OOC: 2 male writers required for Hamlet-based RP

[DeliciousMaiden]

I have no idea where this idea came from, perhaps watching the most recent film version of Hamlet with David Tenant and Patrick Stewart.
Time and again, I’m frustrated by a passive Gertrude character!
I often wonder ... what happened in that Royal Family that led up to that first murder and the family tensions of the first scene?​

So ... I decided to have a go at committing sacrilege and re-writing Hamlet ... with a twist!​

I’m hoping this will have an intellectual side, but hopefully be a celebration of Gertrude’s journey of sexual awakening ...


I’m looking for 1 - 2 male writer(s) who are not intimidated by the Shakespearean stimulus. This OOC will give an overview of the play, so Shakespearean expertise is NOT required. I'm more interested in developing contrasing male characters along with whom my character, Gertrude, can develop and make choices.


One writer will create the role of Old Hamlet, Gertrude's husband - their relationship being loving, but conventional and additionally the role of Hamlet, the son who is tormented by the death of his father and subsequent marriage between his mother and uncle!

The other writer will write Gertrude's brother-in-law and 2nd husband, Claudius. This character is much darker and a direct contrast to his honourable, duty-led brother.


In brief:

Our story starts with the relationship between Hamlet’s father and mother, Gertrude. The settled court. King Hamlet dotes on his wife and is as loving a king as she is a dutiful Queen. Hamlet is away at university initally and all is calm and predictable.
Their marital relations would reflect those dynamics.

This opening scene establishes this background. It is against this backdrop that King Hamlet’s “long lost” brother- Claudius - is to make a first visit.
I’m sure we can come up with some almost feasible reason as to why Gertrude had never met her brother in law - possibly engaged on some crusade?

As alluded to in the play, in contrast to a homely, settled brother, this man is one of action and domination and could be sexually Dominant/Deviant?
I'm seeing them as two sides of a coin, ying/yang, light/dark ...etc...

The moment he sets eyes on Gertrude, he wants to possess her.
Much of our story will be the sexual tension his presence creates which ulitmately leads up to the murder.

Whether Gertrude is a faithful wife until her husband is killed remains to be seen, although if she refuses to betray her husband fully could be additional motive for the brother to be killed.
Despite the love she shares with her husband, Gertrude is drawn towards the dark danger of her brother in law.
She is obviously so in his thrall that he changes her whole perspective.

The second part of the story would be the death of King Hamlet and the subsequent decision to marry. Upon the old King's death, young Hamlet can then be recalled home and become aware of the situation between his mother and uncle.

There is a gap of some months before Gertrude remarries and the first scenes of the actual Shakespeare play take place.

ALTHOUGH IT IS USEFUL TO KNOW THE PLAY, I HAVE TAKEN TIME TO DESCRIBE MAIN THEMES AND PLOT HERE SO THAT YOU COULD ACTUALLY PLAY THIS MERELY BASED ON THIS OOC INFORMATION IF YOU WISH.

Once into the actually events of the Shakespeare plays, we can go for total poetic license and re-write how it might have been and totally adapt the actual storyline of the play.

e.g. - Perhaps due to Hamlet's lack of action his father's ghost could “possess” Hamlet and “communicate/access” Gertrude through him.
This gives an interesting potential to explore Hamlet's interactions with his mother and uncle?

I don’t usually write incest stories, but in this case, I think the mother-son dynamics are interesting and could take on a sexual nature under the dead King or new King's influence?

There are no hard & fast rules!

I am hoping that this story will be a slow exploration of Gertrude and her ... activities ... with each brother ... of conflicting parts of her nature and where appropriate how that mother-son realtionship develops.

2 male characters would give this story a competitive dynamic, but I am willing to consider one skilled writer writing both brothers & Hamlet if they wish to do so.


Please PM me if you’re interested in taking any of the roles and would enjoy the challenge of re-writing Shakespeare!
I'd like this to "plot and hot" and am open to variations on this theme![/I]

Thank you for reading!

DM

 

[DeliciousMaiden]

*Giving this an optimistic lil' bump*

DM

 

[DeliciousMaiden]

1 Male still required ...

Many thanks to LitShark for taking on the role of Claudius!

Still required:

I am still seeking one writer to write Gertrude's loving husband, Hamlet.
The writer should be free to co-create the relationship/dynamics between his character and that of Claudius, the brother.
In addition - once the old King is murdered, the same writer will also write Hamlet Junior - envisaged to be college age or perhaps early 20s? Again this can be decided by the writer.

The role of the son will really hold the action together.
After the murder - the mother and uncle marry -(the court approve this due to the need to secure and stabilise the Kingdom). Young Hamlet is still the heir to the throne, but he obviously resents his uncle's place on the throne and especially in his mother's bed. The relationship between Hamlet and his mother is also open to interpretation.

The only plot requirements are that:
Hamlet returns home from his studies to grieve with his mother
Hamlet finds the uncle 'in situ'.
Hamlet reacts badly to his mother's decision to marry the uncle.

Please note that whatever happens from then onwards is totally up to the three writers, though these events will be largely directed by Hamlet's responses and actions.

I hope this interests someone out there?
Please PM if you have further questions or wish to offer to take part.

Many thanks for reading!
DM

 

[LitShark]

Claudius

Claudius
Age: 43
Height: 6'1"
Eyes: Blue
Hair: Brown
Appearance:

As the second son, Claudius inherited little from his late father. The name, Hamlet had haunted him his entire life, father and prized son. Always the bounty to the first born son. Being of noble lineage, it wasn't as though Claudius suffered a miserable existence, but lacking a suitable contrast aside from his successful and beloved brother, Claudius was always more acutely aware of the things he lacked than the things he was fortunate to have.

Lacking political relevance, Claudius indulged in personal amusements to the extremity. While Hamlet married an influential and beautiful woman, Claudius remained unmarried past his prime, much to the disgrace of his parents who died praising Hamlet and cursing the second son they wished never to have burdened themselves with.

Slowly, over time, Claudius has become ambitious and envious of his brother to the point of near madness. He's begun devising of a scheme to lay King Hamlet low, even take his place on the throne and in his young wife's bed. He'll take any opportunity to undercut his brother's respectability, while 'guising his grander purposes in smiles and fraternal oaths. He returns to the palace for the first time in many years spent in search of his next grand amusement. He's overwhelmingly eager to meet this wife of his brothers who seems to have a talent for birthing heirs. If rumors of her beauty are not overstated, she may offer Claudius the opportunity he needs to supplant his brother on the throne.

((OOC: please let me know if this needs editing or adjusting, adding?))

 

[DeliciousMaiden]

Gertrude

Age: Just approaching or in her 40s
Height: 5'6"
Eyes: Hazel
Hair: Honey Blonde

Gertrude

Gertrude being of Norwegian royal descent was offered to Hamlet by way of a political marriage. At a time when the lands of Norway were threatened with integration into Denmark, marriage between the heirs to both lands seemed to offer a way of uniting the two countries without the need for war or blood-letting. Gertrude had been raised with a keen sense of duty. She had always known that her marriage would be arranged and that marriage was the only way that stability in their threatened country could be negotiated and so, the highly educated and politically acute princess proved to be a realist and accepted the husband that fate had sent her: a man who was more than a decade her senior. For a girl of 19, his age of 33 seemed ancient at the time, but she never considered refusing him.

Yet, against all the odds, the arrangement had excelled their expectations. Gertrude had only met her fiancé three times before their wedding and each of those was chaperoned! He was in haste to marry so once terms were agreed events the wedding was quickly arranged and with it the consummation of their contract, her wedding night, her first time with a man. Before her feet seemed to touch the ground, Gertrude was removed to his Kingdom in Elsinor, learning about her new Kingdom, her new Country and her new husband. In fact so thorough was her learning that within the month she fell pregnant and bore him the son and heir he so craved. Both kingdoms Denmark and Norway equally celebrated the fruit of their union and indeed so attentive and loving a husband did Hamlet prove to be that Gertrude could not avoid falling in love with her husband and falling into a contented life at court.

As the years passed, their son, named Hamlet after his father grew and developed beneath the benevolent eye of his doting parents. He had every advantage and education that money and position could provide him with. The marriage was contented and loving. As an elder spouse her husband was caring and protective of his family and his people. He was a thoughtful ruler more prone to negotiation than to taking arms without exploring diplomatic solutions first. In his young wife he found an interested and intelligent partner and therefore not only listened to and esteemed her opinions, but shared both the trials and tribulations of Kingship and the celebrations each in equal measure.

Which is why she was so shocked when he suddenly informed her that his brother, Claudius, who Gertrude had seen but briefly in the background at their wedding was not only coming to visit, but would most likely be staying with them, for some time …

OOC:
I am still seeking a writer for Old Hamlet and young Hamlet.
I've assumed that Gertrude's husband will be around 54 years old, a gap of 14 years.
By definition of Gertrude's age Hamlet must therefore be either 18/19 - which would make her approaching her 40s, or no older than 21.
Again all this can be confirmed when we find a writer.

Please PM if interested in writing the dual role of Gertrude's husband and son.

 

[DeliciousMaiden]

Role of Old and Young Hamlet cast!

Many thanks to brw02 for joining me in this!

In Character thread to follow shortly - will post link here.

 

[brw02]

King Hamlet I
Age: 53
Height: 6'3"
Brown hair, Blue eyes

The Danes generally viewed King Hamlet as a benevolent monarch. Succeeding his charismatic father, his reign had been characterized by peace and prosperity. Jutland was well positioned to be a major trade center astride the European trade routes. Hamlet had shown his valor in battle and he was an astute military strategist. There were only a few noncontents who would grumble about his adherence to tradition, but the Danes largely discounted them.

The military code of honor guided the King's personal behavior. He was also a deeply religious man. He stood arrow straight in public with his sword at his side and medals worn proudly on his chest. Hamlet also believed in the ruling philosophy of his father: the King served the people and the people served the King. The wealth of the country was shared with his subjects.

Hamlet was also a devoted family man. He adored his wife, Queen Gertrude, and he was very generous with her. She was born into the royal family of Norway and the arranged marriage was more political than anything else. But Hamlet had proven to be a loving and caring husband and Gertrude's heart was soon won over. She had borne him a son and heir who was raised with the love of his parents. Prince Hamlet was now studying in England. A fun-loving university student, young Hamlet still managed to excel in his studies, much to the delight of his family.

King Hamlet was not lavish except when it came to his wife and son. The Queen wore some of the finest silks that were sold in the marketplaces. She had a collection of jewelry from the Middle East and she was lovingly cared for by a staff of palace maids. Queen Gertrude was a strikingly attractive woman to begin with and her husband enjoyed having a beautiful elegant lady on his arm. To the outside observer, they seemed to be the perfect family.

 

[DeliciousMaiden]

In Character Link:

I have reposted my introduction to Gertrude in the IN CHARACTER THREAD.

I would be grateful if you would both do the same.

After that I'll post Gertrude's first and open it up for either of you to jump is as you wish and go from there...

Thank you for writing along with me!

Mari x

 

[DeliciousMaiden]

Gertrude

Thank you both for posting. I've written my first true 'in character' post as Gertrude.

I thought that I'd set the scene as approaching the mid-summer celebrations - to which young Hamlet will not be returning. I thought it would give a good setting during which Claudius could return and the contrast between brothers could be evident? It also gives me a chance to begin to flesh out Gertrude's character.

As ever when creating a story I am more than willing to edit or adjust at any time, though I thought this would give us a valid starting point, I'm always open to all and any ideas from either of you.

Please do let me know here or via PM of any comments or of course feel free to post and continue ...

Thank you
Mari x