Waiting for Guildenstern

When young college English majors are looking for a brooding, introspective, poetic prince, we fall a little bit in love with Hamlet. But by the time we hit 29--and have worked through a string of emotionally unavailable, singularly focused, potentially homicidal men--we realize why Ophelia killed herself. Though we haven't...

By Michelle Mathews

January 22, 2009

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When young college English majors are looking for a brooding, introspective, poetic prince, we fall a little bit in love with Hamlet. But by the time we hit 29--and have worked through a string of emotionally unavailable, singularly focused, potentially homicidal men--we realize why Ophelia killed herself. Though we haven't given up on Hamlet yet: Perhaps it's not the great Dane who deserves our affection, but the small mutts scurrying in the background of the play--Hamlet's "friends" Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. Tom Stoppard's hilarious meta-play, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, focuses on the existential quandaries of these minor characters. Adhering to Stoppard's quote that "every exit [is] an entrance somewhere else," the Dallas Hub Theater, 2809 Canton St., is staging simultaneous productions (one cast, two stages) of both the Shakespearean classic and Rosencrantz and Guildenstern beginning Friday. Call 214-749-7010 or visit dallashubtheater.org.
Fridays, Saturdays, 8:15 p.m. Starts: Jan. 23. Continues through Feb. 7, 2009

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