Beth Wilmurt drew Gildenstern, El Beh got Hamlet and Nick Medina chose Rosencrantz in one production of “Hamlet,” in repertory at the Ashby Stage in Berkeley through January, 2017. Just before each performance, the actors all draw their roles out of – what else? – a skull. (Photo by Pak Han)

Shotgun Players of Berkeley had a crazy idea: put all the roles for William Shakespeare’s “Hamlet” on pieces of paper and stuff them into a hat – no, make that a skull! Then just before each performance, the actors can pull their roles out of the skull. Random parts!
The show has been a roaring success, according to Managing Director Liz Lisle.
“A lot of people are coming back again and again to see it,” she said. “It has a lot going for it. It’s Shakespeare, which is always popular; it’s Hamlet, which is always onstage somewhere; and we all have that inner strength in us to be Hamlet, or any of the characters.”
Lisle says that unlike a traditionally cast play, in this one audiences will see a different interpretation with every performance. By seeing more than one show, one can identify with any of the characters from multiple perspectives.
“One night a 60-year-old man will be Hamlet, then one night it’s a 40-year-old woman, or a gay man,” Lisle said. You might see an older man as Ophelia.”
While the Shotgun Players production does offer a unique twist, Lisle says it is appropriate and enjoyable even for someone new to Shakespeare.
“You don’t have to be in the know,” she said.
All of the plays at Shotgun are scheduled to continue in repertory throughout the season. By December, five plays will be running concurrently. A calendar of performance dates is available on the website at shotgunplayers.org.
The Shotgun Players perform at the Ashby Stage, 1901 Ashby Ave. in Berkeley, across the street from the Ashby, Berkeley BART station. “Hamlet” will run once a week through January 2017. Times, dates and directions are available at shotgunplayers.org/Online/Hamlet.

Sharing is caring!