Ophelia’s death is superbly executed
When one thinks of music with Shakespeare, naturally, one’s mind goes to flutes and lutes and the onstage jigs that follow many a comedy. Hamlet the musical? How would that work? Created by Christine Jones and Steven Hoggett as co-directors, and with orchestrations from Thom Yorke, The RSC and Factory International Productions present Hamlet Hail to the Thief, writes Christopher Peacock.
A blend of one of the bard’s most famous plays and Radiohead’s 2003 album Hail to the Thief, this production comes to the Barbican after previously having been on in Manchester at Factory International, and the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon in 2025.
Christine Jones heavily cuts the text from something that could push four hours down to something that runs at less than two hours. Abridged versions of Shakespeare are nothing new, but with Thom Yorke’s orchestration, splicing in tracks from the album and additional incidental music, we have something unique where the text and the score work in concert with each other.
This adds different textures to each scene, with choreography from Jess Williams; this also helps fill in the parts of the play that are missing. The whole cast does an exemplary job with the physical theatre direction. The performance of Paul Hilton as Claudius in particular benefits greatly from all of these big creative decisions. His creepy, wiry Claudius is almost spellbinding in the musical and physical sequences as they wrestle with their own treachery.
Many of the aspects of the show are well pitched, beyond the overall concept of blending artsy rock with classic theatre. The set design, which turns what would be Elsinore into a tower block/PA system of guitar amps and speakers, with its ground floor residents being the amazing 5-piece band, is interactive. This matched with the projection design is in tune with Thom Yorke’s, at times unnerving, vocal stylings and the unearthly visitations from the ghost of Hamlet’s father that set the scene.
There are certain moments that those familiar with Hamlet may feel are a little missed. After the players’ scene, the tempo does dip considerably. The gravedigger scene, which would usually function as the comic relief, does not look to get the amount of levity that it could, but in exchange we get a death of Ophelia scene which is superbly executed, gifting the role of Ophelia with more agency and depth than we have previously seen.
It may feel brief for some, but what we are presented with is a full sensory telling of Hamlet that would please the most ardent fans of both Shakespeare and Radiohead, respectively.
Barbican Centre, Silk Street, London, EC2Y 8DS until 23 January 2027
Booking and full details: www.hamlethailtothethief.com
