Looking for Hamlet
Thursday, January 31 2008
by Frank Stasio and Lindsay Thomas
| 
Send to a friend
Edwin Booth as William Shakespeare's Hamlet, circa 1870 (Photographer unknown)
Since Shakespeare's "Hamlet" premiered in the 17th century, everyone from Mel Gibson to Bart Simpson has taken a stab at the role of the brooding prince. In his new book, "Looking for Hamlet," (Palgrave Macmillan/ 2007) N.C. State professor Marvin Hunt argues that while the Bard's words were beautiful, the popularity of "Hamlet" persisted into the 19th and 20th centuries largely because of society's fascination with psychology and psychiatry. Hunt joins host Frank Stasio to get inside the mind of the world's most famous melancholy Dane.
Plus, the latest local group to tackle "Hamlet" is the North Carolina Symphony. Frank talks to John Mauceri and Gerald Freedman, two of the creative minds behind this upcoming production.
