Kaserne Basel 20-21-22.1.2015
Berliner Festspiele | Foreign Affairs 30.6 & 1.7.2014
In courts of law, the voice of the people often seems to fail. Maybe this is one of the reasons why in “Please, Continue (Hamlet)” by Swiss performer Yan Duyvendak and Catalan director Roger Bernat, the court moves out into the theatre. All protagonists are professionals who have left their usual domains in order to participate in a show in which the audience gets a vote. A real case is being tried that has classic traits: Hamlet today.
There is a judge, a prosecutor, an attorney – all of them real legal practitioners. The defendants and witnesses, Hamlet, his mother Gertrude and Ophelia are represented by actors. And of course there is the audience whose power of judgment is of vital importance and will contribute to the outcome of every individual performance. In the theatre space it becomes clear that the outcome of a trial may very well depend on the rhetorical abilities of the parties involved. And it also becomes apparent that the law, which here is turned into art and literature, is pliant indeed: Hamlet – like you have never seen it before.
Production: Dreams Come True Genève
Co-production: Le Phénix – Scène nationale de Valenciennes / Huis a/d Werf Utrecht / Théâtre du GRÜ Genf Residencies: Montévidéo, Marseille, Le Carré / Les Colonnes, Scène conventionnée, Saint-Médard-en-Jalles / Blanquefort.
With support of: City of Geneve / République et Canton de Genève / Pro Helvetia Fondation Suisse pour la Culture / Migros Pour-Cent Culturel / Loterie Romande / Ministerio de Cultura-INAEM / Le Nouveau Théâtre de Montreuil – Centre Dramatique National / CORODIS
With many thanks to all participants, the public relations department of the Berlin criminal courts and the bar association Berlin.
All fees of the participants went to a charitable institution.
Directors – Yan Duyvendak & Roger Bernat
Geneva | Marseille | Barcelona
Hamlet – Maximilian Brauer
Ophelia – Ana Berkenhoff
Gertrude – Monica Budde
Chief judge – Dr Kay-Thomas Dieckmann (30 Jun), Dr Carsten Kessel (01 Jul)
Assessors – Corinna Volkmer and Dr Andreas Lach (30 Jun) | Marieluis Brinkmann and Bo Meyer (01 Jul)
Prosecutor – Ruth Uhlenbruck (30 Jun) | Marcus Oswald (01 Jul)
Lawyer of the defendant (Hamlet) – Niklas Dittberner (30 Jun) | Sven Peitzner (01 Jul)
Advocatress of the joint plaintiff (Ophelia) – Judith Ciganovic (30 Jun) | Michaela Mumm-von Oldenburg (01 Jul)
Psychiatric expert witness – Dr Med Frank Wendt
Stage in collaboration with Sylvie Kleiber
Production management – Nataly Sugnaux Hernandez
Administration – Catherine Cuany
Communication – Ana-Belen Torreblanca
Technics – Gaël Grivet
Photography – Sylvain Couzinet-Jacques, Greg Noo-Wak, Jim Lee, Magali Girardin