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Post-Show
Reflection Activities
HAMLET
IN ROTATING
REPERTORY
WITH
SAINT JOAN
With Alignments to the Common Core Curriculum and
New Jersey Core Curriculum Content Standards
Created by McCarter Theatre Center. 2017.
Hamlet / Saint Joan Resource Guide
Table of Contents
COMMON CORE & NJ CORE STANDARDS
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BUS BABBLE Hamlet / Saint Joan
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PERFORMANCE REFLECTION AND DISCUSSION Hamlet / Saint Joan
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DRAMATIC FORM Hamlet / Saint Joan
ELEMENTS OF A REVENGE TRAGEDY Hamlet
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SKETCHING A SCENE Hamlet / Saint Joan
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WRITING THE REVIEW Hamlet / Saint
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Created by McCarter Theatre Center. 2017.
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Hamlet / Saint Joan Resource Guide
Common Core Curriculum & NJ Core Curriculum Content Standards
Our production of Bedlam’s Hamlet / Saint Joan and the activities outlined in this guide are designed to enrich your
students educational experiences by addressing many Reading, Writing, Speaking, and Listening Common Core
Anchor Standards as well as specific New Jersey Core Curriculum Content Standards for Visual and Performing Arts.
(Click on the titles below to be linked to the activities.)
BUS BABBLE Hamlet / Saint Joan
NCAAS.Responding Anchor Standard #7. Perceive and Analyze Artistic Work
NCAAS.Responding Anchor Standard #8. Interpret Intent and Meaning in Artistic Work
PERFORMANCE DISCUSSION AND REFLECTION Hamlet / Saint Joan
NCAAS.Responding Anchor Standard #7. Perceive and Analyze Artistic Work
NCAAS.Responding Anchor Standard #8. Interpret Intent and Meaning in Artistic Work
DRAMATIC FORM Hamlet / Saint Joan
NCAAS.Responding Anchor Standard #7. Perceive and Analyze Artistic Work
RL.11-12.3. Analyze the impact of the author’s choices regarding how to develop and relate elements of
a story or drama (e.g., where a story is set, how the action is ordered, how the characters are introduced
and developed).
SKETCHING A SCENE: WRITING THE NEXT SCENE OR SEQUEL TO
Hamlet / Saint Joan
NCAAS.Connecting Anchor Standard #10. Synthesize and relate knowledge and personal experiences
to make art
NCAAS.Responding Anchor Standard #7. Perceive and Analyze Artistic Work
NCAAS.Responding Anchor Standard #8. Interpret Intent and Meaning in Artistic Work
NJSLSA.W3. Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique,
well-chosen details, and well-structured event sequences.
NNJSLSA.R3. Analyze how and why individuals, events, and ideas develop and interact over the course
of a text.
WRITING THE REVIEW Hamlet / Saint Joan
NCAAS.Responding Anchor Standard #7. Perceive and Analyze Artistic Work
NCAAS.Responding Anchor Standard #8. Interpret Intent and Meaning in Artistic Work
NJSLSA.R3. Analyze how and why individuals, events, and ideas develop and interact over the course
of a text.
RL.11-12.3. Analyze the impact of the author’s choices regarding how to develop and relate elements of
a story or drama (e.g., where a story is set, how the action is ordered, how the characters are
introduced and developed)
Created by McCarter Theatre Center. 2017.
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Hamlet / Saint Joan Resource Guide
BUS BABBLE: Hamlet / Saint Joan
On the bus returning from the theatre, have the students write down 5
words to describe the feelings and thoughts they have about the
production they just saw. For homework, ask students to elaborate on
two of their chosen words either as a journaling assignment, a
schoolbased online forum, or via social media, using #BedlamHAMLET
#BedlamJOAN and @mccarter.
PERFORMANCE REFLECTION AND DISCUSSION:
Hamlet / Saint Joan
In the next class meeting following their attendance at the performance of Hamlet / Saint Joan, ask your students to
consider the questions below. You might choose to have them first reflect on the questions in writing, and then share
their answers orally in either a full-class discussion or small-group breakout sessions.
Questions to Ask your Students About the Play in Production
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What was your overall reaction to Bedlam’s Hamlet / Saint Joan ? Did you find the production
compelling? Stimulating? Intriguing? Challenging? Memorable? Confusing? Evocative? Bizarre?
Unique? Delightful? Meaningful? Explain your reactions.
What themes of the play especially stood out in production? What themes were made even more
apparent or especially provocative in performance? Explain your responses.
Is there a moment in the play that specifically resonated with you either intellectually or emotionally?
Which moment was it and why do you think it affected you?
Was there anything about the play—for example, its story, structure, characters, language, dramatic
style—that felt new or different to you in relation to your experience of other plays (either on the
page or in performance)?
Questions to Ask your Students About the Characters
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Did you personally identify with any of the characters in Hamlet / Saint Joan? Who? Why? If no,
why not?
What character did you find most interesting or engaging? Why were you intrigued or attracted to
this particular character?
What new information was revealed by the actions/objectives, speech, and physicalization of the
characters?
In what ways did the actions of the characters and/or their motivations reveal the themes of the
play? Explain your responses.
Did any characters develop, undergo a transformation, or make an emotional journey during the
course of the play? Who? How? Why?
How did seeing one actor play multiple characters inform or impact your impression of those
characters and/or their relationship?
Created by McCarter Theatre Center. 2017.
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Hamlet / Saint Joan Resource Guide
Questions to Ask your Students About the Style and Design of the Production
This production of Hamlet / Saint Joan might have looked or felt very different than theatre you have seen before
at McCarter (or anywhere else for that matter.) Across the board Bedlam’s aesthetic is generally “bare bones”; by
simplifying the sets and props, the company finds they can focus most deeply on the language and the
characters in their plays. Know that the ensemble prides itself in using only what is neccessary for production
elements to tell their story. Encourage students to reflect on Bedlam’s specific use of style and design with the
following questions.
Was there a moment in Hamlet / Saint Joan that was so compelling, intriguing, entertaining, or engaging
that it remains with you in your mind’s eye and ears? Write a vivid description of that moment. As you
write your description, pretend that you are writing about the moment for someone who was unable to
experience the performance.
How did the overall production style and design suit the story, inform the characters, and reflect the
central themes of Hamlet / Saint Joan? Explain your response.
How did Bedlam’s “bare bones” aesthetic affect the style and design elements used in this production
and how were they used to enhance the performance?
What mood, atmosphere, and impact did Les Dickert’s lighting design accomplish? In what ways did Les
use light to establish location?
What did you notice about the costumes design? What specific costume pieces were used to denote
when ensemble members switched characters?
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DRAMATIC FORM: Hamlet / Saint Joan
Typically, in the Western dramatic form, a play’s story typically focuses on an extraordinary moment in the life of
a character when she or he is unexpectedly confronted by someone or something and is forced to react/respond
or when he or she suddenly decides to act upon a strong desire or need and faces obstacles that stand in the
way. Sometimes, in the most dramatically compelling of plays, both of these things occur.
Also typical of Western dramatic form is that a play ends after the character that stands at the center of the play
is transformed, experiences a change of heart, and/or comes to some new understanding about him- or herself,
about what he or she wants, about the world around him or her, or about human existence itself. Ask your
students to consider Hamlet / Saint Joan in relation to the above principles of standard Western drama.
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What extraordinary moment, incident, or circumstance sets the plot of Hamlet / Saint Joan in motion?
Who do you think are the protagonists/central characters of Hamlet / Saint Joan? Why? What case
would you make to justify your response?
Are Hamlet / Saint Joan the sort of plays in which the protagonist is confronted by someone or
something or is it a play in which the protagonist acts upon a strong desire or need? Or is it both?
Explain your answer.
What strong desires, needs, or wants do the individual characters express in the course of the play,
and what obstacles/conflicts (either external or internal) stand in the way of them pursuing and
fulfilling those desires, needs or wants?
[Continued]
Created by McCarter Theatre Center. 2017.
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Hamlet / Saint Joan Resource Guide
Questions to Ask your Students About Dramatic Form [Continued]
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At the end of Hamlet / Saint Joan, which characters have been changed or transformed by confrontation
and conflict? What was each character like at the play’s beginning and what is s/he like when the lights
fade on the final moment? What from the action of the play accounts for each characters’ transformation?
If a character doesn’t change, consider what accounts for his or her stasis.
Are there any characters who act as “agents of change,” someone who helps to transform and shed light
with a new perspective, in the course of the play? What changes do they act as a catalyst for? How and
why do they foster the changes in others?
How might what happens in the play to these characters/relationships spark a new beginning or change for
each character individually, for interfamily relationships, and/or for the family as a whole?
ELEMENTS OF A REVENGE TRAGEDY: Hamlet
Thomas Kyd established the revenge tragedy with his wildly popular Spanish Tragedy, and Shakespeare
perfected the genre with Hamlet.
Most revenge tragedies share some basic elements, such as:
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A play within a play
A vengeful ghost
A high death count
One or several gory scenes
A character inflicted with madness
One of the most remarkable things about Hamlet is it’s enduring popularity. For centuries now actors, directors,
scholars and critics alike have been captivated by this universal tale. We encourage you to engage your
students in a discussion about the elements of a revenge tragedy and have them brainstorm places in popculture
(film, television, literature) they can either recall Hamlet being referenced, or stories that include these elements.
To jump start your brainstorm session, we have included a modest list of some examples.
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The Lion King
The Simpsons Season 13 Episode 14 (Bart as Hamlet, Lisa as Ophelia, Moe as Claudius)
Star Trek Season 22 Episode 3 Picard recites all of “To be or not to be...” in Klingon
FX’s Sons of Anarchy was created as a loose interpretation of Hamlet
Star Wars’ The Empire Strikes Back has a scene where Chewbaca hold’s C-3PO’s head a la
Hamlet and Yorick’s Skull
“Ophelia” by The Band; “The King Must Die” by Elton John; “Dear Ophelia” by Abney Park; “Cruel
to be Kind” by Nick Lowe are all songs that directly reference Hamlet
March 1994 Calvin & Hobbes Comic Strip
Created by McCarter Theatre Center. 2017.
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Hamlet / Saint Joan Resource Guide
SKETCHING A SCENE: Writing the Next Scene or Sequel
to Hamlet / Saint Joan
Ask your students to recall the final scene in Hamlet / Saint Joan and have them consider what might happen
next if they were to continue the play where Shakespeare or Shaw left off. If the play were to continue, what
would come next? If a sequel existed, how would Act One, Scene One of its sequel begin? Then ask them to
write that scene. Before they put pen or pencil to paper or hand to keyboard, have them brainstorm the
following:
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Where and when does this scene take place? Be specific. Think about place and time in general
(city, state, year, season) as well as the more specific (what room/space are they in, and what time
of day is it)
Which characters from Shakespeare and Shaw’s original plays will be included? Are any new/
additional characters present?Will any characters from the original return as visions or ghosts?
How much time has passed since the previous scene? What brings the characters together in the
immediate moment?
What might each character want in the immediate moment for him or herself? What might he or
she want from another character? What are their motivations/reasons for wanting what they want?
What obstacles might stand in the way?
What is the physical nature of this place? Are there any significant objects in the space?
After brainstorming in pairs, have students write their scenes. Once completed, these scenes can be shared
as simple readings or they can be put up on their feet, rehearsed, and performed as script in hand
presentations. Students may also choose to write their sequel as a short story if preferred.
*Alternative: Have students write a monologue from the perspective of a character not featured
in the play (e.g. A next-door neighbor, a soldier in the army, a pirate on the boat, etc.) or
from another point in time remembering the backstory of Hamlet and Saint Joan (e.g. When Joan lived in the
country as a maid, the first time Joan had Saints Margaret and Catherine appear to her, when Hamlet was in
school in Germany and heard his father had died, etc.)
BEDLAM CHALLENGE
After students have successfully written their next scene or sequel to Hamlet / Saint Joan in the style of
Shakespeare or Shaw, invite them to try and revist their piece with a “Bedlam Lens.”
Challenge students to think how they might divy up the characers among a small group of actors. Which
roles does it make sense to double up using only one actor to preform them? What physical gestures can
this actor do to denote this shift in character, and how can students, as writers of this scene or sequel,
enhance the language in the scene to support this? What props / costume peices are essential to the
audience understanding this shift in character?
Created by McCarter Theatre Center. 2017.
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Hamlet / Saint Joan Resource Guide
WRITING THE REVIEW: Hamlet / Saint Joan
Have your students take on the role of theater critic by writing a review of Bedlam’s production of
Hamlet / Saint Joan. A theater critic or reviewer is essentially a “professional audience member,” whose job
is to provide reportage of a play’s production and performance through active and descriptive language for a
target audience of readers (e.g., their peers, their community, or those interested in the arts). Critics /
reviewers analyze the theatrical event to provide a clearer understanding of the artistic ambitions and
intentions of a play and its production; reviewers often ask themselves;
What is the playwright and this production attempting to do?
Finally, the critic offers personal judgment as to whether the artistic intentions of a production were
achieved, effective and worthwhile. Things to consider before writing:
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Theater critics/reviewers always back up their opinions with reasons, evidence, and details.
The elements of production that can be discussed in a theatrical review are the play text or script
(and its themes, plot, characters, etc.), scenic elements, costumes, lighting, sound, music, acting and
direction (i.e., how all of these elements are put together).
Educators may want to provide their students with sample theater reviews—of productions other
than Bedlam’s Hamlet / Saint Joan—from a variety of newspapers.
Encourage your students to submit their reviews to the school newspaper for publication. And ask
them to email them to us at [email protected].
Have your students research online for theatrical reviews of Bedlam’s Hamlet / Saint Joan production at
McCarter Theatre. Once a number of reviews have been culled from online, break students up into pairs and
ask them to analyze and critique a review both for its critical perspective and for its quality of writing.
Reviewing The Reviews
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Did the reviewer use active and descriptive language? What words or phrases particularly stood
out in the review?
Did the reviewer consider/discuss all of the elements of production (i.e., scenic elements, costumes,
lighting, sound, music, acting and direction?)
Did the reviewer see to understand and articulate the artistic ambitions and intentions of the play
in production and provide a personal judgement as to whether or not the production succeeded,
was effective, and/or worthwhile?
Then discuss the reviews as a class and ask teams to offer up examples of both effective and not so
effective review writing.
Created by McCarter Theatre Center. 2017.
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