hamlet's apocalypse cuny talk

8/8/2019 Hamlet's Apocalypse CUNY Talk

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TalkonHamletsApocalypseat3.30onNovember4thatSimonH.RifkindCenter,

CUNY/CityCollegeofNewYork,138ConventAvenue,NewYork10031.

OVERVIEW

Thankyouforinvitingmetotalkaboutourradical,new,andexperimentalproductionof

Hamlet.ItistitledHamletsApocalypseandopensthisSunday7November,foronlythreenights,andtherewillbeastudentdiscountticket,of$12ifyoushowanID.As

youknow,whatweareputtingonstageistheevidencethatshowsthatHamletisa

comicparodyoftheBookofRevelation.InthistalkIwillbeginbylookingatthe

backgroundcontext.ThenIwilllookatsomestructuralcomparisonsbetweenthese

twoliteraryworksfromtheperspectiveofliterarycriticism.ThenthirdlyIwilladdress

theissueoftheatricalperformanceandwhatitmeanstotryandperformthe

underlyingallegoricalmeaning.AndinconclusionIwillturntothebroaderimplications,

ifitturnsoutthatHamletisactuallyablackparodyofsomeofthemostsacredChristian

beliefs.

1.CONTEXT

TheBookofRevelationisthelastbookoftheChristianBible.Itwascreatedinpartasa

fictionalizationoftheRomanJewishwar,whichiswhythearmiesassembleatHar

Megiddo(Rev16;16,)sometimestranslatedArmageddon,whereTitusandVespasian

assembledtheirtroopsbeforedestroyingJerusalem.Jerusalemisshownasthewhore

ofBabylonwhohasgivenherselfovertotheRomanswhoarerepresentedbyaseven

headedbeastwhoseheadscanbeidentifiedwiththesevenhillsofRomeandthe

Caesars.ThebeastcanalsobeidentifiedprimarilywithVespasianCaesar.Thereisa

secondbeastwhomakespeopleworshipthefirstbeastandmakeimagesofitandthis

isprobablyTitusimplementingtheworshipofhisfatherthedivineVespasian.Ontoall

thisisgraftedastoryabouttheWomanCrownedwiththeSun(aversionofMary),theLambJesus,thekingwhoescapesfromthePit,andtheDivineRulerwhoruleswitha

rodofiron.ThemostnotablefeatureoftheBookofRevelationisitscataloguesof

sevens:sevenangels,seventrumpets,sevenletters,sevenvials,sevenplaguesetc.

Thisnarrativewasusedbythechurcharoundtheyear1600asitisusedbythe

ReligiousRighttodayasaninstrumentofpower,creatingfearthatDoomsdaywas

abouttocomeandbringabouttheEndoftheWorld.Sothisnarrativewasprevalentin

ShakespeareantimesasasacrednarrativewhichupheldthechurchandtheState.

Aroundadozenoftheplaysconcernapocalypticthemes.Butthiscouldnotbe

expresseddirectly,becauseitwasillegaltobringissuesofreligionontothestage.Ithadtobedonecovertly.Thisbringsustotheissueofliterarystyle.

InElizabethanliterarytheoryitwasnormativethattowriteaboutanythingriskyyou

hadtouseallegoryinwhichyousaidonethingexplicitlybutitwasasemblanceof

falseseemingthatstoodforsomethingelse.Youcreatedadeceptivesurfacefor

everyonetoconsumebutthosewhowerewisewoulddigesttheallegory(Harrington)

underneath,astheexpressionwent.Pastorals,inparticular,wereespeciallyknownasa


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pleasantsurfacethatconcealedmuchdarkermaterialunderneath.Sowellknownworks

ofliteraturelikeSpensersFairieQueenusedallegory.Butsodidthetheater.Thebest

knownwritertouseitwasJohnLyly.Buttherewereatleasthalfadozenothers.Old

fashionedplaysactuallytoldpeopletheywereusinganallegory.ThusinDekkersOld

Fortunatus(1598)Fortuneentersfollowedbynymphscarryinghersymbolofaglobe

andawheel.InWilsonsTheThreeLordsandLadiesofLondon(1588)Prideappearswithashieldonwhichthereisanimpressaofapeacock.

ButtherewasanothertrendtoconcealallegoriesaswritersdidinCourtpageantsand

asBenJonsondid.Attemptstofindtheallegoryormoralofplaysweresocommonthat

Jonsoncomplained(intheintroductiontoVolpone)aboutthosewhokeptbothering

himbyannouncingtheyhadhadfoundthemeaningofhiswritingandclaimtohavea

keyforthedeciphering.Mostlythetruemeaningwas,asJonsonscathinglyputit

stepsbeyondtheirlittle,or(letmenotwrongthem)nobraineatall.

SothereisnoreasonwhythereshouldnotbeallegoriesinShakespeare,including

Hamlet.Theonlyproblemisthatthelasttimeitwasfashionabletolookforthem,inthe

1930s,scholarscouldnotmakesenseofthe3,000religioustermsintheplays,because

theydidntformanyallegorythatwasconsistentwithChristiandoctrine.Andtheystill

dont.BecausetheyarenotChristian.TheyareaparodyofChristiandoctrineand

Hamletisoneofthesimplestexamples.

2.PLAYANALYSIS

Soturningnowtotheliteraryresearchandthecomparativestudyoftheplay,research

byvariousscholars,mostnotablyLindaK.Hoff,whichIhaveexpandedon,suggeststhat

boththestructureofHamletanditsmaincharactersmirrorthoseinRevelation.

(a)StructureofHamlet

PerhapsthemoststartlingthingaboutHamletisthatitfeaturesasimilarcatalogueof

sevenstotheBookofRevelation.Revelationhasseventrumpetblasts,sodoesHamlet.

Revelationhassevenletters,sodoesHamlet.Revelationhassevenangels.Similarly

Hamlethassevenmentionsofangels.ThenHamletgoesonandcreatesitsown

catalogueofsevensongsandsevensoliloquies,evenmaybethe7vialscorresponding

againtoRevelation

7trumpetsThetrumpetblastsare1,2,1,1,2,128;1,4,7;2,2,364;3,2,89;3,2,133;5,1,220.

7AngelsappearinHamletSolust,thoughtoaradiantangellinked,likeanangel,inapprehensionhowlikeagod,Ofhabitsdevil,isangelyetinthis,Aministeringangel

shallmysister,Artmoreengaged!Help,angels!Makeassay,Andflightsofangels

singtheetothyrest!,angelsandministersofgracedefendus!

7LettersClaudiuslettertoEngland,Norway'slettertoClaudiusdeliveredbyVoltemand,andHamlet'sfiveletterstoOphelia,Horatio(4.6.828),Gertrude(4,7.36),

Claudius(4.6.20and4.7.3646)andtotheKingofEngland(5.2.3135).


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(b)CharactersinHamlet

ButitisnotonlyaspectsofthestructureoftheplaythatfollowRevelation.The

charactersdoaswell.Togiveyouasimpleexample,insteadoftheRulerwitharodof

ironfromtheBookofRevelationwegetthefopOsric,whosenameinoldEnglishmeans

theRuleofGod,butwhoisacompletedandy,aparody.

Themaincharactersaredividedintotwodifferentfamilies,onegoodandtheotherevil.

Letslook,first,attheforcesofChristianitywhoformthefirstTriad.Thisisthefamilyof

Polonius.TheHolyFamily.

Ophelia,isbothanallegoryfortheVirginMaryandalsoforMarysequivalentintheBookofRevelation,theWomancrownedwiththesun.ThisiswhyHamlet

addressesherinhisletterasacelestialheavenlyidolwhilethenameOpheliais

theGreekforMaryspropertyofsuccour.

Laertes,istheresurrectedChristwholeapsoutofthegrave.Thereasonwhythisyoungmanbearstheotherwiseinappropriatenameofanelderispresumably

thatheisrejuvenated,justastheoldLaerteswasinHomerbyAthena.Heis

acclaimedbytherabbleastheirlord,anddeclaresthathewillstretchouthis

armslikethekindliferenderingpelicanfeedingpeoplewithhisbloodawell

knownChristsymbol.

Polonius,isthefatherofgoodnews(2,2,42),thetermgoodnewsbeingtheliteralmeaningofthewordgospel.AstheallegoricalfatheroftheVirginMary

andofChrist,heispresumablyGodtheFather.Hediesbybeingstabbed

throughacurtain,inanoddparalleltotheaccountintheTalmudofhowTitusCaesarstabbedthecurtainintheJerusalemTemple,andthoughthehadkilled

thegodoftheJews.

ThesecondTriad,theUnholyFamily,istheDanishfamilywhorepresenttheforcesof

evil,theforcesofAntiChrist.CherrellGuilfoylehassuggestedthatthesettingofthe

playinDenmarkindicatedthatthissecondTriadrepresenttheforcesofAntiChrist.i

TheDanishforDenmarkisDanmark,andtheDaneswereaccordinglysometimes

believedtobetheoffspringofthetribeofDan,describedintheBibleasaserpent,and

whosetribechurchtheologiansexpectedtogivebirthtotheAntiChrist.Thissecond

Triadfamilyincludes:

OldHamlet,isinHellatthebeginningoftheplaybecauseheisspecificallyidentifiedwithHyperion.HyperionwastheGreekgodoflightwhowassimilarto

Apollothegodofthesun,fireandplagueswhowasimprisonedinthepit

Tartarus.HisequivalentintheBookofRevelationisApollyon,thedestroyer

whowasthekingofHellandwhoescapesfromthepit.Theplayclearly

associateshimwiththedevil.


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Gertrude,whoattheendholdsthepoisonedchalicecontainingapearl,representstheWhoreofBabylon,adornedwithgoldandpearls,whoholdsa

chalicefilledwithabominationsandwillbemadetodrinkadoubledraughtof

it(Rev.18:6).Dressedinscarletandpurple,theWhorewassometimesregarded

asanallegoryforthechurch.

Claudius,istheserpentwhostungOldHamlet,andtheHyrcanianbeast(thetiger),whoiscalledanadulteratebeast.HerepresentstheBeastfromthe

Apocalypsewhichhasthebodyofaleopard,headslikeaserpent,andonwhom

theWhorerides.TheheadsareassociatedwiththesevenCaesarsand

sometimeswiththesevenhillsofRomeandClaudiusisofcoursethenameof

theJulioClaudiandynastyofCaesars.

FinallywhataboutPrinceHamlet?HamletsidentityasLucifersonoftheDevil,isfurther

supportedwhenheimagineswearingProvincialrosesonhisshoes,whichwereusedby

stageactorstoindicateaclovenfoot,awellknownsignifierofthedevil.Healsouses

expressionsusedbytheViceorjuniorcomicdevilontheEnglishstage.

HealsorepresentstheAntiChrist.HecomesbackfromthesealikeBeastfromtheSea

whowasthoughttobetheAntiChrist.Thisisconfirmedwhenheisassociatedwith

eventsinthelifeoftheEmperorNerowhowasanotherearlyAntiChristfigure(who

alsokilledClaudius).FinallyhewearsblackandcomesfromWittenberg,andoneofthe

datesintheplayisthedaybeforeMartinLuthernailedupthe95thesestostartthe

Reformation,allofwhichsuggeststhatHamlethascharacteristicsofLuther,who

CatholicsregardedastheAntiChrist.

(c)Parodicplot

Sowhatabouttheplot?Thereisactuallyanunderlyingallegoricalplotifyouputitall

together.InRevelationthewomancrownedwiththesun,andtheChristfigurewin,and

thewhoreandthebeastsaredefeated.Buthereeveryoneiskilled.HereHamletasthe

AntiChristkillsLaerteswhoistheChristfigure.Inthisplaytheforcesopposedto

Christianitywin,andeveryonediesincludingOpheliawhoselifeisbasedpartlyonthe

lifeoftheVirginMaryexceptwhensheascendstoheaventobecomethewoman

crownedwiththesun,shefallsintothewateranddies.Sowhatdoesitmeantoshow

thisallegoryinproduction?Iamgoingtotakeacoupleofdetailedexamples.

3.HOWCANTHISBESHOWNINPRODUCTION?

Obviouslytoshowanyofthisinproductionmeansusingexperimentalandmeta

theatricaltechniquesandnontraditionalapproaches.Toshowthisinproductionwe

faceseveralhugeproblems.Firstly,theDeclineinliteracyandinreligiousknowledgein

thepopulation.ForexamplethePewReligiousKnowledgesurveyshowedthatunder

halftheUSpopulationknowthatMartinLutherstartedtheReformation.Thatisa

problemifyouwanttoshowthatHamletisinpartanallegoryforLuther.


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ThesecondproblemisRealismwhichwasunknownontheElizabethanstage,which

washighlymetatheatrical.Womenwereplayedbyboys,youcouldseeacrossthestage

totheaudiencetheotherside,peoplespokeinverse,theactorstoldyoutheywere

actorsanduseddirectaddresstobreachthefourthwallshowingthatthiswasnota

sliceoflife.YetmanypeopletodayexpectthataproductionofShakespeareshouldberealistic,butthatisbasedonanachronisticmodernconventionswhichactuallygetin

thewayofunderstandingtheplay,sincethesecharacterswerecreatedasliterary

figuresandarenotrealpeople.

(AndyesIknowthatiscontrarytowhatpeoplegettaughtinactingschool.Butwhat

yougettaughtinactingschooljustdoesnthelpyoutoplayHamletandtorevealhis

threedifferentidentitiesasdifferentkindsofAntiChristaswellasanidentityasHelios

thesungod,whosetitlewastheMousekiller.)

ThethirdproblemisourEntertainmentcultureanditssuperficiality.Mostaudiences

todayexpecttogotoaplaytobeentertainedandjusttoseethesurfaceoftheplay.

Wehavetoattractanaudiencethatwantstoseeourproductionsbecausetheyare

interesting,becausetheywilllearntothinkdifferently.UnlikeinElizabethanLondon,

todayitisadisadvantagetodoproductionsthatareintellectuallychallenging.

AndthefourthproblemispeoplesExpectationsaboutShakespeare.Manypeoplehave

intheirheadsthemodeloftheNewCriticism,thatthetextisasortofblueprintfor

performancethatshouldbepreciselyreproducedonstage.Thisisanoppressive,

dominantandpatriarchalassumptionabouthowthetextisprivilegedandhowit

deservestobetreated.AsyoucangatherthatisanassumptionIdonotshare.Firstly

thisassumptionassumesthatallthatmattersisthesurfaceoftheverse,andnotwhatliesunderneathit.Thatisnotcorrect.Secondlythereisinanycasenosuchthingasa

definitivetext.The1603and1605Quartosaredifferent,andtheFolioisdifferentagain.

EachofthehundredsofsurvivingFoliosisevendifferentfromeachother.Everymodern

editionisdifferent,andinvolveseditorsconstructingwhattheythinkthetextshouldbe,

andwhatothermaterialsitshouldberelatedtointertextually,whatextractsfromthe

sources,whatphotosetc.Worstofallarethepeoplewhosupportoriginalpractices

andthinkthatbyhavingtheactorstrouserswovenon17thcenturyloomsormaking

themwearElizabethanunderwearitmakestheperformanceauthentic.Itdoesnt.They

arewrong.Itmakesaperformanceamuseumpiece.Itdoesnotconveythemeaningof

theplay.

Whatmakesaperformanceauthenticinitsoutcomesisifwhathappensonstage

regardlessofwhatthatstageactionishelpsanaudiencetodeconstructsomethingof

thesamemeaningsthattheauthorintendedinwritingit.Andinthiscasethatmeans

enablinganaudiencetounderstandtheintertextualrelationshiptotheBookof

Revelation.SoinmyapproachtoShakespeareandramaturgy,meaningandsubstanceis


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moreimportantthanform.Soifwehavetocutandrearrangetheplayandinsertall

sortsofmetatheatricaldevicestomakethatmeaningvisible.thenthatisfine.

Sothefirstthingwedidwascuttheplaytohighlightallthepieceswheretheallegorical

actionwasmostobvious.ThenwecreatedapreludeinwhichHamletisapproachedby

atroopofactorswhowanttoperformtheplayHamlet.EachactorhastheirownideaswhichallillustratedifferentcorrespondencestoRevelation.Thenallofthemarehung

uponthewallandtickedoffastheyarecovered.Thentheplayproperstartswiththe

dumbshowsandplaywithintheplay.Thisishowsomeofthecharacterswhoappear

typologicallyineachoftheseaswellasthemainplaygetdifferentattributesoftheir

identity.Fromthenonwerunstraightthroughthemainelementsoftheplay.However

aspeopleputoncostumes,variouswardrobesignsindicatewhatcharacterthatbelongs

to.Wealsobring18booksonstagesowheneversomeonemakesanimportantallusion

itcanbevisiblyreadoutoftheintertextthatisbeingreferredto.

Soletmejustgivetwoexamplesabouthowwetryandbringouttheallegories,one

aboutthereligiousallegoryandoneabouttheparallelastronomicalallegory.

WebringinHamletsletteronstageintheformofalargeFedexenvelopesoitisvery

clearthatOpheliaisaddressedastheVirginMaryasacelestialidolandweeven

haveGertrudecommentonit.WorkbyChrisHasselhasshownthatthewaythat

Opheliaisinterruptedwhilesewingandreadingisaparodyoftheannunciationtothe

VirginMary.iiThereferencestopregnancyandmaggotsinadeaddogareallusionsto

medievaltheologyabouthowMaryconceivedandremainedavirgin.Opheliasdeath

singinglaudsandwithacoronetisaparodyoftheAssumptionofMaryintoheavento

becrowned.SowhenOpheliaisinterruptedbyHamlethisclothingalldisordered,sheis

liketheVirginMarywhowasinterruptedbytheArchangelGabriel,andarayofsunlightshiningonherstomachallowedhertoconceivetheChrist.ButhereOpheliais

interruptedbyHamletwhoisboththeArchangelLucifer,theAntiChristandalsoHelios

thesungod,whobendsthelightofhiseyesuponher.Sosheconceivesthesonofa

devil.Whichiswhylaterinherscenewithalltheherbsrecognizedinscholarshiptobe

usedforabortionrecipessheisabortingthebaby.Soinourproductionwearegoing

toshowthis,OpheliawillgetpregnantwhenHamletshinesthelightofhiseyesonher,

andwewillbringonthevariousHerbalsshowingthattheherbsareabortiveherbs.

MysecondexampleistheastronomicalallegorythatalsoexistsinHamletwhichhas

beenidentifiedbyPeterUsher.ThecharactersarenotonlyfromtheBookofRevelation,theyarealsoastronomical.AsHelios,Hamletisthesun,Ophelia(whosenamesuggests

sheisoppositetoHelios)isthemoonthemoiststar.ClaudiusistheEarth,theworld,

whoisnamedafterClaudiusPtolemyandissurroundedbytenthousandstarsthat

revolvearoundhim.ThestrugglegoesonbetweenClaudiusgeocentricmodelofthe

solarsystem,whichHamletwantstoreplacebyaheliocentricmodel.So,forinstance,

atthepointwhenGertrudesaysthatHamletisbeingretrogradeinwantingtogoback

toWittenberg,thisisaparticularastronomicaltermreferringtothebackwards


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movementofthesun.Sowewillillustratethiswithmovementandastrugglebetween

ClaudiusandHamletinwhichHamletactuallystartswalkingbackwards.AndOphelias

astronomicalidentityasthemoonwillbeillustratedsimplybyherwearingacardboard

crescentmoon.ForthelastfewweekswehavebeenusingourFacebookpageto

familiarizesomeofourpotentialaudiencewiththeseideasforinstancebyshowinga

videosnippetextractfromrehearsalofthestrugglebetweenHamletandClaudius,andputtingupDurersillustrationoftheVirginMaryseatedonthecrescentMoon,andso

on.

4.IMPLICATIONS

WhattheDarkLadyPlayersaretryingtodoiscreateanallegoricaltheater,inwhich

whathappensonstagehighlightstheunderlyingmeaningsinthetext.Wearedoingit

onatinybudgetwithnoproductionvaluesandsomeoneelseslighting,butweare

doingitasaproofofconceptofanewunderstandingoftheplay.

ThefulltextofHamlet

,withoutanybreakswouldtakefourandahalfhourstoreadand

couldonlyhavebeenperformedatauniversity(whereitwaspossibletohave

performancesbetweenfourandfivehours.iiiTheLondonstagewouldhavehadashort

versionlikethe1603Quartothatonlytookacoupleofhours.Ourversionisabout90

minutesbecausethatiswhatmostOffOffBroadwayaudienceswant.Ofcoursewhat

wearedoingcouldneverhavebeenshownontheRenaissancestageeveryonewould

havebeenkilledbytheSecretService.Nonetheless,thesearethemeaningsthatan

intelligentmanlikeGabrielHarveyprobablymeantwhenhewrotecrypticallythat

Hamletcontainedmuchofinteresttothewisersort.

ThisreligiousparodyalsoraisesverysignificantquestionsofwhyaCatholicactorlike

WilliamShakespearewouldcreatesuchaliteraryplaywhichhadlimitedperformanceandrevenueopportunitiessinceitcouldonlybeperformedatOxfordandCambridge

andwhichchallengedeverythingthatanyChristianwouldbelieve.Whatisachieved

bydepictingthiscovertversionofApocalypseinwhichthereisnoimmortalityandonly

deathanddestruction?Whowouldtaketheappallingriskstowritesuchathingthat

couldnotevenbeperformedontheLondonstage?Theanswerstothesequestionswill

changeeverythingyouthoughtyouknewaboutShakespeare.Socome,joinusthis

Sunday,MondayorTuesdayforHamletsApocalypse.

i

CherrellGuilfoyle,ShakespearesPlayWithinaPlay:medievalimageryandscenicforminHamlet,Othello,andKingLear. (Kalamazoo,Michigan:WesternMichiganUniversity,1990).iiChrisHassel,PaintedWomen:AnnunciationMotifsinHamlet.ComparativeDrama,32,

(1998):4784.iiiOrgelandKeanShakespeareandtheEditorialTraditionpg115

hamlet's apocalypse cuny talk

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