WHEN:
Sat. May 31 ~ 5:30 PM
Sat. June 7 ~ 5:30 PM
Sun. June 8 ~ 3:30 PM
WHERE:
The Charlottesville Band Building
1119 5th St SW
DETAILS:
Queen Charlotte’s Villeins present HAMLET: A Live Reading Experience in Summer 2025!
By “A Live Reading Experience,” we mean that our presentation of HAMLET is more than a mere staged reading. Actors will have books-in-hand and backed by music, sound design, striking tableaus, helpful narration, and of course our signature motley visual style.
Our exceptionally talented cast is led by Jackson Davis in the title role, and we do not hesitate for a second to say that Jackson’s HAMLET is simply not to be missed. A soon-to-be WAHS graduate, former State Champion and National Finalist in the ESU National Shakespeare Competition, Jackson’s love and aptitude for Shakespeare is extraordinary in anyone, but especially for someone his age. And we feel strongly that HAMLET’s frustration, idealism, and angst can hardly be better embodied than by a brilliant teenager.
Opposite Jackson’s HAMLET is Ben Atkinson as Claudius, a role that befits Ben’s honorary title of Arch-Villein. Ben founded the Queen Charlotte’s Villeins and remains a proud member of the renowned Antaeus Theatre Company of Glendale, California.
And supporting them is an iconic cast comprised of some of the area’s top talent, often playing multiple roles, including Laura Heck, Benedict Burgess, John Rabasa, Franny Rabasa, Catherine Gilbert, Jane McDonald, Benjamin Lohr, and Michael Swanberg with special appearances by Guy Aiken (5/31) and David Minton (6/7-8) as the Player King, and Julia Robertson providing the narration.
The Villeins’ journey with HAMLET began during the Pandemic back when the troupe was just a study group. We spent a full year of weekends studying the play in depth. More recently, we partnered with the UVA OLLI Adult Education program to present our “SLICED HAMLET” workshop to their Shakespeare class, which presents our discoveries and analyses of the play — revealing perspectives and interpretations which seemed to “wow” even the moderator. So to finally have an opportunity to present the play in its entirety (even as a reading) is a profound and significant new milestone for our company.
Join us for HAMLET as you’ve never seen (or heard) it before!
