Hamlet in 60 minutes

What I liked

I like seeing older actors, specifically female actors get time to shine. In an industry and society that is blatantly intolerant towards women aging, it is all the more important to see figures like that up on stage, and especially in strong, genuinely interesting, roles.
I thought Michele (Queen Gertrude) presented a particularly good argument for this. Not only was her speech clear, crisp, and energized (she has clearly has had training), but she was consistently captivating and commanding, especially in her moments alone. I’d like to see more of her and others like her!

What I didn't like

Some pacing moments could have been tightened up. Still love Shakespeare in 60 minutes, but just because something is shorter, doesn’t mean that automatically eliminates the chance of things feeling ‘long’ or dragged. Actors (not just leads!) still have to keep the energy up and moving and there were admittedly quite a few moments in which I saw it die.
Also, line memorization/improv skills are so important! The second-hand stress of watching Claudius actively try to remember his lines live on stage start-to-finish pulled me out so much that I often couldn’t remember or follow context of these scenes.

My overall impression

Shakespeare with all the fat trimmed! Short, sweet, and just enough to follow and engage with the story, but not too much to confuse or overwhelm you.