on his hands and a lie in his smile. Having killed his brother to take the throne (and the queen), Claudius wants nothing more than legacy - and safety. There is always another move to be played in the game for power, and he can justify anything.
GERTRUDE (she/her) is a queen refusing to fall apart, white-knuckling her grip on peace and beauty. To Hamlet, she is a mystery: mourning too little, moving on too fast, and wanting tranquility more than truth. But underneath her jewels is a mother doing her best to keep the remains of her family together, even as the cracks spread.
OPHELIA (she/her) is a daughter, sister, lover, and pawn, perhaps too soft-spoken for a world that doesn’t stop to listen. She witnesses Hamlet’s spiral firsthand, and soon loses her own sanity as she is swallowed up by the emotions and tragedy that swirl around her. When she ultimately slips beneath the surface, no one is there to dive in and save her.
LAERTES (he/him) is a golden boy turned assassin. If Hamlet is fog, he is fire; he does not hesitate, does not brood, and does not stop to think. When his family is caught up in the chaos, he charges forward. He is a reckoning waiting to happen, even if it means losing himself in the process.
POLONIUS (any pronouns) is everyone’s unsolicited life coach. A self-important advisor, Polonius means well (probably?) but the wisdom comes in so many words that sometimes it’s hard to tell. Sometimes a puppet-master and sometimes a fool, Polonius is completely unware of how close he is standing to the edge of disaster.
HORATIO (any pronouns) is Hamlet’s best friend, an anchor in a world gone upsidedown. Steady and thoughtful, he listens more than he speaks - and when he does speak, it matters. He’s the kind of friend who stays when everyone else has left, who watches the wreckage but remembers the truth. In the end, he is the one left alive to carry the story.
THE GHOST (he/him) is shadow of a king dead but never gone, sparking our whole tragedy into motion. Once noble but now restless, he rises from the grave not for peace, but for justice. He is a weaponized memory full of unfinished business, and when he comes to Hamlet, he does not beg for vengeance - he demands it.
THE PLAYERS (any pronouns) are the art in the midst of the chaos, a troupe of actors hired by Hamlet to take the stage and hold a mirror up to the royal court. Their performance holds power they do not realize they possess.