Orlando Shakespeare Theatre will host a reading of the new play Gertrude and Claudius, billed as a prequel to Shakespeare鈥檚 Hamlet. The play is written by Mark St. Germain, author of the long-running Off-Broadway hit Freud鈥檚 Last Session.
OST commissioned the script, which is based on John Updike鈥檚 2000 novel of the same title. The story shows Queen Gertrude鈥檚 relationship with Hamlet鈥檚 father, who appears only as ghost in the Shakespeare play, and how she conspires with his brother Claudius to commit the murder that sets in motion the events of the classic drama.
A staged reading of the new play will be featured at OST鈥檚 annual play festival, PlayFest 2017, November 2-5, and is expected to receive a world premiere in 2019 as part of Orlando Shakespeare Theatre's 30th season, specific dates to be announced.
In announcing the commission, Jim Helsinger, artistic director of OST, said, 鈥�Hamlet is Shakespeare鈥檚 most famous and popular play, and the idea that we can dive deeper into its legendary cast of characters is really exciting. Updike鈥檚 narrative fills out the backstory of the love affair between Gertrude and Claudius perfectly and we could not think of a better playwright to adapt it for us than Mark St. Germain.鈥�
St. Germain鈥檚 other plays include Relativity, Camping With Henry and Tom (Outer Critics Circle and Lucille Lortel Awards), Forgiving Typhoid Mary (Time Magazine鈥檚 鈥淵ear鈥檚 Ten Best鈥�), Scott and Hem in the Garden of Allah, and Dr. Ruth, All the Way.
