Overview

Critics regarded Sarah Bernhardt's interpretation of Hamlet in 1899 as the revelation of Shakespeare's tragedy in France. The Bernhardt Hamlet is the first to investigate that production and to explain its context and its impact upon the cultural life of the time. Bernhardt's most significant innovation was her rejection of romantic sensibility in favor of the revenge tradition. In assuming a male role, she remained within the theatrical tradition of travesti that came to full fruition in the nineteenth century. Classically trained, the 54-year-old Bernhardt refashioned the Hamlet inheritance with insight, vigor, and originality.

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9780820423357

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Gerda Taranow's careful and scholarly study should be required reading for any actor, director, or teacher. Her presentation of the long tradition of 'travesti' Hamlets is fascinating, especially in the light of current feminist interests. Dr. Taranow recreates the sense of Bernhardt's performance as if she had seen it herself. (Richard Sewall, Professor of English Emeritus, Yale University) Gerda Taranow's study is well and vigorously written. It will fascinate both scholars and the general public. Taranow carefully documents Bernhardt's innovations and points out their impact on the transformation of the Hamlet figure. I felt as though I were living the life of the play in its continuity. (Germaine Bree, Kenan Professor of Humanities Emerita, Wake Forest University)

Author Information

The Author: Gerda Taranow, Professor of English at Connecticut College is a theatre historian, specializing in both Shakespeare and the art of performance. She holds a doctorate from Yale University, where she was also a post-doctoral fellow. Author of Sarah Bernhardt: The Art Within the Legend, Dr. Taranow has received fellowships and grants from the NEH, the Mellon Foundation, and the Ford Foundation.

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