Brevity is the soul of wit. And we are not wise.
In November 2013, the New York Times challenged students to perform a line of Hamlet via Instagram. We loved the idea, but not the scope. One line seemed too easy. So we set ourselves a challenge. In a stunt that has been called "EPIC!", "really cool", and "sloppy as fuck", we performed all of Hamlet, word for word, in 15 second Instagram videos. It took 23 and a half consecutive hours, 506 posts, and full bottles of both Jim Beam and Kraken. We're pretty sure this has never been done. So thanks for participating in the Gramlet experiment. For ease of viewing, every 25th video has been numbered as a landmark. If you don't have the time, patience, or liquor to watch all 506, highlights can be found here. The piece was conceived by Cristina Fernandez and Zach Davidson, and performed with a revolving cast (whoever was around). You'll notice that it starts with fairly standard production elements (costume, character, lights, sound, effort, etc) and rapidly devolves into speed-reads and shenanigans. It was shot (mostly) inside a theatre lobby, during which, the set of "Threepenny Opera" was being struck inside the theatre. So this piece is, on many levels, about the deconstruction of traditional theatre. For future projects, check out our main page. The native instagram posts can be found here.
