British Universities Film & Video Council

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Ha Mu Lai Te

Alternative title
Hamlet
Synopsis
Video recording of a stage production directed by Lin Zhaohua.. Three actors play Hamlet and Claudius interchangably.
Language
Chinese - Mandarin (PRC)
Country
China
Medium
Multimedia; Video
Technical information
Colour / Sound

Credits

Director
Ming Ren; Zhaoha Lin
Production Design
Wang Yin; Zeng Li
Cast
Pu CunxiHamlet
Pu CunxiClaudius
Chen XiaoyiOphelia

Additional Details

Theatre company
Lin Zhaohua Theatre Studio
Production type
Stage Recordings
Historical period
Contemporary
Plays
Hamlet
Subjects
Drama
Keywords
Shakespeare, William (1564-1616); Doubling of roles

Notes

Notes
The production can be watched at
http://web.mit.edu/shakespeare/asia/collections/catalogue2.html (accessed 9/2010)
General
A production in Huaju, a form of Chinese drama with spoken dialogue rather than the sung poetic dialogue of traditional Chinese dramatic forms.

"Lin Zhaohua’s Hamlet had no use for Westernized make-up, wigs, prosthetic noses, or "doublet and hose" costumes. In their place were the urban clothes and natural faces of contemporary China, bringing Shakespeare’s characters into the performers’ own world. The style of acting was less demonstrative and more natural than was customary in main-stream productions. The performers did not try to represent "giants" or "clowns," "heroes" or "villains." Nor did they attempt to give audiences any signals denoting the "progressive forces" or "reactionary forces" as orthodox Chinese scholarship tended to demand. Gone too was the elaborate set. The only permanent prop in the production was a barber’s chair which symbolized at different times the throne, a bed or a rock near Ophelia’s grave. The stage was covered by a huge creased floor-cloth, above which five worn-out ceiling fans constantly rotated. In the duel scene, these ceiling fans were lowered to take part in the fight" http://internetshakespeare.uvic.ca/Library/Criticism/shakespearein/china4.html {accessed 9/2010).
History
Date of recording not known but the production was revived in 1994.
Textual information
Screenplay and translation by Li Jianming.

Archive

Name

Shakespeare Performance In Asia

Web
http://web.mit.edu/shakespeare/asia/ External site opens in new window

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