Hamlet meets Radiohead at the Barbican, in 100 minutes flat

Shakespeare's longest tragedy, a Radiohead album and no interval. On paper, Hamlet Hail to the Thief sounds like a lot to ask of a single evening. According to The Upcoming, which reviewed it this week, it mostly pays off.

What it is

The production is part of the RSC's London season at the Barbican Theatre. Thom Yorke, Christine Jones and Steven Hoggett are the names behind it, and The Upcoming says they have found a formula that weaves sound, movement and recitation into what it calls a riveting whole, set in a Gothic world.

This is not a case of an album playing politely behind a play. The reviewer describes a remix of Radiohead's Hail to the Thief, shaped both in its tonal texture and in the order of its songs, and woven into the words. The script has been cut to fit, and the show runs for about 100 minutes in a single act, which The Upcoming compares to a rock concert.

The look and the sound

The palette is dark: black and shades of grey, though not without light. The Upcoming praises Jessica Hung Han Yun's lighting, which it calls grandiose. The review singles out the opening, when a haunting projection seeps into the first scene and Hamlet enters bathed from behind by a bright beam, to the score of 2 + 2 = 5.

Movement matters as much as music. Jess Williams's choreography is not dance in the strict sense, the review says, but a run of collisions, embraces and ensemble gestures that express character. The pas de deux between Hamlet and Ophelia, which spins the pair in circles and ends with them locked in a magnetic hold, is picked out as an example.

The cast

Samuel Blenkin plays Hamlet. The Upcoming says he begins slow and stern before giving way to violent, eccentric and delirious rage, and calls him visceral, absorbed and absorbing. Paul Hilton is Claudius, described as a fitting antagonist who struts around his freshly acquired kingdom. Claudia Harrison plays Hamlet's mother and Ami Tredrea is Ophelia.

One caveat

The review has a single reservation. For anyone completely new to Shakespeare, it suggests, the production may push the narrative frame a little too far, and the links between music, movement and story may not always be immediately clear. If you know the play, you are better placed to enjoy the remixing.

Overall, The Upcoming describes a production that packs a punch, revisiting themes of family bonds, rebellion against corruption, the purity of love and the thirst for power, and sending shivers through the audience with its layered staging.

Know before you go

• Where: Barbican Theatre, London
• When: from 31 October until 23 January 2027
• Running time: about 100 minutes, no interval
• Booking: through the Barbican's website (prices not listed in the review)

Sources: The Upcoming