Hamlet vs. Zombies comes to Springfield’s SCT stage

Spoof of Shakespeare’s Hamlet ‘comes to life’

Staff Report

Springfield Contemporary Theatre (SCT) brings what Huffington Post calls “Inspired lunacy” to their stage with a production of Hamlet vs. Zombies: Something is rotting in the state of Denmark. This spoof of Shakespeare’s Hamlet, written by Jeff Jenkins and Bryant Turnage, roughly follows the plot of Hamlet, but with a “zombie film twist.”

Claudius, brother to the King, has developed a plan to usurp the throne of Denmark and finally deal with their pesky Norwegian neighbors: kill the King, seize the crown...and then bring him and his soldiers back as zombies. No opposing force in the world could destroy an army that's already dead. Brilliant!

Or it would have been...you know how these zombies are...brains on the brains. Hamlet, along with his trusted sidekick Horatio, fight in a race against the clock to stop Claudius' out of control experiment before it's too late and Denmark is overrun by the walking dead.

George Haymont, writing for Huffington Post, summed up several ways Hamlet vs. Zombies takes liberty with the original text of Shakespeare’s tragedy:

“Claudius is a corporate weasel who has been experimenting with a zombie virus. Having convinced himself that no enemy could kill an army that's already dead, he's the only one who holds the virus's antidote, which he carries around in a test tube.

“Hamlet's friend Horatio is the hysterical right-hand man who must always do the Prince's dirty work.

“The word "dude" creeps into numerous scenes.

“With his mother, Gertrude, crouching before him in fear, Hamlet finds himself in the perfect position "to give service to my Queen."

“The script includes such lines as "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are not dead -- they're UNDEAD!"

“All of the Danes have trouble identifying the zombies because they tend to walk, talk, and act like Norwegians.

“The authors even poke fun at Gilbert & Sullivan's operetta, The Mikado, by describing the zombified ghost of Hamlet's father as ‘a king of shreds and patches.’”

Haymont concludes, “Hamlet vs. Zombies offers audiences 90 minutes of inspired lunacy. I suspect this show will have a great future touring the college circuit and getting guest bookings with regional Fringe and Shakespeare festivals.”

The SCT production is directed by David Rice, and is a co-production with Jeffrey Markus Productions.  The show contains adult language and content.

Performances are October 16–18, 23-25, 30-November 1. Performance times are Fridays & Saturdays at 7:30pm & Sundays at 2pm. Tickets are $20 to $25 for adults, $10 for students, and can be purchased online at www.springfieldconstemporarytheatre.org, by phone at (417) 831-8001, or at the office in SCT’s Center Stage lobby, at the corner of Pershing St., and Robberson Ave, in downtown Springfield.

The Gayly – October 9, 2015 @ 8:20am.