To be abnormal is to have doubts about the laws of existence. It’s the insolent man who turns up and says:
“No, that’s not how it is, it’s not like that.” So he gets beaten up, driven away, cursed.
But through the questions he raises, he might change all sorts of things. And in the end, people say, “Yes, there’s something in that, and he was probably right.”
Anthony Palou and Nathalie Simon, “Kirill Serebrennikov, un Russe pas très tranquille”
Le Figaro, 6 July 2022.
The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark by William Shakespeare is perhaps one of the most well-known works in the theatrical repertoire worldwide. This play serves as a point of reference when “time is out of joint” or “when the past demands vengeance and the future, a choice,” as Kirill Serebrennikov puts it. For this production at the Théâtre du Châtelet, the Russian director and filmmaker has taken a bold, radical approach: Hamlet is portrayed by several actors, splitting and multiplying, delivering his lines in multiple languages — English, Russian, German, and French. Shakespeare’s play inspired Kirill Serebrennikov to create a show in which Hamlet is confronted with himself, his time, and the audience: “Hamlet as violence. Hamlet as myth. Hamlet as diagnosis. Hamlet as rhizome. Hamlet as phobia. Hamlet as memory.”
Adapted for musical theatre — that is, with a performative approach blending text and music in all possible combinations — Hamlet is accompanied by the Ensemble intercontemporain, conducted alternately by Pierre Bleuse and Yalda Zamani. The orchestra will perform music by Blaise Ubaldini, composed specifically for a large ensemble (thirty musicians) including drums and electric bass, an electronic synthesiser, and a vocal trio.
SECRETS OF A WORK
To find out more about Hamlet, a presentation of the production will take place 45 minutes before the performance begins, in the Salon Diaghilev. Animated by Aurélien Poidevin, Head of Editorial Content at the Théâtre du Châtelet. These sessions are held on Tuesdays and Thursdays at 7.15 p.m. (free entry, reserved for ticket holders for that day’s performance).
POST-SHOW CHAT
A post-show chat (meeting between the artists and the audience to discuss the production) will take place after the performance on Sunday 12 October 2025 (free entry, reserved for ticket holders for that day’s performance).
