Speculative design for a classic play

(Above) Set Design for Hamlet

(Above) Slideshow of Costume Designs for Hamlet

For the last project of the first year we were given the task to design both Set and Costume for the classic play "Hamlet" by William Shakespeare.

The start of this research process began with learning more about the play and the times of performance during Shakespeare's time. This gave me insight on what has changed and possible aspects of theatre that I could use as inspiration for my interpretation.

As the play is set in Denmark, being one of the country's of my origin, I was invested in researching more about Danish Architecture design especially minimalism. This led to making small watercolour studies of the different architecture pieces that all are linked to contemporary design set in naturalistic environments. The website I used to look at this was www.dezeen.com. Through them I gathered many examples of danish architects who all used wood to create a minimalist architecture piece.

Through this research I was inspired to investigate a completely different culture which also has an excellent taste in design for both architecture and fashion: Japan. Reading the play drove me to this direction as Hamlet is torn between choosing his father or murdering his uncle who married his mother. Family and ancestry are very important in Japanese culture and I want to emphasise this theme through my design in "Hamlet".

The shrine acts as a gateway to the spirit houses and this piece of architecture will be present in my design.

Through experimentation with materials and shapes I landed on more research subjects which I further incorporated into my final piece: such as the shoji screen door. This part of Japanese culture and architecture has turned into the main curtain in the theatre space, which hides the set at the start, intervals, and end of the play.

Costumes

From the start I knew I wanted a simplistic set design, and more elaborate costumes. Japanese fashion was the world I decided to explore more. Before completely focusing on it, I compared and contrasted Danish and Japanese minimalist fashion. The difference in silhouette caught my eye and drew me towards Japan. Following in depth research I concluded on choosing traditional Japanese dress which worked with the dramatic amount of layers of clothing I wanted my characters to have and a few of them to undress during the performance.