‘I Hate Hamlet’ blends silly and Shakespearean in readers theater production by Spokane Civic, Ignite theaters

This weekend, Spokane Civic Theatre is offering a double dose of Shakespeare, kind of.

On the Margot and Robert Ogden Main Stage, the theater continues with “Romeo and Juliet,” which runs through April 13.

In the Firth J. Chew Studio Theatre, Civic and Ignite! Community Theatre present Paul Rudnick’s “I Hate Hamlet.”

In this readers theater production, which opens Friday and runs through Sunday, audiences meet, not Hamlet, but actor Andrew Rally (Ali Aboud).

Rally is a successful television actor presented with the opportunity to play his dream role of Hamlet. While trying to make up his mind about taking on the role, Rally must also handle his girlfriend Deirdre McDavey (Kat Heath), who, to his annoyance, is committed to “saving herself” for marriage.

Adding yet another thing to consider to Rally’s already full plate, he learns through real estate agent Felicia Dantine (Deborah Marlowe) that he is living in actor John Barrymore’s (Keith Edie) old apartment.

Rally encounters Barrymore’s ghost as he, dressed as Hamlet, tries to convince Rally to accept the role. Dantine convinces Rally to not only stay in his haunted apartment but also hold a seance to further connect with Barrymore.

(Fun fact: Playwright Rudnick was actually living in Barrymore’s former apartment when writing this play.)

Barrymore persuades Rally to say yes to Hamlet but he begins to doubt his decision when television producer Gary Peter Lefkowitz (Erik Contzius) offers him a role in a television pilot.

“I Hate Hamlet” is directed by Karen Brathovde and also features Lynn Noel as Rally’s agent Lillian Troy.

Brathovde loves Shakespeare and comedy, so when the Civic team expressed interest in producing a readers theater production of “I Hate Hamlet,” it was a no-brainer for her to throw her hat in the ring.

Brathovde said the opportunity to work on a readers theater production also appealed to her because it puts the focus on storytelling, doing away with sets, costumes and props. Her production of “I Hate Hamlet” will feature some lighting and sound elements though.

Readers theater productions, Brathovde said, are often used to workshop new works or gauge interest with audiences in seeing full productions of the show. As “I Hate Hamlet” is already an established show, having been released in 1991, this production was an opportunity to bring a fun, Shakespeare-adjacent show to the theater at the same time as “Romeo and Juliet.”

Readers theater productions can be both beneficial to actors, with shorter time commitments and no need to memorize every line, but also challenging, as they restrict an actor’s movements.

“They have to rely on just their gestures and their vocal techniques, and they have to make it exciting when they’re doing a lot of standing behind music stands,” Brathovde said. “For some actors, it’s more difficult because they really want to move. They want to get out from behind the music stand and get out there and cross the stage and do the things that actors do, and so they have to pull back a bit on that.”

“I Hate Hamlet” features physical moments like a duel between Rally and Barrymore, plus a waltz from McDavey. To bring these elements to the readers theater production, Brathovde has enlisted two narrators, Barry Brathovde and Jared McDougall.

The narrators will explain to audiences what the show’s set would typically look like in a full production but also verbalize the more physical moments as described in the script, with one narrating Rally’s movements during the duel and the other narrating Barrymore’s movements.

Though the show does feature “Hamlet”-related elements like a duel, “I Hate Hamlet” doesn’t feature much from the famed play. Audiences see Rally and Barrymore working on lines, but Rudnick’s play is more about the relationship between Rally and those in his life.

The show also gets into Barrymore’s actual career, with Barrymore (grandfather to Drew) reflecting on his own time as Hamlet, a role for which he was perhaps best known.

After playing Hamlet, Barrymore appeared in several films, some more popular than others, but ultimately struggled with alcoholism, which hampered the final years of his career.

“He’s coming back and encouraging Andy to become the actor he wants to become, because Andy was a famous TV doctor actor and then his show was canceled, and then he goes to New York to try and get back to his roots,” Brathovde said. “Barrymore gives him the courage to do that.”

With its blend of silly, serious and Shakespearean moments, Brathovde hopes to eventually stage a full production of “I Hate Hamlet.” For now, she’s happy to be part of this collaboration between Civic and Ignite! Community Theatre, which used to produce Readers Theatre Booklight shows at its Spokane Valley location.

Prior to “I Hate Hamlet,” Ignite! and Civic teamed up for a readers theater production of “The Great Gatsby,” which ran for one weekend in February.

“I enjoy these actors so much, and they’re so enthusiastic about telling this story,” Brathovde said. “It’s been a wonderful experience. We have a great crew as well and the support of Spokane Civic Theatre and Ignite!, they’re second to none as far as companies go.”