Hamlet action figure theatre
Mar. 27th, 2011 07:27 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
My friend
aker_ldh has gone home again, after we made a lot of pictures with my customized "David Tennant as Hamlet" figures. I really love the set and throne room we created. We started with casting all the actors for the roles they should play. Matching each character/actor from the play with his miniature self was great fun!
If you want to see how I changed the Tenth Doctor into Hamlet, you can find all pictures and links in this post: http://dieastra.livejournal.com/27731.html
Also, at the end of the play (after everyone has died) you can also find pictures from behind the scenes, the prop department and even from the casting. Enjoy!
And now - on with the play! Shakespeare himself gave the introduction.

Hamlet in the far right corner watches the festivities with sadness.

Let me introduce all the people. On the left side we do have the two ambassadors:

In the middle Ophelia in the yellow dress, Hamlet's mother Gertrude in blue and his uncle Claudius at her side, behind him old Polonius and some servant girl in the background.

And on the right side Ophelia's brother Laertes, the Cardinal (or Bishop?) in Red robe and some nameless servant.

The next scene shows friend Horatio welcomed by Hamlet with a big hug:


Horatio and a soldier are with Hamlet when late at night the ghost of his father appears to him and tells him that he was murdered:

So, Hamlet swears to revenge his father, and cuts his own hand with the knife. Due to the actionfigure's limited range of mobility, we could not to the actual cut, this is as close as we got.

Then Hamlet faints.

Hamlet gets found by Horatio and the soldier who also witnessed the ghost. He lets them swear on the sword to help him avenge his father.


Next scene: Hamlet reads a book, and Polonius gets the impression that he is crazy/nuts/one fry short of a happy meal/WACKO.


Note that he wears a bandage around his hand now!

Because his whole family thinks Hamlet is crazy, they invite his friends Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to try and talk some sense in them. This is the scene of their first meeting:


Hamlet is in love with Ophelia, the daughter of Polonius:

He's also in a happy mood and dancing around:

Actors were invited, to do a play about a similar murder:

This scene of putting poison into the ear of a sleeping man is similar to what really happened to Hamlet's father:

Hamlet films his uncle's reaction, to get evidence:

Hamlet mocks around with the crown:

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern tell him that his mother wants to see him before bed. He tells them that they are playing him like a recorder:


He tells them that they play him like a recorder:

Hamlet is angry at his mother for marrying so soon after his father’s death:


Polonius was hiding behind the mirror and accidentally gets shot by Hamlet:

Hamlet carries the dead Polonius away:

At midnight he sees the ghost of his father again.

Hamlet comes back from England. He takes a break at a cemetery but does not know that the grave is for Ophelia. He finds a skull: “Alas, poor Yorick! I knew him, Horatio.”


Laertes wants to revenge his sister’s death. Hamlet and Laertes start to fence:


Hamlet is convinced of winning: „Another hit - what say you?“

Laertes wounds Hamlet while he is turns his back:

Hamlet realizes that the sword was poisoned.

He hits Laertes with his own poisoned sword.

Hamlet’s mother Gertrud drinks the poisoned drink, Claudius had poisened it in case Hamlet won the sword fight. He actually warns her not to drink but she does it anyway:

Then she falls down and dies.

Hamlet forces Claudius to drink the poison as well:

Gertrud, Claudius and Laertes are dead:

Hamlet dies in the arms of Horatio. „The rest is silence.“

Step by step of how I changed the Doctor into Hamlet
Masterlist of Doctor Who action figure theatre
Masterlist of Torchwood action figure theatre
Edit: Hamlet action figure theatre by others: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jauds/3644256832/
The "Casting" process:
This guy auditioned unsuccessfully for the role of the ghost of the father:

We even did some "Behind the scenes" pictures:
The director is directing the actors:


To prove that you cannot believe one thing you see in a movie here is one shot of behind the scenes: The Horatio actor was too small and had to stand at a plate to be able to hug Hamlet. Well, it worked for Humphrey Bogart, so why not? *shrugs*

After the play finished it was time for the set guy to clean the stage. By the way, how do you like my black shiny floor? We used a black bed sheet and a plastic foil over that.





Then he found the skull and dreamt of playing Hamlet one day:

And here you see the work of the "prop department":
The sword was made by
aker_ldh , I think it looks very good!

She also made the recorders:

And the swords:

and please marvel a bit longer at this nice black leather book with golden title and pages that are full with text and can be turned, as this also was made by
aker_ldh !

.
.
![[profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
If you want to see how I changed the Tenth Doctor into Hamlet, you can find all pictures and links in this post: http://dieastra.livejournal.com/27731.html
Also, at the end of the play (after everyone has died) you can also find pictures from behind the scenes, the prop department and even from the casting. Enjoy!
And now - on with the play! Shakespeare himself gave the introduction.

Hamlet in the far right corner watches the festivities with sadness.

Let me introduce all the people. On the left side we do have the two ambassadors:

In the middle Ophelia in the yellow dress, Hamlet's mother Gertrude in blue and his uncle Claudius at her side, behind him old Polonius and some servant girl in the background.

And on the right side Ophelia's brother Laertes, the Cardinal (or Bishop?) in Red robe and some nameless servant.

The next scene shows friend Horatio welcomed by Hamlet with a big hug:


Horatio and a soldier are with Hamlet when late at night the ghost of his father appears to him and tells him that he was murdered:

So, Hamlet swears to revenge his father, and cuts his own hand with the knife. Due to the actionfigure's limited range of mobility, we could not to the actual cut, this is as close as we got.

Then Hamlet faints.

Hamlet gets found by Horatio and the soldier who also witnessed the ghost. He lets them swear on the sword to help him avenge his father.


Next scene: Hamlet reads a book, and Polonius gets the impression that he is crazy/nuts/one fry short of a happy meal/WACKO.


Note that he wears a bandage around his hand now!

Because his whole family thinks Hamlet is crazy, they invite his friends Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to try and talk some sense in them. This is the scene of their first meeting:


Hamlet is in love with Ophelia, the daughter of Polonius:

He's also in a happy mood and dancing around:

Actors were invited, to do a play about a similar murder:

This scene of putting poison into the ear of a sleeping man is similar to what really happened to Hamlet's father:

Hamlet films his uncle's reaction, to get evidence:

Hamlet mocks around with the crown:

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern tell him that his mother wants to see him before bed. He tells them that they are playing him like a recorder:


He tells them that they play him like a recorder:

Hamlet is angry at his mother for marrying so soon after his father’s death:


Polonius was hiding behind the mirror and accidentally gets shot by Hamlet:

Hamlet carries the dead Polonius away:

At midnight he sees the ghost of his father again.

Hamlet comes back from England. He takes a break at a cemetery but does not know that the grave is for Ophelia. He finds a skull: “Alas, poor Yorick! I knew him, Horatio.”


Laertes wants to revenge his sister’s death. Hamlet and Laertes start to fence:


Hamlet is convinced of winning: „Another hit - what say you?“

Laertes wounds Hamlet while he is turns his back:

Hamlet realizes that the sword was poisoned.

He hits Laertes with his own poisoned sword.

Hamlet’s mother Gertrud drinks the poisoned drink, Claudius had poisened it in case Hamlet won the sword fight. He actually warns her not to drink but she does it anyway:

Then she falls down and dies.

Hamlet forces Claudius to drink the poison as well:

Gertrud, Claudius and Laertes are dead:

Hamlet dies in the arms of Horatio. „The rest is silence.“

Step by step of how I changed the Doctor into Hamlet
Masterlist of Doctor Who action figure theatre
Masterlist of Torchwood action figure theatre
Edit: Hamlet action figure theatre by others: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jauds/3644256832/
The "Casting" process:
This guy auditioned unsuccessfully for the role of the ghost of the father:

We even did some "Behind the scenes" pictures:
The director is directing the actors:


To prove that you cannot believe one thing you see in a movie here is one shot of behind the scenes: The Horatio actor was too small and had to stand at a plate to be able to hug Hamlet. Well, it worked for Humphrey Bogart, so why not? *shrugs*

After the play finished it was time for the set guy to clean the stage. By the way, how do you like my black shiny floor? We used a black bed sheet and a plastic foil over that.





Then he found the skull and dreamt of playing Hamlet one day:

And here you see the work of the "prop department":
The sword was made by
![[profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)

She also made the recorders:

And the swords:

and please marvel a bit longer at this nice black leather book with golden title and pages that are full with text and can be turned, as this also was made by
![[profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)

.
.
no subject
Date: 2011-03-27 05:40 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-03-27 05:57 pm (UTC)Personally I am also very happy that the black reflective floor worked so well.
no subject
Date: 2011-03-27 10:23 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-03-28 11:10 am (UTC)First we were contemplating buying a Captain Picard figure for the part, but then I thought that would be too much ;)
no subject
Date: 2011-03-28 12:07 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-03-28 12:12 pm (UTC)But I'll go and check out his IMDB file - my first place to get all infos. Or is there anything in particular you want to tell me?
no subject
Date: 2011-03-28 12:20 pm (UTC)For him to have appeared in Doctor Who isn't a high point in his career, but is a very shiny high point in the 'career' of the show -- it meant that the new Who had reached a level of prominence where even the long-established A+++ performers are interested in doing guest spots. Classic Who had that at one point, I recall -- Julian Glover did a turn as a bad guy.
Basically, Derek Jacobi is the actor that Patrick Stewart would like to become, one of the true novas in the current sky. He himself would insist that he's not that good, which is part of why he's so amazing.
no subject
Date: 2011-03-28 12:44 pm (UTC)So, how and where did you encounter him for the first time that made an impression on you? Do you still remember? I sometimes don't recognize people, even if I have seen them before in other roles. Just recently this happened when I fell in love with "Sherlock" and started to look up Martin Freeman I was surprised how many movies I already had seen with him, without him standing out in any particular way. And then one role comes along I connect with - and bam.
But seeing that I still have my hands more than full with catching up on all things John Barrowman and David Tennant did and do on screen or audio, I really can't afford spreading my interest even wider at the moment - and my friends already are talking about new exciting british series... ack! I need to stop working so I can watch TV all day long ;)
(and that's even without that friend who regularly goes to London for musicals and knows a lot of musical actors by name - I am about to dive into a whole new world and I feel as if I am drowning with all that information)
no subject
Date: 2011-03-28 01:06 pm (UTC)One of the co-stars in that same production was Brian Blessed, in a very rare clean-shaven, soft-spoken role. Another supporting role was done by this guy named Patrick Stewart; he became famous later. He did an excellent job of it.
David Tennant wasn't born yet. *g*
I suspect that when Jacobi was on the DW set, the other actors and the entire production team were, at some level, squeeing deep inside: 'OMG! Derek Jacobi! I'm working with Sir Derek! OMG!'
I believe that most of Jacobi's prominent work has been doing Shakespeare. In 1989, when a young guy named Kenneth Branagh took the risk of doing a major film adaptation of Shakespeare, Jacobi and (Dame) Judi Dench did their friend Branagh the favour of appearing in the flilm, which gave it a major boost of credibility. This paid off very nicely, for Branagh and for the next thirty years of filming Shakespeare!
no subject
Date: 2011-03-28 01:35 pm (UTC)And I am happy to inform you that David Tennant already was 5 years old in 1976 - and I was 3 LOL
I suspect that when Jacobi was on the DW set, the other actors and the entire production team were, at some level, squeeing deep inside: 'OMG! Derek Jacobi! I'm working with Sir Derek! OMG!'
I bet!
I recently visited the theatre here in Dresden (another thing I do more frequently since I met my friends - to see live people on stage is always the best thing) and had another revealing moment when I looked up some of the actors afterwards, to find out that they also had roles in German TV series. Somehow, in my head a theatre actor is something different than a TV actor, but many of them do both out of variety, even though theatre is their main focus.
That's why I was wondering how a theatre guy like Derek Jacobi could become so world wide famous.
I guess my problem for keeping all those things apart also is the German dubbing. So, things like Hugh Grant playing a British gentleman in a Hollywood movie are lost on my, because they all speak German without different accents. Up until a few weeks ago I couldn't even have told you whether Colin Firth is British or American...
That's why I try to watch in English nowadays whenever I have the opportunity (that's why so many people buy DVDs, to get the original voices)
Should we maybe switch to mail to discuss further?
no subject
Date: 2011-03-27 06:07 pm (UTC)Wieder einmal hast Du den Actionfiguren Leben eingehaucht.
Vielen Dank fürs teilen, Astra
no subject
Date: 2011-03-28 11:11 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-03-27 06:30 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-03-28 11:09 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-03-27 06:39 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-03-28 11:09 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-03-27 07:14 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-03-28 11:12 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-03-28 12:02 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-03-28 11:13 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-03-28 12:35 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-03-28 11:15 am (UTC)During the past weeks and months I already had fun creating all the little things we would need, and to see it all come together was really wonderful. Sadly, in reality it did look much better, my pictures are not very good.
no subject
Date: 2011-04-01 05:57 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-04-01 09:06 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-04-01 06:17 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-04-02 04:05 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-04-02 04:06 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-04-06 12:08 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-04-17 09:22 am (UTC)We had so much fun casting the figures for the actors! Today you will see some more - I just uploaded the next part here: http://dieastra.livejournal.com/29075.html
The soldier in his coat was a quick decision ;)
Thank you very much for your feedback!
no subject
Date: 2014-06-07 02:21 am (UTC)fantastic work on the whole thing! though i was MOST impressed when you told me what your floor is. but... how do you keep the plastic wrap so FLAT and smooth? if i tried that, it would get all wrinkly :X
also feel sorry for the guy who didn't get the role of the ghost. but i'm sure he can get something in that torchwood show... ;)
no subject
Date: 2014-06-09 08:08 am (UTC)http://media.tumblr.com/465fad39c1a967f9271d88878684c25a/tumblr_inline_mi4kbfQvmi1qz4rgp.gif
http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_malphyrDiE1qbnleeo1_500.gif
It is a very thick plastic wrap. In my family, we used them on the table, over the table cloth, so you can wash it off when there is a spot and the table cloth stays clean.
Oh, that's a good suggestion! I shall tell the ghost to audience for Torchwood, then.
Thank you ;)
no subject
Date: 2014-06-09 11:47 pm (UTC)oh, i see... he's a hobbit? :X
and oh! i thought you meant plastic wrap like for sandwiches. that very thing, clingy stuff. i know what you mean, i think it's made of vinyl? or is it something else not that thick?
no subject
Date: 2014-06-11 11:10 pm (UTC)I never had much interest in Shakespeare but seeing David's Hamlet blew me away. Here is a music video a friend did, the song tells the story of Hamlet in only 3 minutes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yDD3V2-kAaY
This should give you an idea about this version. Also, Claudius was played by Patrick Stewart.
no subject
Date: 2014-06-07 10:41 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-06-09 07:49 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-06-07 01:38 pm (UTC)I especially love the scene where Hamlet sees his father's ghost, where he looks into the shattered mirror, and the sword-fight at the end. Very dramatic! And the "behind the scenes" scenes as well. :)
Congratulations on getting in the magazine. I hope it leads more people here to see the full version!
no subject
Date: 2014-06-08 05:40 pm (UTC)Hm, maybe I should make a list of which figure played which role? That's an idea. Like end credits.
That picture where Hamlet looks into the shattered mirror looks indeed good, that's also one of my favouritest. Also the one with Gertrude lying on the ground with the cup, and you can see her face mirroring in the shiny surface.
I'm really sad we couldn't do the famous scene where he wants to kill Claudius and stands with the knife in both hands behind him. I should have used a different figure to do my Hamlet, then he would have been able to bend his arms. Too late.
Since you saw the David Tennant Hamlet version, some scenes should look familiar to you!
no subject
Date: 2014-06-11 06:30 pm (UTC)End credits would be awesome--I would love to see that! I have no idea what the actual end credits to the movie look like, but it could be fun trying to approximate them. :)
Some of the scenes WERE familiar, indeed! It's uncanny how you caught their essence.
no subject
Date: 2016-04-06 05:15 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2016-04-17 05:01 pm (UTC)If you would like to see David Tennant in action as Hamlet, there is a wonderful music video. I actually had seen this video first before watching the real DVD, and even without sound, just with the visual, I was blown away by all the anguish and sadness he displays.
The video is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yDD3V2-kAaY
And you may recognize some of my pictures in it ;)
no subject
Date: 2016-04-18 06:04 pm (UTC)That would've been an awesome keepsake! Well, at least you have an electronic one :)
(I had to write the little biography at the end myself though. In 70 words. That is harder than it sounds!)
I bet! I once had to do something similar for a bunch of songs I translated for a friend-of-a-friend who had written a play in Russian, then translated into English, but while he felt OK translating the prose himself, he needed help with the (rhymed) poetry, and this guy we both know recommended me to him. I don't think the play really went anywhere, but it's one of the things that comes up -- in a real book! -- if you google my full name. :)
no subject
Date: 2016-04-21 09:14 pm (UTC)When I google my name, I find an art exhibition and someone who wins sports medals, but none of those people is me ;)
When my mother did that book with poetry, my father let it print at his workplace actually, he worked as an engineer in an office for the railway and they print timetables and such there I guess.
Fast forward a little and a woman who had been given this book as a gift wanted to buy more. She actually went into a bookshop and asked for that famous author LOL They couldn't help her of course but the printing facility had their address in it, so she contacted them and they forwarded it then to my dad. Pretty cool story I think ;)
no subject
Date: 2016-04-23 11:09 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2016-04-23 11:30 pm (UTC)I don't know if you have seen the David Tennant version - we achieved the shiny black floor with a black cloth and I put some clear plastic foil over it. I love how Gertrude's face mirrors in it.
Via "Brush up your Shakespeare" I have no ended up at youtube watching BBC Proms videos. Just finished singing along to the Mary Poppins Medley.
no subject
Date: 2016-04-24 07:17 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2016-04-24 07:29 am (UTC)The skull came with the Stargate Daniel Jackson figure many years ago (there had been a Stargate episode about the crystal skull that was found in Belize). This figure is very rare and very expensive today though. Don't know if someone would sell the accessories seperatedly on ebay.
You could try to get a Sherlock, which comes with an even more realistic skull and a lovely violin as well: http://dieastra.livejournal.com/182089.html
He just came out last year.
Also when we went to see Benedict Cumberbatch in London as Hamlet, the shop had small eraser skulls and I also bought one of these ;)
This is actually how I happened to get the idea for this whole Hamlet story: One evening I was looking through all my tiny things and marvelling on them, and I found the crown and the skull and they somehow rang a bell.
no subject
Date: 2016-04-24 07:54 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2016-04-24 07:58 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2016-04-24 09:53 am (UTC)