Bernhardt/Hamlet

At The Goodman Theatre, 2019

This show was at The Goodman in September, which I saw on the same day I saw Dana H. Between the two shows, my favorite was Dana H. I will say that the set design & the costumes both took my breath away. Those elements were truly stunning. The set looked like the classiest Eye Spy game ever. You would constantly spot new props onstage, & as wild as they seemed or looked, they all served a functional purpose. Costumes served as the grounding center of the time period, with additional costumes for the two plays being rehearsed & shown (Hamlet & Cyrano de Bergerac). That is a lot of costumes to choose, design, pull, manage, & additionally, have quick changes for. It worked seamlessly. Lighting was also quite effective, however I did sit in an upper balcony, & had a few moments where I had troubles seeing the characters due to it being too dimly lit. Sound-wise, I didn't notice any problems. However, certain actors did need to project more to be heard. That, coupled with the heightened language, made it somewhat challenging to follow. As for acting, actor Larry Yando, who played Constant Coquelin, stole the show. I was more enamored by his character than I was by Bernhardt. Jennifer Latimore, who played Rosamond Gerard, was close behind as my second favorite--even though she had one scene onstage. 5 minutes! & yet she was entirely captivating & moved me with such emotions I had been hoping to experience throughout. The story is fascinating & wonderful, & I have no qualms there. In fact, I picked up a book on Bernhardt so I could learn more about this heroine of the theatre.