SARAH:  In his “rogue and peasant slave” soliloquy, Hamlet asks himself why he’s unable to get up the passion or the conviction to take action.  His father’s been murdered and the crown has been usurped by the murderer:  so Hamlet certainly has excellent reasons for being bold and taking revenge.

RALPH:  But he hasn’t done it yet. However, he has come up with a plan. He’s going to have a band of travelling actors stage a play for the royal court, with a scene that closely resembles the murder of his father. If Claudius is startled or acts strangely, then Hamlet will have more concrete proof of Claudius’s guilt.

SARAH:  The play is scheduled for that night. In the meantime, Hamlet finds himself once again alone on the stage.

RALPH:  Well, almost alone.  Just before Hamlet walks on stage, we see Polonius and Claudius getting ready to send Ophelia to talk with Hamlet.

SARAH:  As she does so, they’ll be listening behind a curtain.  So when Hamlet delivers his soliloquy, Ophelia is on stage, and the King and Polonius are hiding, either off- or onstage.

RALPH:  Hamlet’s speech continues his thoughts where he left off in his last soliloquy. This time, we’ll hear him as he tries to determine exactly what’s holding him back from taking action.