Last week, on TNT, a new show started called "Will" which will chronicle the life and drama of the famous playwright, William Shakespeare.
Lucky for us, we were treated to a live interpretation of his famous play, "Hamlet", brought in to us by the Freehold Theater Company.
We arrived to the auditorium, which was actually just our gym, and were escorted to our seats, which again was just sitting on the floor. It totally reminded me of the old school elementary assemblies we had, with the teachers lurking around the outsides of the seating area to tell noisy little children to be quiet. Again, this is not a theater, but a gym without airconditioning, so since it is summer, it started to get warm quickly.
What kept us calm, cool and collected was the set up of the stage in the gym. It had been transformed into the throne room of a king. Then the music started and the actors took stage. At first I was a bit scared that the Shakespearean prose would be too difficult to understand, and that I might have been lost following the action, but the professionalism in the actors, and their dedication to their craft transcended my ignorance. The director had updated the setting to more current times, which helped with the translation, but it was definitely the performances that enraptured myself and the audience.
I must thank Freehold for bringing this talent and culture to us in the prisons. For them to put aside their fears and bias, and bring this production to us helps us to keep our humanity and strive to experience new activities when we are released.
One gentleman thanked the group for coming in because this was his first experience seeing a play much less well done Shakespeare.
We are truly blessed to have people on the outs, seeing us as human beings who can appreciate the finer things in life.
Thanks again, Freehold
That Guy
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