This extraordinary new Hamlet turns Shakespeare inside out with infinite jest – and cuddly toys

Why This Matters

Key context: <p><strong>Sadler’s Wells East, London<br></strong>Ben Duke’s clever, witty and wholly unpredictable new show, The Last Hamlet, takes big liberties with the story that pay off</p><p>Hamlet is trying to get a hire car. He has missed his dad’s funeral because he was at a silent retreat, dealing with his abandonment issues and the disturbing memory of a year 7 disco when his uncle and mum danced together to Yazoo’s Only You.</p><p>There have been many takes on the troubled Prince of Denmark, but performer/director Ben Duke, co-founder of Lost Dog, has a talent for fresh readings. If Duke has a shtick – which after similar reworkings of <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2015/may/27/paradise-lost-ben-duke-review-dance">Paradise Lost</a>, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2019/may/13/romeo-and-juliet-dance-40-year-old-lovers-lust-crazed-teens-matthew-bourne">Romeo and Juliet</a> and the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2022/dec/06/ruination-review-youll-laugh-and-cry-at-this-christmas-show-medea">Medea myth</a>, you could argue he does – it is to turn old texts inside out and douse them in contemporary references, surreal swerves and witty one-liners. A formula of sorts, but one that’s wholly unpredictable.</p> <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2026/nov/06/the-last-hamlet-review-sadlers-wells-east">Continue reading...</a> This development from The Guardian highlights ongoing changes in the sector.