RALPH: Hello, and welcome to our discussion of The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark. I'm your host, Ralph Holinshed. Hamlet is considered by many to be Shakespeare's finest achievement. And it's certainly one of the greatest works of literature in the Western tradition. And we'll soon see for ourselves why that's the case. Hamlet asks tough questions about personal identity, the relationship between thought and action, and the very nature of reality itself. Today we'll be talking with some of the main characters from the play right here in the studio. We'll also be checking in on the events of the play as they unfold with our on-the-scenes reporter, Sarah Siddons. Sarah. 

SARAH: Thanks, Ralph. That's right, I'm standing here on the very spot where the story of Hamlet is about to come to life. This may look like just an empty stage, but soon it will be the site of swashbuckling adventure, steamy love stories, backstabbing, and poisonous intrigues, graveyard comedy, morbid obsession, and of course, brutally graphic violence. That's the magic of theater and the genius of Shakespeare, to turn this empty stage into a world unto itself where we, the audience, can witness the exceptional and sometimes tragic lives of others. And perhaps, along the way, learn a little something about this thing we call being human. Oh, dear. It looks like things are about to get under way. I'll take my spot just over here in the wings of the theater. I'll keep you informed of the events as they develop. Back to you, Ralph, for a brief introduction to the play. 

RALPH: Thanks, Sarah. As with many of his plays, Shakespeare likely adapted the plot of Hamlet from historical accounts of a real Danish Prince Hamlet—whatever real means. A prince who must avenge the death of his father, a king, who has been killed by an evil uncle. The action of the play takes place in medieval Denmark at Elsinore Castle, which occupies a strategic location on the coast of the Baltic Sea. Although the play revolves primarily around its title character, Hamlet, the political dimension, several wars, and plenty of courtly intrigue form an important part of the story. In the first scene of the play, for example, we learned that Denmark is in a state of high military alert. To help provide a better understanding of the geopolitical context for the play, I've prepared a series of slides that help frame the—uh, excuse me. But—but, I haven't even started the—it seems the play is off to an exciting start. Let's go to Sarah for an update. 

SARAH: Things are going to move very quickly here, Ralph. Right off the bat, Act One, Scene One, a ghost has been sighted on the battlements of Elsinore Castle by the guards on duty, as well as Hamlet's good friend Horatio. And here they come now. Good morning, gentlemen. You look as though you've seen a ghost. 

HORATIO: Umm. 

SARAH: Don't worry, I saw it too. I was standing right here. 

HORATIO: OK, yeah. I guess we did see a ghost. 

SARAH: That must have been terribly frightening. 

HORATIO: No, not really. 

MARCELLUS: All right, it was kind of freaky. 

HORATIO: To him. 

SARAH: Does this sort of thing happen a lot in Elsinore? 

HORATIO: No. 

MARCELLUS: Well— 

HORATIO: OK, it happened once—twice before. Just last night, Marcellus and Barnardo saw the same thing. That's why I came out tonight, this morning, whatever, to figure out what exactly they saw. I mean, I'm not a superstitious person. And I figure these guys, well, they're just kind of tired and it's spooky out there, so I was— 

SARAH: So what did happen exactly? 

HORATIO: Well, it appeared out of thin air. And it looked exactly like King Hamlet. 

SARAH: King Hamlet? You mean, Prince Hamlet. 

HORATIO: No, no, King Hamlet. Dead King Hamlet. You're not from around here, are you? 

SARAH: No, just got in today actually. 

MARCELLUS: King Hamlet was Prince Hamlet's father, but he died about a month ago. 

HORATIO: Six weeks I think. 

MARCELLUS: Wait, has it been that long already? 

HORATIO: Yeah, I mean the wedding was— 

SARAH: Prince Hamlet's father was also named Hamlet. That's confusing. 

MARCELLUS: I know, I hate it when royalty does that. 

SARAH: Why do you think he's come back? 

HORATIO: I don't know. We were trying to figure that out. I mean, it can't be good news. 

MARCELLUS: We think Norway's going to attack. 

SARAH: Norway? 

HORATIO: Oh, you don't know about that either? OK, see, King Hamlet fought old Kind Fortinbras a while back, from Norway, and killed him fair and square, which meant that Denmark got all this land. But Fortinbras's son, Fortinbras Junior— 

MARCELLUS: Fortinbras and Fortinbras. 

HORATIO: —see, he's a little hellraiser. And we think he's gearing up to march on Denmark, avenge his father's death, and take back that land. Anyways, we're talking about this and the damned thing comes back. 

SARAH: So the ghost appeared twice tonight. 

HORATIO: Yeah, and I figure we should talk to it, or at least I do. 

MARCELLUS: Well, your Latin's better than mine. 

HORATIO: And then dumb-ass here throws a spear at it. 

MARCELLUS: You said I should. 

HORATIO: Well, it didn't do much except make it disappear again. 

MARCELLUS: Well, then don't tell me to do it. 

HORATIO: C'mon! Let's go find Hamlet. 

SARAH: Meanwhile, the new king, Claudius, is addressing his court. For more on that, let's go back to the studio. Ralph.