Among the many delights of “I Hate Hamlet,” running through July 28 at the Durango Arts Center, a seasoned ensemble brings together a comically troubled hero, a dippy girlfriend, a dashing ghost, an old flame, a snappy real estate agent, a smarmy Hollywood promoter and a juicy argument that devolves into a hilarious sword fight. Shall I go on?
Playwright Paul Rudnick wrote his comic masterwork in the early 1990s. Mounted on Broadway in 1991, the comedy continually spurs productions on college and community stages. It belongs to the generation of the “well-made play.” Every word, plot point, character nuance, sound or light effect contributes to the fundamental story. These days, seeing a solid production of a well-made play can result in a gratifying experience of what used to be called “a work of art.” That’s what happened last weekend at DAC.
Selecting “I Hate Hamlet” and casting experienced players says something for DAC and its intentions as it enters a new chapter under Executive Director Jason Lythgoe.
If you go
WHAT: “I Hate Hamlet,” a comedy by Paul Rudnick, presented by the Durango Arts Repertory Theatre. Directed by Monica DiBiasio.
WHEN: 7:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, July 19-27; 2 p.m. Sundays, July 21, 28.
WHERE: Durango Arts Repertory Theatre, 802 East Second Ave.
ADMISSION: $15 students and $20 adults.
MORE INFORMATION: Call 259-2606 or email info@durangoarts.org.
NOTE: Running time two hours. Open seating.
Lythgoe’s acting experience comes to the fore as he portrays the ghost of John Barrymore, America’s most famous Hamlet. It’s a dream role, and Lythgoe has the looks, confidence and acting chops to swagger his way through Rudnick’s hijinks. Barrymore appears to Andrew Rally (an engagingly conflicted Holden Grace) when the West Coast television actor rents Barrymore’s New York apartment. Rally’s lucrative TV series has been canceled, and he’s been invited to star in Manhattan’s Shakespeare in the Park production of “Hamlet.” Rudnick identifies Rally’s consequential life choice as “facing the dragon.”
The play’s title clarifies Rally’s conundrum. He despises the Hamlet role for its size and sheer difficulty. More seriously, he doubts his own abilities.
Playwright Rudnick surrounds Rally with people who compound his dilemma: his girlfriend Diedre (the naively charming Abby Kubicek); his Realtor (the hilarious Shaunibah Morfin); his New York contact (a knowing Susan Bennett) and his slick West Coast promoter (a deliciously smarmy Brian Devine).
Monica DiBiasio makes her DAC directorial debut in this smart, swiftly moving production. She is ably supported by stage manager Sheri Reeves, set designer Sienna Widen, and the entire crew, especially Sophia Kothe and Jasmine Lewis, sound and lighting.
DiBiasio uses the entire DAC stage, which presents audio difficulties. From its beginning as an auto dealership-cum-theatrical space, DAC has struggled with acoustics. Even PlayFest has opted at times to mic actors for its readings. In “Hamlet,” the actors generally project well, but sometimes lines are lost. A key Barrymore monologue, Hamlet’s advice to the players, is staged far to audience left and important dialogue disappeared. It’s a key moment where the playwright’s argument for the depth and beauty of a great play unfurls. Rally has a parallel soliloquy later, which DiBiasio thankfully positions at center stage.
DiBiasio keeps the running time to two hours with one intermission. “I Hate Hamlet” is a not-to-miss comedy in the summer of 2024.
When “I Hate Hamlet” opened on Broadway, Paul Rudnick was 34, a young playwright on the rise. Now 67, he continues to be productive in a variety of formats. In addition to plays, he has written a string of movie scripts (“The Stepford Wives,” “Sister Act,” “Adams Family Values”), more than 50 comic essays for The New Yorker, including one in the May 20 issue, and dozens essays in The New York Times, which considers Rudnick “one of our preeminent humorists.”
Rudnick’s most recent novel, “Farrell Covington and the Limits of Style,” was published in 2023, as a wide-ranging spoof on our era. His next novel, “What is Wrong with You?” will be published in 2025 by Simon and Schuster. A Yale graduate and dedicated New Yorker, Rudnick early on developed an ability to look at American culture through a satirical lens. Cultural critics locate his style, characters, madcap settings and witty dialogue comfortably in the long history of Western satire.
Judith Reynolds is an arts journalist and member of the American Theatre Critics Association.
