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The Broadway production of Hamlet, which stars Jude Law and first ran in London’s West End earlier this year and which I got to see in previews last month, officially opened on the Great White Way last night. While there are a couple of very favorable reviews of the show HERE and HERE, there are other reviews that are decidedly … less favorable. Here is a sampling of what some of the theater critics are saying about the show and Jude Law in particular:

To be, or not to be … a hit on Broadway? That is the question Wednesday morning as the reviews come in for Jude Law’s turn as Hamlet in the much-anticipated Broadway turn for the production, which originated in London to acclaim and opened at New York’s Broadhurst Theatre Tuesday night. Reaction is decidedly mixed. “If Hamlet talks about his mind, you can bet that Mr. Law will point to his forehead; when he mentions the heavens, his arm shoots straight up; and when the guy says his gorge rises, rest assured that he clutches at his stomach. If every actor were like Mr. Law, signed performances for the hard of hearing would be unnecessary,” snipes Ben Brantley of The New York Times. “If anything, Law starts out too overwrought, moaning and gnawing through the great soliloquies as if they were causing him intestinal distress,” Time Out New York’s David Cote notes. Others put in much kinder terms. “His Hamlet is no brooding philosopher/prince; he’s an angry young man, a bundle of nerves forever threatening to explode,” raves USA Today’s Elysa Gardner , who considers Law’s soliloquies “both muscular and exquisitely lyrical.” The traditionally acerbic John Simon of Bloomberg News, however, found nothing poetic about Law’s “flashy, frequently jocular and unsubtle” performance in a play “aimed at neophyte audiences lured to the play not only by the star but with the added promise of a thriller liberally sprinkled with yocks.” Time Out New York, which generally lauded Law, was one of many that had a bone to pick with the supporting cast, finding Gugu Mbatha-Raw’s Ophelia ho-hum, and Geraldine James and Ian Drysdale’s Gertrude and Claudius an example of actors taking the phrase “the banality of evil” too literally. Then thank God Jude’s pretty, all critics agreed. Noted The New York Times: “Mr. Law’s undeniable charisma and gender-crossing sex appeal may captivate Broadway theatergoers who wouldn’t normally attend productions of Shakespeare.”

LOL! As much as I loved the show myself, I have to agree with the NY Times critic … I had forgotten that, indeed, Jude mimics physically the words that come out of his mouth … I mean, I’m sure he’s going for emphasis but he does do it for most of the show. In all honesty, I do feel that many of the reviewers who have negative things to say might be speaking from a place where they would be hard pressed to bestow positivity no matter how good an actor like Jude Law is. While I agree that there is some merit to some of the negative reviews, I don’t feel that all of the criticism is very fair. After the jump, check out a few photos of Jude taking his curtain call bows last night at the completion of his official Broadway debut performance and see which celebs made their way to the Broadhurst Theater for opening night …

Last night I had the great pleasure of seeing what is arguably William Shakespeare‘s most famous play (with the most well known quotes), Hamlet, live on the Broadway stage … starring Jude Law. Hamlet is one of my favorite plays and I have seen many productions/incarnations of the tale. My two favorites are Kenneth Branaugh‘s 4-hour epic movie and, if you can believe it, Ethan Hawke‘s modern retelling set in NYC. Last year I saw and LOVED the Broadway production of MacBeth which starred Patrick Stewart so I had high hopes that Jude Law‘s Hamlet would be just as good. I am happy to report that the this production of the play is fantastic:

Right off the bat, I loved the sparse staging of the show. The props are kept to a minimum and the set is one big, high-walled room in castle Elsinore … the starkness of the space with the effective use of light really made for an excellent setting for the play. Jude Law‘s Hamlet was very emo … right down to the emo sweater he wore. The costuming was modern but the tone of the setting still had an old feeling to it. Jude really loses himself in the moody role of Hamlet … he paces around in mad fashion, pulling at his hair at odd times … wringing his hands in a minorly insane way — he really puts on a great performance. For much of the 2 1/2 hour play, the audience was held in rapt silence … the play is really very engrossing. There are many great scenes in Hamlet but in this production, I really enjoyed the burial of Ophelia scene … the one with the famous line, Alas poor Yorick, I knew him Horatio. There is also an effective use of falling snow in the To be, or not to be scene that really captures the sad spirit of this tragic play. I am so happy I got to see this production of the play, it’s really not to be missed. Fans of Shakespeare should deffo see this production … I loved it!!

I have to give a shout-out to Pink reader Barrie who I met before the show last night … it was my pleasure meeting you :)

After the performance was finished, I met up with my good friend Tom Lenk for a late-night supper at Sardi’s. As I mentioned previously, Tom will be joining the Broadway cast of Rock of Ages this week and we met up to catch up and talk about how crazy his life has been for the past two weeks. Dinner was superb and it was really great seeing him look so well. He is so ready for his Broadway debut, I cannot WAIT to see him!! David and I will be attending Friday night’s performance of Rock of Ages — which will be the first for new castmembers Tom Lenk (as Franz) and Kerry Butler (as Sherrie). I LOOOOOOVE Kerry Butler, she was the lead in Xanadu and she will make an excellent lead for RoA. Sooooo excited for Friday!!

This afternoon, David and I are meeting up with our dear friends Sashie and Will so that we can meet their newborn baby boy Jasper. Of all the fun things I’ve scheduled for this NYC trip, meeting little Jasper is by far my fave. I hope to have pics to share soon!!

Last night David and I met up with our good friend Lisa for dinner at a place called Klee which turned out to be a pretty fantastic brasserie. While the food was absolutely delicious, it was our time with Lisa that was the real treat of the night. She is truly one of my fave people and we really enjoy spending as much time with her as possible. Because she is always working, we don’t get to see her as much as we’d like … but there was talk of mebbe traveling together in the near future … that would be really fun.

The rest of the night was spent at home, just chillin’. ‘Twas nice. Tonight, I’ll be making my way to the shining lights of Broadway to see Jude Law‘s performance of Hamlet:

I am a huge Shakespeare fan so I’m excited to see this production … the fact that Jude Law is starring in it has got me all sorts of excited. I cannot WAIT! I’ve heard many great things about the West End production of the show which just wrapped in London, England so … tonight’s my turn to see it. Previews for the show started this week … so I’ll be one of the lucky few who get to see the show here in NYC in its first week. Woot!! Can’t wait!! I’ll be sure to share my thoughts on the production tomorrow ;)

Something may be rotten in the state of Denmark but no so in the State of New York … this weekend, promo signage went up at the Broadhurst Theater on the Great White Way to announce the arrival of the West End production of the William Shakespeare play Hamlet starring Jude Law:

The production’s official website, HamletBroadway.com, is now online and tickets for the limited run are currently on sale. It turns out that I will be in NYC when the show is in previews so I managed to snag a ticket for the performance on September 16. Last year, David and I were lucky enough to attend a performance of Shakespeare‘s MacBeth at the Lyceum Theater and I loved every second of it. As a huge Shakespeare fan, I’m always curious to see how new productions of the Bard‘s timeless plays get adapted. I’ve been dying to see Jude as Hamlet and next month I’ll finally get my chance. As you may recall, Jude got himself into a bit of trubs the last time he spent any considerable time in NYC when he got Samantha Burke pregs with his lovechild while he was filming Sherlock Holmes there. One hopes Jude will be better equipped to keep himself in control so that he doesn’t get mixed up in any future unplanned pregnancies. Lovebabies or not, I am SO excited to see Jude in action on stage! Woot!!

[Photo credit: Splash News]

Jude Law took to the West End stage in London, England last night to begin his run in the new theatrical production of the immortal bard William Shakespeare‘s masterpiece Hamlet. Here is a Gollum-esque promo pic released from the play along with portions of very favorable reviews of his performance in the production:

Jude Law defied critics last night with a stunning performance of Hamlet. The Oscar-nominated actor was greeted with a rapturous applause after his powerful portrayal of the troubled Danish prince in the Wyndham’s Theatre production of the Shakespearean tragedy. Seven years after a mixed response to his run as Dr Faustus at the Young Vic, Jude showed off the full extent of his acting skills in the powerful, emotional production. Starring alongside Jude in the Michael Grandage production is Penelope Wilton as Hamlet’s mother Gretrude, Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Ophelia, Kevin R McNally as Claudius and Alex Waldman as Laertes. His performance as Hamlet comes several months after Doctor Who David Tennant gave a strikingly different take on the distressed Dane. Reviews of Jude’s performance have been mostly positive, with only the Independent describing his as “fine” while frequently comparing him to Tennant. The Guardian’s Michael Billington wrote: “What exactly does Law bring to Hamlet? Principally, a sense of moody solitude and moral disgust… Law’s Hamlet has the right inwardness and self-awareness.” Evening Standard’s Henry Hitching said: “As the scholar-soldier-prince, Law’s performance is detailed and powerful. He brings a rumpled charisma to the role: his Hamlet is both disgusted and dangerous.” The Telegraph’s Charles Spencer writes: “There are a few rough edges, moments when Law seems to be skating on the surface of the role rather than digging deep, but this is already a deeply moving, lucidly spoken Hamlet which I’m sure will grow even stronger in the course of the run.” The Times’ Benedict Nightgale: “His verse-speaking is immaculate and his charisma comes powering out from below the pock-marked columns, black walls and towering gates of Christopher Oram’s grim set.” Speaking ahead of the opening night, Jude admitted he felt an empathy with Hamlet after being let down in his life. He said: “I’m a lot more cynical now than I was. I used to have optimism and the belief that people would usually do the right thing, and that has been somewhat tainted by experience, which I think mirrors Hamlet’s journey. He’s let down by people.”

I don’t immediately always think first of Jude Law as an amazing actor but I have to admit that I’ve pretty much loved him in everything he’s done. He’s one of those solid actors that always puts on a believable performance every single time. I am very excited to see him as Dr. Watson in the forthcoming film Sherlock Holmes (alongside Robert Downey, Jr.‘s Holmes) but I’m totally intrigued by this notion of Law as Hamlet. While Macbeth is my favorite Shakespeare play, I really enjoy Hamlet as well. I’d love to be able to see Jude Law in this production. Perhaps if it does really well, it will eventually make its way to Broadway. In any event, I’m happy to know that Jude‘s performance in London is being met with such great reviews. See, he’s not just a pretty face after all.

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