Saturday, August 06, 2011

The Pensive Prince of Denmark

Is he, or is he not Hamlet, the Dane? After having claimed for so long that the tragic prince of William Shakespeare’s eponymous play, Hamlet, had his origins in Danish mythology, literary scholars now provide evidence that Denmark’s famous prince was, in fact, of Irish linage, a Celt, and is not a Dane at all.

The myth of the pensive prince set in Denmark’s Kronborg Castle has been kept alive with Hamlet, one of the most famous and frequently performed plays in the world. This mid August, the splendid courtyard of the Kronborg Castle, the location of Shakespeare’s play, will come alive with world-class production of Hamlet and his father’s ghost, while the audience will sit spellbound, brooding over whether “To be or not to be….”. Set in the kingdom of Denmark, the play explores themes of revenge and treachery. It recounts how Hamlet exacts revenge on his uncle for murdering his father, ascends the throne and marries his mother.

Click here to read this article from Washington Bangla Radio