AAD 310 Study Guide - Final Guide: Pacific Northwest Ballet, Ballet Austin, Kurt Cobain
15 Jun 2018
School
Department
Course
Professor
Danielle Johnson
Prof. Sciantarelli
AAD 310: Marketing For The Arts
29 March 2018
The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark
Choreography and Artistic Direction| Stephen Mills
With music by Nirvana, Alice in Chains, Pearl Jam, SoundGarden and more...
Though this be madness, yet there is method in't.
-Hamlet, Act 2, Scene 2
The Pacific Northwest Ballet company yet again tests the boundaries of dance and
genre with a contemporary production of one of Shakespeare’s most poignant tragedies,
Hamlet. The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark is the harrowing tale of a young Prince
brimming with angst and confusion brought home to his native Denmark after the murder
of his father. The play is filled with intrigue, romance, murder, hijinks, and the supernatural
and from the creative genius that is Ballet Austin’s Stephen Mills, comes this intense and
theatrical masterpiece brought to the iconic On the Boards stage. Set in Seattle in the 1990s
Mills’ brings the age-old tragedy to a new audience by using the grunge sound that Seattle
is famous for. Set to the distortion-filled, dissonant rock harmonies that characterized the
genre, Mills’ is able to give true justice to Hamlet’s internal struggle in a way never seen
before.
My event is a contemporary one night only performance of Shakespeare's’ Hamlet.
Under the artistic direction of choreographer and artistic director Stephen Mills of Ballet
Austin, I wanted to create a unique experience that would retain the organization's current
audience and draw new ones in. When thinking of Hamlet a few themes come to mind:
death, mortality, uncertainty, angst, introspection, etc… These are all similar thematic
troupes found in grunge music. By marrying the two, it is my hope that they blend
seamlessly together creating a ballet for the modern age.
From the dancer's hair and makeup to the costumes they wear all would be in the
vein of the 1990s; Think a Kurt Cobain Hamlet and his Courtney Love Ophelia. These
aspects combined with the sights and sounds of the 90s will take the audience back to a
time not long ago. This will create a new perspective on the tale making Shakespeare and
the ballet both often assumed to be for a stuffy older upper class for the common man.
From my organizations, SWOT Analysis one of the main weaknesses hurting PNB is the fact
that the mission and vision are not customer-centric. By doing this special performance of
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
With music by nirvana, alice in chains, pearl jam, soundgarden and more (cid:498)though this be madness, yet there is method in"t. (cid:499) The pacific northwest ballet company yet again tests the boundaries of dance and troupes found in grunge music. By marrying the two, it is my hope that they blend seamlessly together creating a ballet for the modern age. From the dancer"s hair and makeup to the costumes they wear all would be in the vein of the 1990s; think a kurt cobain hamlet and his courtney love ophelia. These aspects combined with the sights and sounds of the 90s will take the audience back to a time not long ago. This will create a new perspective on the tale making shakespeare and the ballet both often assumed to be for a stuffy older upper class for the common man.
