Hamlet, the First Quarto NYC Reviews and Tickets
Show-Score Member Reviews (12)
See it if You're both a Bard enthusiast AND a fan of Shakespeare in the Park(ing Lot); this company has the same type of scrappy & exuberant vibe.
Don't see it if You can't deal with the staging and atmosphere deficiencies typical of a shoestring production budget.
See it if You love Shakespeare and his fans. This young group honors the text and delivers a few fine (and the rest capable) performances.
Don't see it if You dislike Shakespeare OR small-space performances where you sometimes have to shift your chair so the players can work around you.
See it if you want to see a little known version of a famous play & actors who clearly understand the text (albeit sometimes better than they act it).
Don't see it if you are a purist who doesn't enjoy actors speaking classical text w/modern acting styles. Also if you have a bad back (bring cushions!).
See it if you'd enjoy a loud, grimacing, ham-fisted frat boy playing the greatest role ever written for the stage with absolutely zero finesse
Don't see it if just don't see it, that's all. If you have any respect at all for this play, just DON'T..
See it if you know anyone in the cast. It hedged on satire. The Make America Great cap was a great troll. Should have ran with it. Balls to the walls.
Don't see it if you don't like slightly experimental, bare bones productions that play it just too safe.
See it if You don't mind very raw theater. Interesting fast paced version of a famous play. It was a like a high school play but with better acting.
Don't see it if You don't like amateurish, low budget productions.
See it if Alexander Dabertin is thoughtful and engaging as tortured Hamlet, connecting deeply with the loss of beloved father. Bad Quarto gives 100%!
Don't see it if You are looking for a highly-polished production
See it if You love Shakespeare and beautiful music
Don't see it if You don't enjoy classical music and Shakespeare.
Critic Reviews (3)
"The cast as a whole projects high energy...This is not necessarily the best production of 'Hamlet' you will ever see. The quality of the acting varies, there are occasional flubbed lines, and the shoestring budget shows. But the spirited performances and the company's commitment to giving us a version of Shakespeare based on a rarely produced early manuscript make it well worth the visit."
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"The Bad Quarto 'Hamlet' is just...bad...The question, then, is whether this almost-impossible-to-enjoy play should be performed at all. And if so, by whom? This company is fresh and young, but not yet highly proficient, so the performance is even harder to swallow...It’s too bad that this effusive ensemble has put in so much time on a not-enjoyable version of one of the great plays of all time."
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"These people have good intentions. But there’s not much else besides that to commend it...Bad Quarto staging the unfinished product is an interesting decision, but not especially engaging. There really isn’t much to the presentation beyond a mild academic curiosity...Everything about this show felt weightless and rushed...There isn’t anything to commend this production."
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