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GREAT PERFORMANCES: Hamlet (2010)

Classical stage and screen actors Sir Patrick Stewart (front), in his Laurence Olivier Award-winning turn as Claudius, and David Tennant (behind), as the titular Dane, reprise their roles in this television adaptation of the Royal Shakespeare Company’s 2008 stage production of "Hamlet."
Ellie Kurttz ©Illuminations/Royal Shakespeare Company
Classical stage and screen actors Sir Patrick Stewart (front), in his Laurence Olivier Award-winning turn as Claudius, and David Tennant (behind), as the titular Dane, reprise their roles in this television adaptation of the Royal Shakespeare Company’s 2008 stage production of "Hamlet."

Sunday, July 25, 2010 at 12 p.m. on KPBS TV

Television’s longest-running performing arts anthology continues to broadcast the best in music, dance and theater.

Shakespeare's tortured Danish prince receives a contemporary spin in this critically acclaimed production from the Royal Shakespeare Company. Starring David Tennant as Hamlet (familiar to fans as Dr. Who in the cult-favorite UK science fiction TV series) and Patrick Stewart as Claudius, this television adaptation features an edgy interpretation by innovative director Gregory Doran, utilizing location shooting at St. Joseph's College, London, as the setting for a present-day Elsinore Castle. Winning a 2009 Olivier Award for his performance, Tennant is joined by Oliver Ford Davies as Polonius, Penny Downie as Gertrude and Mariah Gale as Ophelia.