'Hotel Elsinore' at Midwest Trust Center at Johnson County Community College

Denmark. It’s 2 a.m. A hotel room. Three weary travelers, an unexpected will, and a production of “Hamlet” to rehearse before morning. Be captivated as tragedy and humor blend in this new play about the challenges of family, forgiveness, and Shakespeare.

Real-life family – Susanna Hamnett, Joshua MacGregor and Lily MacGregor – play the bereaved family of the once-great actor Henry Elder, billed to perform his career-defining solo of Hamlet at the famous Elsinore Shakespeare Festival. But as they discover, Henry Elder is determined not to let anything as inconvenient as death prevent him from being there. With Shakespeare’s "Hamlet" as the pivot around which the family’s story revolves, the play is both absurd and poignant.

Written and performed by award-winning actor Susanna Hamnett, along with her son and daughter, this piece premiered at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 2022. It is the winner of the Carol Tambor Incentive Award, chosen by the Carol Tambor Theatrical Foundation to encourage new writing and live performance at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.