Before you buy Hamlet tickets you might want to sample the atmosphere of this significant production in the form of a brief Hamlet synopsis. The story of Hamlet has been immortalised over the centuries, and today enjoys a distinction attained by very few dramatic plays. Furnish yourself with a quick panorama here of the characters and plot devices used to create one of the most powerful stage productions of all time. Your Hamlet Broadway tickets await you, so make sure you have the low-down on what makes Hamlet such a big deal. Don’t forget, this script was written by Shakespeare in 1601-2, and has stood the test of time in ways most mortal creations have not.

Hamlet Synopsis

The setting for Hamlet is the State of Denmark. Vengeance is a pivotal urge in the Hamlet plot. The central character, Prince Hamlet, is primed for revenge early in the tale, when he returns from his studies to Elsinore Castle where his parents, King Hamlet and Queen Gertrude, live. To his horror and suspicion, Prince Hamlet discovers his father is dead and Claudius, his father’s brother, is married to his mother. Some castle groundsmen and the scholar Horatio (a friend of Hamlet’s) are confronted by the ghost of King Hamlet, who tells them he was murdered by Claudius. They bring the Prince and his suspicions are confirmed. This is the crucial point at which Hamlet descends into a dilemma of anger and mourning, arousing fear in the man who killed his father. His wiliness is his remaining weapon against the wicked Claudius, and Hamlet embarks on a complicated attack that entails feigning insanity. Unfortunately, his histrionics lead to an accidental death, for which Hamlet is sent to England by Claudius under secret orders he be put to death. He is accompanied by two acquaintance-spies, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern.

By now, it is established that Hamlet has an attraction for a girl, Ophelia, but in his aberrant state insists she enters a nunnery and that all marriages are banned. Ophelia is the daughter of Polonius, the man Hamlet accidentally killed. She is as grief-stricken as Hamlet at his own father’s murder, and the air of tragedy hangs heavy on the stage.

Hamlet’s ship to England is attacked by pirates and he finds himself once more in Denmark.

Ophelia’s brother Laertes appears, angered by the state of his sister. He is coerced into a sly plot by Claudius, to engage in a sword-fight with Hamlet using a poison-tipped sword. Claudius also prepares a goblet of poisoned wine, to offer Hamlet in the event of his winning the duel. Before they can fight, Gertrude enters with the news that Ophelia, overcome by grief, has drowned herself in a river. The scene is in uproar, with Laertes and Hamlet brawling, as Prince Hamlet declares his love for Ophelia. They resume the sword-fight. Gertrude makes a toast to her son, but drinks from the poisoned goblet prepared by Claudius. Laertes stabs Hamlet with the poison-tipped blade. Hamlet wrestles the sword off Laertes and in turn pierces Laertes’ flesh with same. As the two lay dying, they reconcile, and the full extent of Claudius’s evil plot is revealed by Laertes. In one final act, Hamlet kills Claudius and names Prince Fortinbras as the heir to the throne of Denmark. Hamlet’s honour is restored, and the curtain comes down on the greatest tragedy ever written.