All-Female Production of Hamlet at the Armory
Hamlet (SerahRose Roth) and Gertrude (Jackie Davis).
The past two weekends, the Armory Café was the venue for the Gan-e-Meed Theatre Project’s production of Hamlet.
Gan-e-Meed, based in Lowell, started in 2009. The project’s purpose is to advance the role of women in theater in order to reduce unseen and unintentional gender bias in the theater community, and to promote genuine career advancement opportunities for deserving artists.
Artistic Director SerahRose Roth explained the project’s peculiar title in an interview with Drama, Daily: “Ganymede is the name Rosalind takes in Shakespeare’s As You Like It when she disguises herself as a man to survive,” she said.
Roth also played the title role in the production, while other actresses played both male and female roles (click here for a full cast list). The traditional plot and dialogue of Hamlet remained unchanged.
The Café, with a maximum seating capacity of 52, provided an intimate theater experience. Most of the action took place on a stage located in the center with the audience on either side, but the actors were in no way restricted: They moved freely through the seating area, breaking down traditional barriers between actor and audience, resulting in a fresh, engaging performance that fully utilized the unique space.
For upcoming events at the Armory (including a June 19th performance by former SXSW act Villagers) check out their events page.
photo courtesy Gan-e-Meed
