 of his father (King Hamlet), the son Hamlet, sees a ghost purporting to be his dead father. The ghost reveals that he was murdered by Claudius, his brother, who is now the King of Denmark, after marrying King Hamlet’s widow, Gertrude. Plagued by a sense of filial duty to avenge his father’s wrongful death but also concerned about morality, Hamlet (the son) experiences extreme hesitancy. His hesitancy leads him to question the meaning of life and his introspection propels him to consider death. Shakespeare urges us to consider how vengeance only leads to a loss of morality, life and ultimately humanity.
Moving from Scotland to ancient Roman times the audience was transported to Rome in Italy, as an ensemble scene was performed by several Year 12 students dressed in Roman togas. Julius Caesar’s popularity amongst the working classes engenders a culture of mistrust, hatred, and scheming from his fellow Senators, who seek to ‘save’ the Roman Republic from becoming another empire under yoke of a potentially tyrannical Emperor. Presenting his inevitable assassination, the audience are yet again reminded by Shakespeare about the dangers of unbridled power.
The day ended in laughter as a scene from Much Ado About Nothing was enacted by four members of staff. Three noblemen (played in Fintona uninform by Elli Burdan, Nick Capriolo and Bryn Loughrey) attempt to trick Signor Benedick (played by Phillipa Elder) into believing the feminist Beatrice (played by Andrew Stringer) is in love with him. Despite Benedick proclaiming at the start of the scene he will die a bachelor, by the end he proclaims he meant he would ‘never live until he were married’, deciding he is in love with Beatrice, who is less than impressed. While farcical in its presentation, Much Ado About Nothing certainly takes its audience on a rollercoaster of love, showing us how easily we can doubt the love of another when our personal pride is at risk.
We look forward to the Tourmont courtyard being transformed again into the Shakespearean Globe Theatre, as next year another generation of Fintona students are recorded in our archives through their involvement in this precious tradition.