Shakespeare on Stage in Squalid Migrant Camp in France
"This, above all, to thine own self be true."
The words from Shakespeare's Hamlet rang out on the most unlikely stage on Wednesday, a squalid migrant camp in the northern French port of Calais, known locally as the "jungle."
Joe Murphy, one of Good Chance's artistic directors, said Hamlet's message resonates in the grimness of Calais.
"Hamlet is about a man who is confused, in doubt, who is contemplating life, who is contemplating death, who is in the middle of a decision ... And this is the situation and the reality for many young men in the camp," he said.
"There are many young kids here without their families and they are experiencing exactly what this play is about," Murphy said, referring to Hamlet whose father was killed.
"Refugee camps have become part of the tour," Thomas Bird, the Globe's executive producer, said in an interview with The Associated Press.
"There's a lot of boredom here as well as a lot of need, and so we can give two hours of entertainment," Bird said.
Bird said the company tried to provide an experience that wouldn't require any previous knowledge about Shakespeare, adding that Hamlet "is a very adaptable piece of work."
http://news.yahoo.com/shakespeare-stage-squalid-migrant-camp-north-france-080704165.html
