Hamletmachine (in German, Die Hamletmaschine) is a postmodernist drama by German playwright and theatre director Heiner Müller. Written in 1977, the play is loosely based on Hamlet by William Shakespeare. The play originated in relation to a translation of Shakespeare's Hamlet that Müller undertook. Some critics claim the play problematizes the role of intellectuals during the East German Communism area, others argue that the play should be understood in relation to wider post-modern concepts. Characteristic of the play is that it is not centred on a conventional plot, but partially connects through sequences of monologues, where the protagonist leaves his role and reflects on being an actor.
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The play is constituted of scenes. The whole text is roughly nine pages long. The script itself is extremely dense and open to interpretation; recurring themes include feminism and the ecology movement.
The play remains Müller's most-often performed and (arguably) his best-known today; Müller himself directed a seven-and-a-half hour performance of Hamlet (in which Die Hamletmaschine was the play-within-a-play) in Berlin in 1990.
The play has been performed as a radio drama, including music by Einstürzende Neubauten, that was later released as a compact disc. Blixa Bargeld played the part of Prince Hamlet and Gudrun Gut played Ophelia. It had its American premiere in Tampa, Florida with the Freiese Theatre of Munchen in 1984, and was subsequently revived by Robert Wilson at New York University in 1986.[1]
The play has been set to music by composer Georges Aperghis, as Die Hamletmaschine-Oratorio, and also by Wolfgang Rihm. Ruth Zechlin wrote "Szenische Kammermusik nach Heiner Müllers “Hamletmaschine”" for five instruments in 1991.
In 2007 it was performed in the Samuel Beckett Theatre in Dublin, Ireland. Paul Carton directed an ensemble cast to the delight of audiences and critics alike.
In 2010, Agustin Calderon, a filmmaker from Barcelona, Spain, made the first cinema adaptation of Hamletmachine.[2] The trailer can be seen on YouTube.[3]
In 2010, Wang Chong directed the first production of Hamletmachine in China. References to the Chinese and North Korean political situations caused controversy. However, the show has toured Beijing and Hangzhou without getting banned.[4] The show was performed by four Chinese opera actors and one child. Critics called it "deconstructed Chinese opera" and "the most exciting work at the Beijing International Youth Theatre Festival."[5]
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